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THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2002. PAGE A-17.
Agriculture 2002
Fourth generation preserves family history
Linked to the past
Boyd and Muriel Taylor have made a concerted effort to
hang onto the family history. Here they hold the wedding
gown worn by Boyd's grandmother. (Bonnie Gropp photo)
Family
Christina and J.B. Taylor, far left, were the original settlers of Orchill Farms outside Blyth. With
them, from left: Robert Taylor, Ann (Ashdown) Taylor, Ena Taylor, Isabella Taylor, Margaret
Taylor, Charles Kenneth Taylor, Bessie (Mason) Taylor. (Photo submitted)
office from 1854 to 1856. The little was built in 1868. An addition was
By Bonnie Gropp
Citizen editor
In one way Orchill Farms and
Orchards is like most farms. It's all
about making a living from the land
and livestock.
Owned and operated by Boyd and
Muriel Taylor, the main source of
income at Orchill comes from their
dairy operation, which got started in
Boyd's 4-H days in 1949, and which
the couple has done as a partnership
virtually since their marriage in
1959.
They eventually diversified into
fruit growing, something that origi-
nally began as a hobby. "Not any
longer," says Boyd, though he has
had to admit, that if it was his sole
source of income he'd starve to
death.
"Every farm had an orchard early
on," says Taylor, but many were
felled by a killer frost some 50 years
ago. Orchill was one of ,the few to
persevere.
So while Orchill appears to be like
every other farm, there is something
very special about it. In an age where
family farms are becoming a thing of
the past, the Taylors are the fourth
generation to live at this Morris Twp.
property.
And no one is more aware of the
significance than the Taylors.
"Today, people throw up their hands
and quit. They run into a snag, they
up and sell," says Taylor.
The family history haS been lov-
ingly recorded and preserved
through the years. Boyd's mother,
Pat, had many old family photos
redone. "There was a stand beside
the piano that had a drawer in it,
which was absolutely full of pic-
tures," Muriel recalls.
As well, she, had painstakingly
researched and recorded information
for a family tree. "If you have a
question, just go to Grandma's
book," says Muriel.
It was John Boyd Taylor who first
arrived at what became Orchill in
1852. Boyd and Murie have the
original Crown deed. The land soon
became an integral part of communi-
ty, housing the first area post office
and school. As 'Grandma' Taylor's
account tells it, a small log cabin on
the property-served as the first post
wooden mail box used to transport
mail is still at the farm.
After it closed the cabin became
the area's first school, started by
J.B.'s sister, Margaret, who had
arrived from Scotland with another
sister and a brother in 1857.
Today the apple storage stands
where the log cabin once was.
The first part of the stone house,
where Boyd and Muriel now live,
added shortly after, followed by a
third portion in 1918.
J.B., who was ordained as a minis-
ter left the farm in 1873 to minister
in Lucknow. The older children
remained on the farm with their
uncle and aunts. One child who died,
Benjamin, is buried on the property.
His resting place is marked with a
big stone.
Continued on A-19