If there were times during her marriage that Mary Jane Muddle was unable to rely on her husband, financially or otherwise, the same could not be said of her family. The Taylors had made a considerable success as dairy farmers since their arrival in Edgware and it is likely that they helped Mary Jane to buy or rent the house on Meads Road and later, 'Oakview' on Gresham Road. In addition, they provided a home and employment for the Muddles at Little Stanmore Farm between 1915 and 1920. It also seems reasonably certain that it was Taylor money which purchased Wellbury Farm in 1926. So, with the steep decline in hay farming and the failure of the butchers shop, Mary Jane and Henry George had reason to be thankful for the Taylor family's success in business and their financial stability.

Isaac Taylor was born in 1843 in the county of Cumberland, into a family of tenant farmers. Just seven years after his birth, his father, also named Isaac, died and the younger Isaac is listed in the census of 1851 living with his mother, Elizabeth and other family members on a farm at Hyton, a hamlet on the outskirts of Bootle. His Mother is recorded as farming 85 acres. The family were still at Hyton in the census of 1861. The following year, Isaac married Mary Singleton and for the first few years of their marriage they lived with Elizabeth Taylor at Hyton. A daughter, Elizabeth was born in 1863 and a son, Joseph, in 1865. By the time of the 1871 census, the family had moved north to Irton, Cumberland and had taken Cookson Place Farm. Isaac is now listed as 'Head of House', his mother listed as 'Retired Farmer'. At 125 acres, Cookson Place had slightly higher acreage than the farm at Hyton. Isaac and Mary's third child, John, was born at Irton in 1871 followed by Isacc Jr in 1874 and Thomas William in 1877.

It seems quite clear that Isaac Taylor was a person of some ambition and was not daunted by the prospect of moving great distances if he thought that by doing so he would improve the living standards of his family. So, at some time between 1877 and 1879, he and his family moved seventy miles south to Pervin Farm at Caynham, Shropshire. The census of 1881 records that Taylor was a 'farmer of 218 acres' - some 100 acres larger than Cookson Place. The last of his children, Mary Jane was born there in 1880.

'The Great Depression of British Agriculture' had taken hold in the late 1870s and did not end until after the Second World War. One of the few sectors of agriculture that seemed to be immune was dairy farming and Isaac Taylor, having recognized this, seems to have devoted all his energies into establishing his family in the dairy trade. The first step in this process was to find a farm in close proximity to a large town with access to a growing population and rail transport. In 1885, Dodmore Farm which was just a mile or so from Ludlow, unexpectedly became available and Isaac Taylor was able to secure the lease. Whether he was unable to terminate the remainder of his lease at Pervin Farm or wasn't inclined to is not known, but for the next three years he and his family farmed at both Caynham and Ludlow. In addition, his two eldest children, Joseph and Elizabeth are listed at yet a third farm, Serpent Farm at Ashford Carbonell, a village just outside Ludlow.

Not only were the Taylors busy in establishing a dairy business in Ludlow, they were also quite active in the local community. Both Issac and Joseph were elected as overseers, Isaac at East Hamlet and Joseph at Ashford Carbonell. They were also involved in local politics and in 1894 Joseph Taylor was nominated for the Parish Council in East Hamlet. They were also kept busy finding workers for both inside and outside and they placed numerous advertisements in the local newspapers. On the 26th April 1890, there are three notices in the Wellington Journal - one each from Issac Taylor, Mrs. Taylor and Joseph!

In February of 1895, John Taylor, who was Isaac's second eldest son, married Mary Alice Bird. Mary Alice was a barmaid at her Father's pub, The Queen's Arms on Corve Street, Ludlow. A daughter, Margaret Ellen, was born just a few months after the wedding. In researching the Taylor family, it is noticeable that John Taylor was not as involved in the family business as his older and younger brothers. In 1888, he placed an advertisement in the Liverpool Mercury seeking a butchers apprenticeship. There were probably a number of butchers in Ludlow who might have employed him and there would have been plenty of work available on the farms at Dodmore and Caynham, so this advertisement is something of a mystery. The following year, he and his family moved to Lindley in Leicestershire. As yet, no record of any connection between either family and that part of the country has been found.*

There can be little doubt that in attempting to establish a dairy business, Isaac Taylor had found in Dodmore Farm much of what he had been seeking. Unfortunately, Ludlow was in a part of the country almost entirely dependent on agriculture and from 1880 onward, the town suffered from economic stagnation and little growth in population. There was also no shortage of dairy farmers trying to make a living from a dwindling number of customers. As settled as they were at Dodmore, it is likely that Isaac and his eldest son were always hoping to find a farm that had more acreage and was situated in an area with an increasing number of prospective customers. The one place where there was unlimited potential for the milk trade was London and all the London newspapers, The Times, The Standard, The Daily Telegraph, had pages of agricultural properties, either to let or to purchase.

In April of 1892, Little Stanmore Farm at Edgware in Middlesex, just eight miles from the Marble Arch, was advertised to let in the London papers.

Despite many hours of research, no advertisement for Little Stanmore Farm has been found later than the one published in 1892. Neither has any evidence been uncovered of a connection between the Taylor family and Edgware. Without evidence to the contrary, it can be assumed that their first knowledge of the farm came from that initial advertisement. The likelihood is that they first made enquiries of the land agents in 1892, that the farm had already been let to a local person and that they were contacted by the agents when the farm became available again in 1896. There is evidence that the Taylors had not intended leaving Dodmore in 1896. Two years later, a notice appeared in the Ludlow press advertising an auction at Dodmore Farm at which the crop of wheat would be sold - on the instruction of Isaac Taylor. This indicates that the Taylors were still at Dodmore throughout 1896, 1897 and the early part of 1898. Though they had farmed consecutively at two locations before, it seems unlikely that they would have purposely done so on farms which were more than 160 miles apart.

What does seem without doubt is that the previous tenant of Little Stanmore Farm, John Rush, had to leave Edgware much sooner than he had planned, which would certainly account for the Taylor's move to Middlesex.

The first reference to the Taylors being at Little Stanmore Farm came in February of 1897 when Joseph Taylor is listed as contributing part of the prize money for a local ladies steeplechase. In June of that year, the first of many advertisements appeared in The Bucks Herald seeking workers. In 1898 the Taylors also started advertising for workers in the Wellington Journal - which was published in Shropshire. This suggests that they were not able to find a sufficient number of suitable workers in the Edgware area. They offered live-in accommodation and also allowed the train fare to Edgware. 'Cadogan House, Edgware' was used as the LNER train station was at Edgware, rather than at Little Stanmore. A 'Taylor', probably Joseph, is listed as the parish overseer for Little Stanmore in June, 1907.

The farmhouse at Little Stanmore Farm, known as 'Cadogan House', was officially 47, Edgware High St. It dated from the 15th/16th century, but had received a new facade, probably in the 1800s and so resembled a Georgian town house. It was a large house - eight main rooms as well as service rooms and sculleries. In an 1851 auction notice it was described as being 'suitable as a residence of a gentleman of moderate competency'. There were also two other cottages, eventually known as 'Taylor's Cottages' at numbers 49 and 51 High Street. These would have been sublet by the Taylors or used by them for farm workers. Behind the farmhouse was the traditional 'farm yard' with stables, barns and more workers accommodation. Beyond the farm yard were the 323 acres of the farm bounded by Honeypot and Whitchurch Lanes and the fields of Burnt Oak Farm. Edgware Brook, which ran through the property and provided water for the Taylor Dairy herd, had also played a role in the Rush v Hendon Council court case.

By 1901, the entire Taylor family, other than John, were living at Little Stanmore: Isaac Sr, his wife, Mary, Joseph, Isaac Jr, Thomas William, and Mary Jane. Also living at the farm was Mary Alice Taylor, one of John Taylor's five children. Mary Alice continued to live with her Edgware relations until her marriage in 1923. In March of 1901, Isaac Taylor was elected to the Parish Council of Little Stanmore. Also that month he was present at the annual dinner of the Edgware and Little Stanmore Fire Brigade dinner, which was held at the Chandos Arms. In April, he was elected Church Warden at the Parish Church of St. Lawrence. In 1903, after a long illness, Mary Taylor died at the relatively young age of fifty-nine and was buried in the churchyard in Whitchurch Lane.

Just as Isaac and Joseph Taylor had expected when making the decision to move to Middlesex, business at Little Stanmore Farm appears to have flourished. The Taylors supplied milk and dairy products to an increasing number of individual customers and were also successful in their bids to supply the local hospital. They continued to be active in the social life of the town and in 1907 are recorded as donating one of the prizes at the Edgware and Little Stanmore Horticultural Show. In 1908, Thomas Taylor was elected to the British Dairy Farmers' Association.

In January, 1909, Isaac Taylor died, the local newspaper recording that he had been 'struck down with paralysis' several years before - almost certainly a stroke. At the funeral, the choir sang the hymn 'Now the Labourer's task is o'er' - an appropriate choice for a man who had spent more than fifty years toiling in the fields, first for his mother and then for his own family. He did not leave a will which suggests that, as was common at the time, he had made over his interest in the family business to Joseph, his eldest son.

By the time of the 1911 census, only Joseph and Elizabeth Taylor were still living at Little Stanmore Farm, along with their niece, Mary Alice. Both Thomas Taylor and Isaac Taylor Jr had married, but still worked at the farm and were living close by. Joseph continued to place numerous advertisements for workers in several local newspapers, whilst Elizabeth advertised for general house servants. It is likely that with the outbreak of war in 1914, it became even more difficult for Joseph to find workers. Some time between 1914 and 1918, Mary Jane, Henry George and their two sons moved to Liitle Stanmore Farm, which would have provided Joseph and his brothers with much-needed help. In November of 1917, Joseph gave evidence at a hearing on the price of milk held by the wartime Food Controller. Although local dairy farmers testified that it was almost impossible to produce milk at sevenpence a quart, the controller refused to allow an increase to eightpence.

In the years after the end of the war, the was a huge increase in the demand for housing in the suburbs - partly driven by the government's aim to provide returning soldiers with a 'Land fit for heroes'. In 1919, the local council revealed plans to build up to ninety houses on land occupied by the Taylors and Mr. Cheshire, the landlord of the Chandos Arms. The houses would be built over the next two years. Later photographs and maps indicate that almost all of the land at Little Stanmore Farm was eventually requisitioned for house building, so that although the dairy continued milk distribution for many years, it would be no longer be possible to produce milk from the dairy's own cows. Although it is likely that the Taylors could have continued operating the dairy for an indefinite period, events of the following year made that impossible.

In March 1920, Joseph Taylor died after a long illness. It was reported that there were numerous neighbours, friends and relatives at his funeral. The following month, Little Stanmore Farm was let and the entire dairy herd of 67 cattle as well as pigs, horses, poultry and farm equipment were put up for auction. A newspaper article the following week reported a highly successful sale with 'wonderful prices obtained'. Shortly after Joseph's death, Thomas Taylor leased Nicholl Farm in Edgware and purchased a number of cattle from his brother's estate. This would suggest that although they both worked at Little Stanmore Farm, neither Thomas or Isaac Taylor had a share in the business.

Then just two months later, Thomas Taylor died as the result of a tragic accident at Nicholl Farm, when he had slipped while cleaning a water tank and drowned. His body was discovered by his nephew, Charles Muddle. There was a large gathering of mourners at the funeral, with numerous wreathes and floral tributes. The local newspaper recorded that Thomas Taylor was 'greatly esteemed and respected in Edgware'. After twenty-two years, the remaining members of the Taylor family left Little Stanmore Farm; the Muddle's, Elizabeth and Mary Alice Taylor went to Devonshire Farm, while Isaac Taylor Jr, would shortly take Broadfields Farm.

Allowing for inflation, the combined total of the estates of the three Taylor brothers and their sister, Elizabeth, was almost £700,000 - considerably more than those of the Edgware farmers who had made their living principally from hay farming. A portion of the wealth that was amassed by the Taylors during their time at Little Stanmore was used to purchase Wellbury, the only farm that either the Taylors or the Muddles ever owned outright. Isaac Taylor's decision to move from Shropshire to Edgware had been more than vindicated.****