Volume LII | Issue 1
6
The Taylor Family of Huntington, Indiana
A WALLOON CENTENNIAL FAMILY RIGHT The Taylor family and friends aboard the “Hoosier,” with Paul Taylor, Sr. at the helm, and wife Magdalena and sister Miriam Taylor Zent in front of him, around 1910-15. (Photo courtesy of the family) BELOW Martha Hyde Coscina (l) and cousin Marilyn Taylor in front of the Taylor cottage.
By Lauren Macintyre
I
f you have ever meandered along the North Shore, either on the walking path or along the shore in your boat, chances are you've noticed a picturesque white cottage fronted by a vintage boathouse with long concrete docks, not too far from the Village. Longtime home of the Taylor family, this classic Walloon cottage with its distinctive boathouse is one of Walloon's oldest houses and a very recognizable landmark on the lake.
A visit to the cottage, humorously nicknamed "We-Neda-Rest," is like a step back in time. Filled with family photos and lake memorabilia, the home celebrates the legacy of the Taylor family of Huntington, Indiana. Enos (E.T.) Taylor, an enterprising businessman and banker, came to Walloon in 1897 to fish with a group of friends from Huntington at Indiana Camp on South Shore. Eventually the camp included other Huntington friends such as the Dick, Beck, Bippus and Purviance families.
E.T.'s wife Emma Moore Taylor, however, was fearful of boats and preferred to be within walking distance of the Village. So a few years later, they purchased land on North Shore Drive and built a beautiful home there in 1904. The cottage was barely completed when, alas, disaster struck, as fire broke out in the home while E.T. and son Paul were out fishing in their boat. They returned from their fishing expedition to find their lovely new home burned to the ground. Not to be discouraged, the Taylors built a new cottage in 1905, the same one the family enjoys today. The iconic boathouse, which also still stands, was added in 1909. Sadly, E.T. was only able to enjoy the cottage for a few years before his death in 1908, but the Walloon tradition he and Emma established was lovingly continued by their children Paul and Miriam. Ownership of the cottage eventually passed to their son Paul Taylor, Sr., also a banker, who spent summers there with his wife Magdalena Beck. Magdalena's father Adam Beck was yet another of the Huntington businessmen who had favored Walloon and built on South Shore, so it was a union of two Huntington and Walloon families. Paul Sr. was an avid boater with his beautiful wooden boat, “Hoosier”, as well as a key player in the early days of the Walloon Lake Country Club, serving as president. Paul's sis-
