Glenn Harrison Taylor, 1888-1960

Headstone GPS Coordinates: 

Birth: 27 June 1888, Eureka, Adair County, Iowa

Death: 11 January 1960, Bremerton, Kitsap County, Washington

Relatives in Seabeck Cemetery: None

American Revolutionary War Patriots*: None known.

Glenn Harrison Taylor was born on June 27, 1888, in Eureka, Adair County, Iowa, to Isaac Newton Taylor and Sallie Nichols. His parents were farmers, a vocation Glenn would follow for much of his life. According to his World War II draft registration card, he stood 5 feet 10 inches tall, weighed approximately 155 pounds, had gray eyes, black hair, and a ruddy complexion. Although he registered for the draft, Glenn never served in the military.

In the 1910 census, Glenn was living in Colorado, boarding with Ellis Miller in Prowers, Bent County, where he worked as a farm laborer. While there, he met Elda Darling, and the two married in 1911. Elda was 16 years old at the time, and Glenn was 23. Shortly after their marriage, Glenn returned with his new bride to Eureka, Iowa, where he farmed rented land. Their son, Newton E. “Jack” Taylor, was born in Adair County in 1915, followed by their daughter, Dixie, in 1925.

During World War II, Glenn and Elda moved west to Hanford, Washington. Their daughter Dixie, who was grown and married, accompanied them while her husband served overseas. Their son remained in Iowa. By 1944, Glenn, Elda, and Dixie were living in Bremerton, Washington, where Glenn was employed at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard as a tool room mechanic.

Glenn Harrison Taylor died on January 11, 1960, at the age of 71, at Harrison Memorial Hospital in Bremerton. The cause of death was a heart attack; he had been hospitalized for an asthma attack a week earlier.

An obituary published in the Bremerton Sun on the day of his death provides additional insight into his life and career. It notes that Mr. Taylor was a grain and livestock farmer in Iowa for more than 34 years before spending four years as a road construction foreman. He also served his community as a school board member and county clerk. In early 1944, Glenn and Elda left Iowa and settled in Bremerton, where Glenn worked at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard as an outside machinist until the end of World War II. Following the war, the couple lived on a small farm near Seabeck for five years, during which time Glenn also worked for the state highway department. He later returned to federal service at the Bangor Naval Ammunition Depot’s Bremerton annex as a tool room mechanic, retiring in 1956. Glenn was a member of the Knights of Pythias lodge for 48 years and attended First Christian Church.