Doctor James Norman Taylor

From 2000 Golden Memories

 James Norman Taylor

By Thomas King

This grand gentleman was born in Ottawa in 1871, of Scottish parents. In his youth he was a grand athlete, playing on the Capital Lacrosse team and the Rough Riders Football Team of the City of Ottawa. On his return to his home city after having been practicing his profession a few years here in Golden, he was visiting his people and the captain of the Ottawa lacrosse team had him play in a game against the Shamrocks of Montreal. The editor covering the game reported him as being the outstanding player. Dr Taylor played soccer for the Golden team. He curled with the local club until he went overseas.

He entered McGill University, Montreal, to study to become a doctor at the age of eighteen. In those years, the time required in this profession was three years, and in 1893, at the age of twenty-two years, he was ready for general practice. Just at this time the village of Golden had recently built a small hospital and was in need of a medical doctor to supervise it and to attend to local citizens. Young, handsome, a fine physician, five feet eleven inches, 185 pounds, kindly, Dr. Norman Taylor was needed so badly here in Golden. Prior to his arrival, a doctor had to come by train or handcar from Donald.

For some time his practice wasn’t at all heavy. But there were accidents in the woods, prospectors were searching for minerals; but the larger portion of his practice was helping several young married ladies deliver babies. Out of town ladies who were expecting babies, would come and stay with the midwife who helped the doctor until she’d have her baby; and in those days, stay in bed ten or twelve days after the baby was born. Mrs. Woodley and Mrs. Conner, two very kind ladiese in the community, served as midwives and brought many babies into the world. It wasn’t until 1910 that ladies had their babies in the hospital. During his years in Golden he made several trips to London, England and to Eastern Canada, and American cities to keep his skills up to date.

Dr. Taylor fell in love with a young lady whose people had been in this district for several years – Miss Edith Armstrong, the daughter of Mr. Ferguson Armstrong, brother of Captain Armstrong(of steamboat fame)/ She was a very pretty brown-eyes lass, eighteen years of age. A baby boy was born to then in 1898 whom they named Gilbert. He learned his native English very young, and at two years of age he had learned Chinese from their houseboy to converse understandingly to others of that nationality. Everyone in the village loved this little boy for he was so friendly and free to five a pleasant greeting to everyone he met. In the fall of 1902, while returning from a trip to Ottawa, young Gilbert contracted scarlet fever and in a short time died.

A year or so later, a daughter was born to them whom they named Elsie. She graduated as a librarian and worked as such in Paris for many years. She is no living in Victoria (as of 1980). Three or four years later, a second daughter, Naomi, was born. She became a professional ballet dancer with headquarters in Switzerland.

Dr, Taylor attended to the medical needs of the village and district which extended between Golden and Fort Steele. By 1910, there was an accumulation of funds of over $7,000 as a nucleus to the building of a new hospital. The doctor’s practice had grown so that an assistant was required, so he had Dr. Paul Ewert assist him. In 1915, he joined the Medical Corps, and, for most of the duration of the First World War, he was posted in Salonika in Greece.

Dr. James Norman Taylor was nominated to represent the Conservative Party in 1915 to contest the Columbia Riding. He chose to serve the Medical Corps rather than the Political front.

Returning to Canada, he continued with the medical section of the Department of Defence and was Medical Officer at Victoria for the next twenty years. In 1936, at the age of sixty-five, this beloved doctor died in Victoria. The Taylor family will be remembered in Golden for a long time as there is the mist beautiful memorial window in the Chapel of the Anglican Church dedicated to the memory of the boy they lost, giving his name, of course, and those of his parents, James Norman and Edith Taylor.