The oldest member present at Center's Homecoming Day Sunday was Mrs. Emma Taylor, who celebrated her 99th birthday on February 25 this year.
Mrs. Taylor and her husband Sylvester came to Center in 1899 from Texas. "There was already a right smart town at Center when we came here," she says. "My oldest son built the brick for the Duffy store here, and the walls are still standing."
The Taylors were show people who decided to quit show business and settle down. They had five sons, Irvin [Irvin was Sylvester's son from a previous marriage], Orlando, Henry, Kernel [sic; Cornol], and Bill, and two daughters, Wyoming and Leoma. Irvin and Orlando were skilled violists, and Henry was a juggler and clog dancer.
But their talents were not limited to the entertainment field. In Center they opened a restaurant, a furniture store, and a brick plant. Sylvester Taylor invented the first brick making machine used in this county. At that time there were a good many residents in Center, two or three stores, a rooming house, cotton gins, several doctors and a good school.
Mrs. Taylor's mother, who was a Parker [she was a Parker by marriage and a Frost by birth], had a colorful history too. As a girl her family lived on the old Springfield road in Texas between Waco and Springfield. Fort Parker was five miles from their home, and 24 miles from Waco, Mrs. Taylor recalls. Her mother used to play with Cynthia Ann Parker at the fort, and her grandfather, Sam Frost and his son, Robert, were killed by the Indians. Mrs. Taylor remembered that Cynthia Ann was a little girl of nine when she was taken to live with the Indians, and her son, Quanah Parker, became a famous Indian chief. It was he who led the Comanche raid against 18 white buffalo hunters at Adobe Wells, Texas. For two days Quanah and his men took a beating from the whites with their Sharps' rifles, and suffered great losses. It was this raid that taught Quanah the wisdom of realizing that he could not win against the whites, and he turned from raiding to making peace with them.
Mrs. Taylor, formerly Emma Parker, was born in Limestone County, Texas in 1855. She was raised on a ranch, and as a girl often rode horseback and had her own horse and saddle. She was also well practiced with a six shooter, although she "never shot anyone." It was simply a handy thing to know in those days.
She was forty years old, married and already had a family when she came to Center in 1899. "I did every kind of work a woman ever did," she says with a chuckle. She spun thread, wove cloth, baked, washed, ironed, sewed, scrubbed, cleaned, gardened and raised a family. They had eight children, and she has lost count of her grandchildren, some of which she has never seen. She has 32 great grandchildren, however.
Mrs. Taylor, still bright and cheery, has a good memory, hears and sees remarkably well for 99. She now lives in Holdenville with a son, C. W. [Cornol William] Taylor. Years ago when she was a girl, she fell out of a wagon and broke her backbone, pulling three ribs loose. She says she still has trouble from this and a hip that bothers her. She spends a great deal of time in bed nowadays, but she especially wanted to make the effort to get up and come over for the Homecoming. She wouldn't have missed it. "I wanted to see some old friends I hadn't seen in so long," she says simply.
We said we hoped she would make it to the homecoming next year, after her 100th birthday, and she said she thought she would. "I think the Lord will let me live," she said cheerfully. "I get down sometimes, but then I get up again. Where there's a will there's a way!"
That is the attitude that has taken her through a vigorous and worthwhile pioneer life. And with that spirit and spunk, we believe she will make it. We sincerely hope so, anyway.
Citation: Murrelle Mahoney, "Old Timers at Center's Homecoming Recall Happenings of Fifty Years Ago," Ada Weekly News (Ada, Oklahoma), 10 June 1954, p. 1 , col. 1, and p. 2, col. 5; Ancestry.com (https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=News-OK-AD_WE_NE&h=500377601&ti=0&indiv=try&gss=pt : accessed 29 December 2023), Newspapers and Periodicals.
Mrs. Taylor and her husband Sylvester came to Center in 1899 from Texas. "There was already a right smart town at Center when we came here," she says. "My oldest son built the brick for the Duffy store here, and the walls are still standing."
The Taylors were show people who decided to quit show business and settle down. They had five sons, Irvin [Irvin was Sylvester's son from a previous marriage], Orlando, Henry, Kernel [sic; Cornol], and Bill, and two daughters, Wyoming and Leoma. Irvin and Orlando were skilled violists, and Henry was a juggler and clog dancer.
But their talents were not limited to the entertainment field. In Center they opened a restaurant, a furniture store, and a brick plant. Sylvester Taylor invented the first brick making machine used in this county. At that time there were a good many residents in Center, two or three stores, a rooming house, cotton gins, several doctors and a good school.
Mrs. Taylor's mother, who was a Parker [she was a Parker by marriage and a Frost by birth], had a colorful history too. As a girl her family lived on the old Springfield road in Texas between Waco and Springfield. Fort Parker was five miles from their home, and 24 miles from Waco, Mrs. Taylor recalls. Her mother used to play with Cynthia Ann Parker at the fort, and her grandfather, Sam Frost and his son, Robert, were killed by the Indians. Mrs. Taylor remembered that Cynthia Ann was a little girl of nine when she was taken to live with the Indians, and her son, Quanah Parker, became a famous Indian chief. It was he who led the Comanche raid against 18 white buffalo hunters at Adobe Wells, Texas. For two days Quanah and his men took a beating from the whites with their Sharps' rifles, and suffered great losses. It was this raid that taught Quanah the wisdom of realizing that he could not win against the whites, and he turned from raiding to making peace with them.
Mrs. Taylor, formerly Emma Parker, was born in Limestone County, Texas in 1855. She was raised on a ranch, and as a girl often rode horseback and had her own horse and saddle. She was also well practiced with a six shooter, although she "never shot anyone." It was simply a handy thing to know in those days.
She was forty years old, married and already had a family when she came to Center in 1899. "I did every kind of work a woman ever did," she says with a chuckle. She spun thread, wove cloth, baked, washed, ironed, sewed, scrubbed, cleaned, gardened and raised a family. They had eight children, and she has lost count of her grandchildren, some of which she has never seen. She has 32 great grandchildren, however.
Mrs. Taylor, still bright and cheery, has a good memory, hears and sees remarkably well for 99. She now lives in Holdenville with a son, C. W. [Cornol William] Taylor. Years ago when she was a girl, she fell out of a wagon and broke her backbone, pulling three ribs loose. She says she still has trouble from this and a hip that bothers her. She spends a great deal of time in bed nowadays, but she especially wanted to make the effort to get up and come over for the Homecoming. She wouldn't have missed it. "I wanted to see some old friends I hadn't seen in so long," she says simply.
We said we hoped she would make it to the homecoming next year, after her 100th birthday, and she said she thought she would. "I think the Lord will let me live," she said cheerfully. "I get down sometimes, but then I get up again. Where there's a will there's a way!"
That is the attitude that has taken her through a vigorous and worthwhile pioneer life. And with that spirit and spunk, we believe she will make it. We sincerely hope so, anyway.
Citation: Murrelle Mahoney, "Old Timers at Center's Homecoming Recall Happenings of Fifty Years Ago," Ada Weekly News (Ada, Oklahoma), 10 June 1954, p. 1 , col. 1, and p. 2, col. 5; Ancestry.com (https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=News-OK-AD_WE_NE&h=500377601&ti=0&indiv=try&gss=pt : accessed 29 December 2023), Newspapers and Periodicals.
The oldest member present at Center's Homecoming Day Sunday was Mrs. Emma Taylor, who celebrated her 99th birthday on February 25 this year.
Mrs. Taylor and her husband Sylvester came to Center in 1899 from Texas. "There was already a right smart town at Center when we came here," she says. "My oldest son built the brick for the Duffy store here, and the walls are still standing."
The Taylors were show people who decided to quit show business and settle down. They had five sons, Irvin [Irvin was Sylvester's son from a previous marriage], Orlando, Henry, Kernel [sic; Cornol], and Bill, and two daughters, Wyoming and Leoma. Irvin and Orlando were skilled violists, and Henry was a juggler and clog dancer.
But their talents were not limited to the entertainment field. In Center they opened a restaurant, a furniture store, and a brick plant. Sylvester Taylor invented the first brick making machine used in this county. At that time there were a good many residents in Center, two or three stores, a rooming house, cotton gins, several doctors and a good school.
Mrs. Taylor's mother, who was a Parker [she was a Parker by marriage and a Frost by birth], had a colorful history too. As a girl her family lived on the old Springfield road in Texas between Waco and Springfield. Fort Parker was five miles from their home, and 24 miles from Waco, Mrs. Taylor recalls. Her mother used to play with Cynthia Ann Parker at the fort, and her grandfather, Sam Frost and his son, Robert, were killed by the Indians. Mrs. Taylor remembered that Cynthia Ann was a little girl of nine when she was taken to live with the Indians, and her son, Quanah Parker, became a famous Indian chief. It was he who led the Comanche raid against 18 white buffalo hunters at Adobe Wells, Texas. For two days Quanah and his men took a beating from the whites with their Sharps' rifles, and suffered great losses. It was this raid that taught Quanah the wisdom of realizing that he could not win against the whites, and he turned from raiding to making peace with them.
Mrs. Taylor, formerly Emma Parker, was born in Limestone County, Texas in 1855. She was raised on a ranch, and as a girl often rode horseback and had her own horse and saddle. She was also well practiced with a six shooter, although she "never shot anyone." It was simply a handy thing to know in those days.
She was forty years old, married and already had a family when she came to Center in 1899. "I did every kind of work a woman ever did," she says with a chuckle. She spun thread, wove cloth, baked, washed, ironed, sewed, scrubbed, cleaned, gardened and raised a family. They had eight children, and she has lost count of her grandchildren, some of which she has never seen. She has 32 great grandchildren, however.
Mrs. Taylor, still bright and cheery, has a good memory, hears and sees remarkably well for 99. She now lives in Holdenville with a son, C. W. [Cornol William] Taylor. Years ago when she was a girl, she fell out of a wagon and broke her backbone, pulling three ribs loose. She says she still has trouble from this and a hip that bothers her. She spends a great deal of time in bed nowadays, but she especially wanted to make the effort to get up and come over for the Homecoming. She wouldn't have missed it. "I wanted to see some old friends I hadn't seen in so long," she says simply.
We said we hoped she would make it to the homecoming next year, after her 100th birthday, and she said she thought she would. "I think the Lord will let me live," she said cheerfully. "I get down sometimes, but then I get up again. Where there's a will there's a way!"
That is the attitude that has taken her through a vigorous and worthwhile pioneer life. And with that spirit and spunk, we believe she will make it. We sincerely hope so, anyway.
Citation: Murrelle Mahoney, "Old Timers at Center's Homecoming Recall Happenings of Fifty Years Ago," Ada Weekly News (Ada, Oklahoma), 10 June 1954, p. 1 , col. 1, and p. 2, col. 5; Ancestry.com (https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=News-OK-AD_WE_NE&h=500377601&ti=0&indiv=try&gss=pt : accessed 29 December 2023), Newspapers and Periodicals.
Mrs. Taylor and her husband Sylvester came to Center in 1899 from Texas. "There was already a right smart town at Center when we came here," she says. "My oldest son built the brick for the Duffy store here, and the walls are still standing."
The Taylors were show people who decided to quit show business and settle down. They had five sons, Irvin [Irvin was Sylvester's son from a previous marriage], Orlando, Henry, Kernel [sic; Cornol], and Bill, and two daughters, Wyoming and Leoma. Irvin and Orlando were skilled violists, and Henry was a juggler and clog dancer.
But their talents were not limited to the entertainment field. In Center they opened a restaurant, a furniture store, and a brick plant. Sylvester Taylor invented the first brick making machine used in this county. At that time there were a good many residents in Center, two or three stores, a rooming house, cotton gins, several doctors and a good school.
Mrs. Taylor's mother, who was a Parker [she was a Parker by marriage and a Frost by birth], had a colorful history too. As a girl her family lived on the old Springfield road in Texas between Waco and Springfield. Fort Parker was five miles from their home, and 24 miles from Waco, Mrs. Taylor recalls. Her mother used to play with Cynthia Ann Parker at the fort, and her grandfather, Sam Frost and his son, Robert, were killed by the Indians. Mrs. Taylor remembered that Cynthia Ann was a little girl of nine when she was taken to live with the Indians, and her son, Quanah Parker, became a famous Indian chief. It was he who led the Comanche raid against 18 white buffalo hunters at Adobe Wells, Texas. For two days Quanah and his men took a beating from the whites with their Sharps' rifles, and suffered great losses. It was this raid that taught Quanah the wisdom of realizing that he could not win against the whites, and he turned from raiding to making peace with them.
Mrs. Taylor, formerly Emma Parker, was born in Limestone County, Texas in 1855. She was raised on a ranch, and as a girl often rode horseback and had her own horse and saddle. She was also well practiced with a six shooter, although she "never shot anyone." It was simply a handy thing to know in those days.
She was forty years old, married and already had a family when she came to Center in 1899. "I did every kind of work a woman ever did," she says with a chuckle. She spun thread, wove cloth, baked, washed, ironed, sewed, scrubbed, cleaned, gardened and raised a family. They had eight children, and she has lost count of her grandchildren, some of which she has never seen. She has 32 great grandchildren, however.
Mrs. Taylor, still bright and cheery, has a good memory, hears and sees remarkably well for 99. She now lives in Holdenville with a son, C. W. [Cornol William] Taylor. Years ago when she was a girl, she fell out of a wagon and broke her backbone, pulling three ribs loose. She says she still has trouble from this and a hip that bothers her. She spends a great deal of time in bed nowadays, but she especially wanted to make the effort to get up and come over for the Homecoming. She wouldn't have missed it. "I wanted to see some old friends I hadn't seen in so long," she says simply.
We said we hoped she would make it to the homecoming next year, after her 100th birthday, and she said she thought she would. "I think the Lord will let me live," she said cheerfully. "I get down sometimes, but then I get up again. Where there's a will there's a way!"
That is the attitude that has taken her through a vigorous and worthwhile pioneer life. And with that spirit and spunk, we believe she will make it. We sincerely hope so, anyway.
Citation: Murrelle Mahoney, "Old Timers at Center's Homecoming Recall Happenings of Fifty Years Ago," Ada Weekly News (Ada, Oklahoma), 10 June 1954, p. 1 , col. 1, and p. 2, col. 5; Ancestry.com (https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=News-OK-AD_WE_NE&h=500377601&ti=0&indiv=try&gss=pt : accessed 29 December 2023), Newspapers and Periodicals.
Gravesite Details
Emma Parker Taylor is buried beside her husband, Sylvester Taylor, and her son, Henry Taylor.
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