John Taylor (1840–1891) was a 19th-century English songwriter and poet (whose material won many prizes) and an accomplished artist and engraver.

Early life

John Taylor was born in 1840 in Dunston,

Gateshead Gateshead () is a large town in northern England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle to which it is joined by seven bridges. The town contains the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Sage ...

, (which at the time was in

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

but is now in

Tyne and Wear Tyne and Wear () is a metropolitan county in North East England, situated around the mouths of the rivers Tyne and Wear. It was created in 1974, by the Local Government Act 1972, along with five metropolitan boroughs of Gateshead, Newcastl ...

). John Taylor began adult life as a clerk at the

Newcastle Central Station Newcastle Central Station (also known simply as Newcastle and locally as Central Station) is a major railway station in Newcastle upon Tyne. It is located on the East Coast Main Line, around north of . It is the primary national rail station ...

. After several years he became impatient at not gaining, in his mind, sufficient promotion, and left to "better himself" as a traveller for a brewery. Like many other short cuts this, in time, he found had its drawbacks, and possibly the slower progress of the railway might in the end have been better. He was a prolific writer of songs and many won prizes in the competitions run by both John W Chater and Ward's Almanacs (Ward's Directory of Newcastle upon Tyne and the Adjacent Villages; Together with an Almanac, a Town and County Guide and a Commercial Advertiser). It was to him Joe Wilson allegedly said whilst talking in the Adelaide Hotel, "Jack, ye can write a sang aboot as weel as me, but yor sangs divn't sing, an' mine dis." He was also a first-class and versatile artist, as was his predecessor

Edward Corvan Edward "Ned" Corvan (c. 1830 – 1865) was a Tyneside concert hall songwriter and performer, and a contemporary of George "Geordie" Ridley. His songs were printed in a modified English orthography designed to represent the traditional dialect ...

, and an accomplished wood-engraver providing the plates used for the pictures of

William Purvis (Blind Willie) William Purvis, probably better known as "Blind Willie" (1752 – 20 July 1832), was a Tyneside concert hall song writer and performer in England at the end of the 18th and start of the 19th century. His most famous song is "Broom Buzzems". He ...

, Captain Benjamin Starky,

Joseph Philip Robson Joseph Philip Robson (or J. P. Robson) (1808 – 1870) was a Tyneside poet and writer of the 19th century. His most famous works are ''The Pitman’s Happy Times'' and "The Pawnshop Bleezin’" a comic description of the reactions of the vario ...

, and Geordy Black, the character played by

Rowland Harrison Rowland "Rowley" Harrison (1841–1897) was a Tyneside poet and singer/songwriter, from Gateshead in County Durham. Possibly his best known work is "Geordy Black, Geordy (or Geordie) Black", an example of Geordie dialect words, Geordie dialect. ...

, in Thomas Allan’s Illustrated Edition of Tyneside Songs and Readings of 1891.

Family

His father was an employee of the North Eastern Railway Company and was selected by the patentee to operate the machine which printed the first standard railway ticket

Death

John Taylor died on 24 September 1891, aged 51, and was buried in Dunston Churchyard.

Works

These include: * Harry Clasper and his Testimonial * Bob Chambers, champion sculler of the world * The Flay Craw – or Pee Dee’s Mishap – to the tune of Warkworth Feast

References

External links