Taylor Park

This beautiful park was named after prominent Sheboygan resident David Taylor. Taylor was born in 1818 and migrated to Sheboygan from New York in 1846. Once in Wisconsin, Taylor was appointed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, a role he would fill until his death in 1891. While David Taylor himself moved to Fond du Lac in the early 1870's, he remained an important name in Sheboygan County, with Taylor Park providing one example of his influence.

David Taylor was born in Carlisle, New York on March 11, 1818. After graduating from Schenectady, New York’s Union College in 1841, Taylor began a three-year apprenticeship with Thomas Smith, Judge of the Surrogate Court of Schoharie County. In 1844, Taylor established his own law practice in Cobleskill before migrating to Sheboygan in 1846. On October 30, 1848, Taylor married Mary Salome Callender. The couple settled in Sheboygan where they welcomed eleven of their twelve children.

In 1877, the Wisconsin Constitution was amended to provide for five justices on the state’s Supreme Court. As a means of filling the two new positions, both the Democrats and Republicans held a caucus in 1878. Each party selected one individual and David Taylor was the Republican choice. To preserve an alternating election cycle, Taylor’s first term was shortened to eight years and in 1886, Taylor earned a second ten-year term on the Court. He continued as a member of the Wisconsin Supreme Court until his death on April 3, 1891.

David Taylor also invested in significant tracts of land throughout Sheboygan County. Over the years, he owned over two-thousand acres, including properties along the harbor, in Sheboygan’s Ellis Addition and large sections of farmland outside of the city. This included a section of land a little more than 250 acres on the outskirts of Sheboygan, purchased from William Ashby. Between 1852 and 1854, Henry Roth built the Italianate-style cream city brick home for David Taylor and his family. Much of the immediate surrounding property was used as farmland and a smaller frame house was eventually built to the northeast of the Taylor House. David Taylor remained in the home until moving to Fond du Lac in the early 1870s. Though the family moved from the home, the property remained in the Taylor family until 1905 when it was purchased by Sheboygan County.

After being purchased by Sheboygan County, both the Taylor House and the property remained integral parts of the community. For a number of years, the farmland was used to support the Sheboygan County Chronic Insane Asylum, while the house provided shelter for the farm foremen. Beginning in 1916, the Taylor House proper was remodeled to also include jail facilities for those convicted of vagrancy, disorderly conduct, and drunkenness.

In 1931, following a unanimous vote by the Sheboygan County Historical Society at their first Annual Picnic, Charles Broughton, President of the organization, encouraged the Sheboygan County Board of Supervisors to set aside approximately 13 acres of Taylor’s original farm for park purposes. The focus of the park was to be the wooded area directly to the north of the Taylor House. The request was supported by a unanimous vote of Sheboygan County supervisors late in 1931.

The Judge David Taylor Park was formally dedicated on July 18, 1932 at the annual meeting of the Historical Society. The bronze plaque and boulder, marking the entrance to the park, were given to Sheboygan County by the Historical Society in 1938.

The Sheboygan County Historical Society was formally incorporated in 1923. Even prior, historical materials were being amassed in the County, primarily displayed at Sheboygan’s public library. It was soon obvious that the space allotted would be insufficient and the organization began to look for a permanent home. The Historical Society was able to secure space in the newly built Sheboygan County Courthouse, and while awaiting the building's completion, temporarily located in Sheboygan’s Union School. The Courthouse museum continued until World War 2. The increasing government responsibility to administer war related activities like the draft and rationing meant all Courthouse space was needed for the war effort. The artifacts and displays were packed away for storage in late 1942. Even after the end of the war, the space formerly allotted to displays by the Sheboygan County Historical Society remained unavailable.

In 1948, a new solution was proposed -- the Taylor Home, located just adjacent to Taylor Park, be leased to the Historical Society by Sheboygan County for museum purposes. Over the coming years, the building was remodeled to accommodate both display space and housing for a caretaker and opened to the public in July 1954.

Today, Taylor Park remains a Sheboygan County park. The park itself still features some of those original hardwood trees, providing shade for a children’s play area, picnic pavilion and a portion of the Urban Recreation Trail. More on the park facilities can be found in the department section of the Sheboygan County website. On the north side of the property is the Sheboygan County Veterans Memorial. The Memorial honors Sheboygan County’s men and women who have given their lives in the line of duty.

The southernmost portion of the property is designated for historic use and houses the now expanded museum campus of the Sheboygan County Historical Society. Visitors to the Museum can visit one of four historic buildings on the grounds, including the original David Taylor House, along with extensive exhibits in the Museum’s Main Building. Details of hours and programming can be found on the Museum’s website.

Taylor Park, Sheboygan County Wisconsin. Accessed December 9th, 2023. https://www.sheboygancounty.com/departments/departments-a-e/county-clerk/taylor-park.

History of the Historical Society and Museum, Sheboygan County Museum. Accessed December 9th, 2023. https://sheboyganmuseum.org/history/.

David Taylor House, Wisconsin Historical Society. Accessed December 9th, 2023. https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Property/HI59736.

Klein, Gary C. Sheboygan's David Taylor House is an 1850s home that once served as a jail | Throwback Thursday, The Sheboygan Press. February 17th, 2022. Accessed December 9th, 2023. https://www.sheboyganpress.com/story/news/2022/02/17/sheboygan-david-taylor-house-once-county-jail-insane-asylum/6819805001/.