Mrs Elmer Zebley Taylor (Juliet Cummings Wright) was born in Smyrna, Kent, Delaware on 30 November 1862.
She was the daughter of Joseph Wright (1829-1909), a carpenter originally from England, and Elizabeth Carter (1833-1868). Her known siblings were: Lilly (1855-1880), Joseph (1857-1922), Edgar Samuel (1861-1923) and Susan Raymond (1865-1924).
Juliet's mother passed away in 1868 and she and her remaining family are shown on the 1870 and 1880 census records still living in Smyrna. She was married in 1886 to Elmer Zebley Taylor (b. 1864), an engineer who also hailed from Smyrna.
Known as a pioneer in the paper container industry, Elmer designed and manufactured automatic machinery for moisture-proof paper food containers. He began the manufacture of paper cups in England in 1906 under the name Mono Containers Ltd, which had factories in ten countries and then opened Mono Service Co. in Newark, New Jersey in 1910. Juliet and Elmer had moved to England in the 1890s and were avid globe-trotters, remaining childless.
The Taylors would spend many summers in East Orange, New Jersey and they were heading there from London at the time of the disaster. They boarded the Titanic at Southampton as first class passengers (ticket number 19996 which cost £52) and they occupied cabin C-126; also travelling aboard was Fletcher Lambert-Williams, Elmer's business partner.
On the night of the sinking Mr Taylor reported that he was awakened by the impact. He and his wife got up and dressed, leaving their stateroom. On their way to the boat deck they passed Lambert-Williams' cabin and knocked the door; he answered but said he didn't believe it worthwhile to get up. They never saw him again.
Mr and Mrs Taylor were rescued in one of the first lifeboats to be lowered from the forward end of the boat deck on the starboard side. Probably either Lifeboat 5 or 7. Mrs Taylor recalled:
"I had retired to my stateroom for the night, and I was reading a book when there came a bump that seemed to raise the boat about 6 inches. Wondering what happened, we dressed hurriedly, rather out of curiosity then alarm. We were able to see an iceberg that seemed like a mountain of snow close at hand. There seemed to be no excitement and no appreciation of what had happened.
"Just then an officer came up and told us not to be alarmed, but to go down and put on our life belts. It did not seem to be possible that it would be safer to go into one of the little boats, and I preferred to stay on board. My husband persuaded me to get into the second lifeboat lowered on our side, and as there were several men waiting to get in and no women there at the time the boat was lowered and my husband and a number of other men were allowed to get in and join their wives, who were already in.
"After we had rowed away from the Titanic we saw the ship suddenly go down, the lights going out on one deck after another, until with a sudden dip, the Titanic was under the water.
Terrible wails rose to the sky.
"The screams of the people who remained on board rose in a terrible wail to the sky. The sound of it still lingers in my ears.
It was the most horrible thing I ever heard". — Newburgh Daily News, 19 April 1912
Juliet and Elmer resettled in East Orange, New Jersey in 1914 but continued to travel extensively. Ships they later sailed aboard included: Paris, Majestic, Homeric, and several voyages aboard Olympic.
Juliet Taylor died in Atlantic City, New Jersey on 23 April 1927 aged 64. She was buried with her family in St Peter's Cemetery, Smyrna and when Elmer died in 1949 he was buried with her.
Comment and discuss
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My Great Uncle, Mr. Elmer Zebley Taylor and his wife Juliet were survivors of the Titantic. I have detailed memoires of my Uncle's life which include the events leading up to and including the sinking of the Titanic. I am very interested in pictures and/or additional information / geneology regarding my Uncle and his wife. Taylor Maryland
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I was fascinated in the last conversation about Elmer Taylor's memoirs. I was wondering how I might go about obtaining them? Thanks, Mike
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Hi Mike, Elmer Taylor's memoirs were privately published back in the 1940's. In 1986, I was in Smyrna, Delaware, researching Elmer and Juliet Taylor. The local town library had a copy of the book. One year later, I bought the book at a garage sale in perfect condition. The account is very detailed, and most interesting. There are even several photographs of Elmer throughout the text. Please e-mail me privately. Mike Findlay
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as recorded aboard Carpathia). He is one of the survivors who claimed to have seen the iceberg. Can you provide the title of his memoirs?
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And one from...
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Thanks, Jason JUMPED INTO THE SEA; PICKED UP E. Z. Taylor of Philadelphia, one of the survivors, jumped into the sea just three minutes before the boat sank, He told a graphic story as he came from the Carpathia. "I was eating when the boat struck the iceberg," he said. "There was an awful shock that made the boat tremble from stem to stern. I did not realize for some time what had happened, No one seemed to know the extent of the accident. We were told an Iceberg had been struck by the ship. "I felt the boat rise and it seemed to me that it was riding over the ice. I ran out on the deck and then I could see ice. It...
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You're welcome, Chris. From what I can find, Taylor's memoirs were only privately published. It would be interesting to read fully but unless his family decides to publish them into a book, we may not get a definite answer.
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I confess that I found some of the statements rather, well, unbelievable. Could the Toronto Daily Star have embellished Elmer Taylor's account to Although there is some uncertainty about the actual lifeboat on...
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I agree, some of them just don't fit. If it is yellow journalism which it more than likely is, then it wouldn't be the first time. Sensationalism rears it's ugly head, yet again.
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Steward Thomas Whiteley claimed that he jumped overboard and swam in his life vest for several hours before reaching a lifeboat but instead of pulling him on board, the occupants beat him with their oars. But Whiteley hung on and hoped one of the occupants would die so that he could take the dead person's place. Eventually someone did die and the body was promptly pushed overboard and Whitetley was hauled up. Unbelievable as that sounds, it probably came from Whiteley himself. But I doubt that even he would have claimed that he had swallowed so much water during those several hours of icy swimming that doctors had to remove his stomach and replace it (not sure with what) as an unspecified newspaper claimed.
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Hi Chris, I just so happened to visit ET tonight and saw your message about the Taylors. The name of Elmer's memoirs was titled "Jigsaw Puzzle of People Whom I Met or Associated" or something to that effect. Elmer penned his life's journey in a privately printed memoir written in the early 1940s. The Titanic episode was but just a small chapter in the book but Elmer devoted much detail to his experiences. I am currently searching for Elmer's memoirs for another member of the ET message board but unfortunately they are located in a storage facility a distance from my home. In the meantime, if you have any specific questions about Elmer, his wife or the memoirs in general, I'll be glad to try and answer. Many of Elmer's tales remain engraved in my memory so I can try to help until I can get my hands on the book. Mike Findlay
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Thanks, Mike! I looked up the book through the World Catalog and found only one library where it is listed (in Delaware). Unfortunately, I am in Palo Alto, California. [URL...
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E Z Taylor married my Aunt Bea Givens Swan.
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