The 8 Branches of the John Taylor–Mary Clarke Family

This mural depicts the construction of the Wesleyan Methodist Church in 1867. It's located at the Wesleyan Cemetery at Highland Creek, Scarborough Township where John Taylor and Mary (Clarke) Taylor are buried.

Each branch of the John Taylor-Mary Clarke family represents one of John and Mary’s children and their descendants.

The 8 branches of the John Taylor-Mary Clarke family are as follows:

Branch 1: The John Taylor-Margaret Jane Mason branch.

Branch 2: The William Taylor-Helen Peat branch.

Branch 3: The Robert Taylor-Frances Dixon branch.

Branch 4. The Sarah Taylor-Andrew Annis branch.

Branch 5. The Emily Taylor-James Lankin branch.

Branch 6. The James Taylor-Eleanor Fawcett branch.

Branch 7. The Fanny Taylor-Jabez Collins branch.

Branch 8. The Mary Taylor-James Brander branch.

For detailed information on the 8 branches of the John Taylor-Mary Clarke family, consult the three volumes written by Grant W. Taylor, “A History of the John Taylor-Mary Clark Family and their descendants 1836-1987.”

Grant W. Taylor’s book is divided into three volumes as follows:

V. 1. Branch 1, The John Taylor-Margaret Jane Mason branch and Branch 5, the Emily Taylor-James Lankin branch. v. 2. Branch 3, the Robert Taylor-Frances Dixon branch. v. 3. Branch 2, the William Taylor-Helen Peat branch; Branch 4, The Sarah Taylor-Andrew Annis branch; Branch 6, the James Taylor-Eleanor Fawcett branch; Branch 7, the Fanny Taylor-Jabez Collins branch; and Branch 8, the Mary Taylor-James Brander branch. Note: Branches 1 and 5 are grouped together in the same volume because these are the two branches that left Pickering Township in the mid-1850s and moved to Usborne Township in Huron County, Ontario. Copies of Taylor’s book can be found at the following locations: Library and Archives Canada in Ottawa, Ontario. Western University in London, Ontario. Vaughan Memorial Library at Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. If you’re interested in consulting these books, call ahead as they may be housed off-site or in storage. Some locations may house reference copies only that cannot be borrowed.

John Taylor, Mary Clarke and Their Eight Children: A Summary

Our ancestors, John Taylor and Mary Clarke made their home in Snettisham, Norfolk County, England. 

John, born 1796 was 40 years old and Mary a year or two younger when they set sail from Yarmouth, Norfolk County for a new life in Canada, arriving in Quebec on 2 July 1836. They spent several months in Toronto where John Taylor teamed grain and flour to and from the mill on the Humber River, now the site of the Old Mill Inn. In the spring of 1837, they moved to and settled in Pickering Township in what is now the Province of Ontario but was then known as Upper Canada.

We don’t know why they decided to leave England with their six children, ranging in age from one year to almost 15. Two more children were born in Canada.

The 8 Children of John Taylor & Mary Clarke:

JOHN TAYLOR married Margaret Jane Mason

WILLIAM TAYLOR married Helen Peat

ROBERT TAYLOR married Frances “Fanny” Dixon

SARAH L. TAYLOR married Andrew Annis

EMILY TAYLOR married James Lankin

JAMES CLARK TAYLOR married Eleanor Fawcett

FANNY TAYLOR married Jabez Collins

MARY ANN TAYLOR married James Brander

Image source: “A History of the John Taylor-Mary Clark Family and their descendants 1836-1987.” by Grant W. Taylor.