Henry O. Taylor, Jr.
Born: December 22, 1924 in Jacksonville, FL
Died: August 8, 2022 in Glenview, IL
Henry O. Taylor, Jr. of Lisle, Illinois was born in Jacksonville, Florida on December 22, 1924 to Henry O. Taylor, Sr. and Elizabeth Storms Taylor (nee Heagy). He died after a brief illness at his son Hal's home in Glenview, IL on August 8, 2022. Humility, love, and duty punctuated his life, which spanned 97 years.
When Henry was four years old, his family left Jacksonville after the Great Depression wiped out the family savings and employment. They moved to his grandparents' house in the rural north Florida town of Archer. He loved to share wonderful memories about his time living in the country and, in particular, about the joyful lessons learned under the guidance of his older brother Lansing, who always protected him as they explored the woods and the world together.
After returning to Jacksonville, Henry enlisted in the Army when he turned 18. He crossed the Atlantic in January 1945 and fought across France, Belgium, and Germany as part of the 89th Infantry Division. His division liberated Ordruf, a Buchenwald satellite and the first concentration camp liberated by the United States during WWII. Although he energetically shared stories about that time, he never portrayed himself as a hero and, instead, said he just did his duty as did so many other young men of his time.
He met the love of his life, Anne Frances Locke, while they both attended Vanderbilt University after the war. Six months later, they were married on December 31, 1949, until Anne's death 58 years later. He was an English major. Throughout his life, he talked about the great literature he read while at Vanderbilt, and he recited poems from memory until the week he died.
In 1965, Ed Hagenseker, Bob Brown and he started a corrugated box manufacturing company, The Corr-Pak Corporation, which is still in business in McCook, Illinois. Henry successfully ran the business for many years, always showing genuine concern for the wellbeing of his employees. He treated everyone he met through his work with kindness and respect, no matter their station in life.
Undoubtedly his favorite role was as grandfather to Ben, Henry, John and Katie. He delighted them with many hours of true tales of adventure and sage advice. He had the rare gift of making everyone he spoke to feel as if they were the most important person in the room.
Until death, his thirst for knowledge remained unquenched and his awe of the cosmos remained tangible. In his free time, he loved to read, and particularly enjoyed learning about science and the physical world. Up into his 90s, Henry could be found peering through an eye glass at books theorizing about the origins of the universe.
He was a member of Faith United Methodist Church in Lisle, IL where he served several years on the finance committee and taught Sunday School. He spent many happy hours as a member of Lockport Golf and Recreation Club, where friends remember his humorous conversations and interest in their lives. Long after he stopped swinging the club himself, he cheerfully watched his grandchildren play, and helped improve their swings.
Henry is survived by his son Henry ("Hal") O. Taylor III (Dr. Lynn Martin), his daughter Lise Taylor Spacapan (Edward), his grandchildren Benjamin ("Ben") Locke Spacapan (Casey); Henry O. Taylor, IV, John Capp Spacapan and Katherine Martin Turner (Stephen). He is also survived by his younger brother Matthew D. Taylor (Bonnie) of Kennewick, WA. Henry was preceded in death by his wife Anne, parents, brother George Lansing Taylor and sister Mabel Taylor Atkinson.
Funeral Services will be held at 3:00 pm Saturday August 13, 2022 at Union Church of Hinsdale, 137 S. Garfield St, Hinsdale, IL. Interment will be at a later date at Chattanooga Memorial Park, Chattanooga, TN.