My name is Ray Taylor. I will be 82 in two days, Auf 16th.  I lived in Ashland from 1932-1935.

My father was Harry Taylor, my mother was Julia.

My father helped to build a garage/gas station just a street or two over from the elementary school. He ran the station for about 3 years.

I remember the night the old hotel in downtown burned.

My dad pumped gas for the fire engines, and my mother made coffee for the firemen.

It was a bitter cold night, and the next morning my mother took me to see the result of the fire.

The hotel was nothing but smoldering ashes, and icycles draped all over the remains.

In 1935 the depression caused my dad to lose his job, and the card games, bake sales and apple picking did not raise enough to keep our family together.

My infant sister was taken to Sweden to live with my mother`s parents. With WW II she was not allowed to return to the US until 1947.

My little brother went to live with a brother of my mother, my sister, Ellen, lived with another of my mother`s brothers, and I was sent to Wilmington IL to live with my aunt and uncle and grandfather.

I never got back together with my family until 2005 when we all met in Dover NJ for a joyous reunion.

Though we all left Ashland, and never returned we have fond memories of the town, the hills , fields and river and the lake. And three of my siblings were born there.

On two occasions I traveled through Ashland in my motor home. I stopped in at the general store downtown, and by chance met a woman who was my age. We agreed that we were in 1st-3rd grade together as well as attended Sunday School together at the Episcopal Church. I saw several of the homes we lived in and the gas station was still there, though worse for wear and tear. I even stopped by the old school house and left a note of greeting for the incomming 3rd graders.

Its hard to believe that all this happened some 75 years ago!

Ashland was an important part of my life as I reached the age of awareness and rememberance.. I`ll always remember those few but important years.