In October 1866, Sarah Mitchell married J.E. Sharp in Decatur County. John was 8 years old. On March 13, 1877 at age 19, John started on a trip to see his step-brother in Fort Hays, Kansas. In 1880, John became engaged to Jennie Robbins (birth date unknown). He returned to Indiana in 1883 to find that Jennie had tuberculosis. John married her on July 31st of 1883.  John and Jennie lived on a farm near Westport in Decatur County, Indiana and had 2 children - a boy and a girl, Mae.

On the 28 of August, 1890, John got caught in a steam derrick at the quarry he worked at and damaged his left hand severely keeping him from work for 2 months. On September 26, 1890 John's little son died (birth date unknown). On April 18, 1894 Jennie Robbins Taylor died from tuberculosis. John closed his house and boarded somewhere sending his daughter Mae to live with his mother Sarah. On October 1st, 1895 John had his mother and daughter come to live with him in Greensburg, Decatur County.

In 1898, John headed to Arkansas to see brother Daniel Ketcham. In 1901, John's daughter Mae married Mr. John Sulkey. On February 8, 1903,  45 year old John remarried to 18 year old Hanna Etta Pease.  Hannah Etta Pease was born March 1, 1885. John and "Etta" had two sons - William and Joseph Harrison Taylor.  William died in infancy.  John Wesley Taylor died of pneumonia on March 26, 1908 at the of age 50 and is buried at Mt. Aerie Cemetery, Westport, Indiana.  Hannah Etta Taylor remarried to Smith Bliton and had children of their own.

Somethime in the 1890s, John started a brief diary. View it here

External Links
Westport Website

Relationship to author

1. John Taylor
 2. Joseph C. Taylor
  3. John Wesley Taylor
   4. Joseph Harrison Taylor
    5. Sally Ann Taylor, b. 1934
     6. Charles M. Taylor, b. 1955

Email Site Author
Chuck Taylor