In the mid-19th century, the Taylor family left Tennessee for the rugged promise of the Texas frontier, settling near what is now Kempner in Lampasas County. Located at the junction of U.S. Highway 190 and Ranch Road 2313, alongside the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway and the Lampasas River, Kempner became the heart of their new life. D. W. Taylor, the family patriarch, abandoned his newspaper business in Tennessee—possibly lured by Texas land grants, the cattle trade’s economic potential, or family ties, as his in-laws, the Shanklins, were already there. In an 1849 letter, he wrote of seeking “a new home where I hope to do better than here,” signaling a bold leap into the unknown.
Their journey likely mirrored that of other pioneers, such as those described in Maurene Walpole Liles’ Rebecca of Blossom Prairie. Traveling from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, in 1851, families braved 700 miles of rough terrain in ox-drawn wagons along the Natchez Trace, facing storms, Indian raids, and illness. The Taylors, too, would have packed essentials—flour, coffee, quilts, and a sturdy wagon—for the trek to Texas.
Once settled, D. W. Taylor thrived as a stock raiser, amassing cattle herds driven to markets like Abilene, Kansas. The 1860 Lampasas County Census lists him at 38, with $1,000 in real estate. His success spurred the creation of the Taylor Creek Store in Kempner, which doubled as the area’s first post office, and left a legacy in landmarks like Taylor Mountain (now Cheyenne Mountain). He expanded his holdings with land purchases, including 177 acres in 1858 for $77 and another 177 acres in 1859 for $177, capitalizing on Texas’ open range.
Taylor’s influence grew beyond ranching. From 1860 to 1864, he served two terms as Lampasas County’s Chief Justice, his portrait still gracing the courthouse despite a 1873 fire that destroyed early records. During his tenure, Indian raids plagued the frontier. In 1861, he joined the Lampasas Minute Men as a private, ready with horse and revolver to defend settlers. That year, he wrote to Governor Edward Clark about the need for more men to curb Indian attacks, and in 1862, he reported to the Adjutant General on Civil War-era weapon accountability.
Life was perilous—once, while hunting hogs with his son Harry, Taylor was shot in the hand by Indians, narrowly escaping with his life. He and his first wife, Mary Jane Shanklin, raised seven children: Charlie, Harry, Lucie, Gordon, Mary, Fannie, and John. Mary Jane died in 1866 at 35, buried in South Belton Cemetery. In 1867, Taylor wed Margaret Agnes Barker Porter, fathering three more: Betty, Daniel Webster II, and Robert Buford.
Harry Morgan Taylor, born in 1851, followed his father into the cattle trade. In 1871, at 18, he drove herds along the Chisholm and Western Trails to Colorado and Kansas, later recounting his cowboy days in a letter to the Rocky Ford Tribune. Tragedy struck when D. W. Taylor fell ill and died on a drive to Raymond, Kansas, his burial site lost to time—family lore suggests a Masonic graveside. Harry wrote home to his wife, Clara, of his father’s chills, a poignant note from the trail.
Harry married Clara Melinda Arnold in 1872, settling on her family’s 160-acre Topsey ranch. A tireless rancher, he died in 1935 at 84, collapsing after a morning ride—mirroring his father’s end, “boots on” in the saddle. The Taylors’ story, etched in Lampasas County’s land and lore, reflects the grit and gamble of Texas’ frontier pioneers.