THE HEROIC TASMANIAN POLICEMAN BORN IN DROMANA.
WILLIAM RICHARD TAYLOR

I couldn't find William Richard Taylor's birth record in Victorian BDM but it would be too much to believe that he was NOT related to Christina Edwards who married Robert Rowley and Frances Taylor who married Carmello (Peter) Pidoto.

Arthur Henry Taylor (1894-1971) was probably the brother who moved to Tasmania with William Richard Taylor and he was definitely a son of William Taylor (1849-1895) and Mary Christina Taylor (nee Rowley, 1866-1958), although Arthur's birth record could not be found either.
ARTHUR HENRY TAYLOR

Robert Rowley probably grew up at Longford Tasmania and was appointed a constable* there before he moved to Dromana where he was working for Peter Pidoto when he married Christina Edwards*. Little else is known of Robert's early life apart from his lime burning with Henry Cadby Wells in the early 1840's and crayfishing with Wells in approximately 1849-50.
* STRATFORD, Tuesday -An old colonist in this district is Mr. Rowley of Rye, father of Mr. Frank Rowley, Munro. He landed in Tasmania in 1824, being then 4 years old. He there resided until 1844** when he came to Victoria, where he has since lived. In Tasmania he held an appointment under Government and received from the Crown a grant of land.(P.8, Argus, 8-1-1908.)

** N.B.It is more likely that 1844 was when Robert returned to Tassie (or took to the sea or moved to Gippsland) for about 5 years, because the 1843 depression had severely reduced the demand for lime, ending his first venture with H.C.Wells. However the mention of the Government appointment confirms that the constable named Robert Rowley was indeed the later Dromana and Rye pioneer.

* ROWLEY—EDWARDS—By the Rev. J Smithies, at the house of Mr Joseph Tongs, Illawarra**, Christina Edwards, the only daughter of Mr William Edwards, of Newborough.Fife. Scotland, to Mr Robert Rowley, of Dromana, Victoria.
Launceston Examiner (Tas. : 1842 - 1899) Tuesday 22 January 1861 p 5 Family Notices

*ILLAWARRA is 4 km from Longford.
4 min (4.0 km) via Illawarra Rd/B52 and B51

Nothing could be found about the Taylor family's property "Spring Hill" at Dromana except that it was later occupied by John Dyson.

You don't have to BELIEVE that William Richard Taylor was the son of William Taylor. I was actually starting to doubt that he could have been, if he was born in 1897 as stated in the article, and William had died in 1895. William Richard was actually born in 1887, a decade earlier than the article stated.

ROBERT AND CHRISTINA ROWLEY'S TAYLOR GRANDCHILDREN.
Mary Jane Taylor (1884-1973)
Frank Taylor (1886-1985)
William Richard Taylor (1887-)
Christina Taylor (1889-)
Frances Elizabeth Taylor (1892-1984)*
Arthur Henry Taylor (1894-1971)
WILLIAM TAYLOR

*THIS CHILD WAS NAMED AFTER PETER PIDOTO'S WIFE WHO DIED IN 1931.
EventDeath Event registration number13443 Registration year1931
Personal information
Family namePIDOTO Given namesFrances Elizabeth SexFemale Father's nameTAYLOR William Mother's nameMary (Harrison*) Place of birth Place of deathCLIFTON HILL Age85
* The website above listing the children explains the Harrison connection.

I KNEW I'D FORGET SOMETHING.
How did I know the name of the Taylor property at Dromana?
It was mentioned in William Taylor's death notice in 1895. It contains an error which could seriously mislead family historians, stating that he was a son-in-law of W.Rowley. I presume that what was meant was that William Taylor was the BROTHER- in-law of WILLIAM Rowley (born 1864, reg. no.21465.)
WILLIAM'S DEATH NOTICE.
TAYLOR— On tho 29th May, at his residence, Spring
Hill, Dromana, of pneumonia, after six days illness,
William Taylor, the beloved husband of Mary Christina
Taylor, and brother of Mrs. Pidoto, Rowe-street, North
Fitzroy, and son-in-law of W Rowley, Rye, aged 46.
Deeply regretted.(P.1, The Age, 4-6-1895.)

HIS WIFE'S BIRTH RECORD. NOTE HER PARENTS' NAMES.
EventBirth Event registration number14380 Registration year1866
Personal information
Family nameROWLEY Given namesMary Christina SexUnknown Father's nameRobert Mother's nameChristina (Edwards) Place of birthDROMANA

The difficulties for family historians are complicated further by the year of death on William's gravestone at Dromana being clearly inscribed as 1896 rather than 1895.
The date of the issue containing the death notice has been checked and found to be correct.
WILLIAM'S GRAVESTONE PHOTO.

Luckily, I did not have to amend my 397 page manuscript, PIONEER BURIALS AT DROMANA, which contains William's obituary.
"31-5-1895. WILLIAM TAYLOR.
EventDeath, Event registration number5230, Registration year1895
Personal information
Family nameTAYLOR, Given namesWm, SexMale
Father's nameWm, Mother's nameMary (Harrison)
Place of birth, Place of deathDromana, Age46

An old resident of Dromana, Mr William Taylor, died on the 29th May, at the age of forty-seven years, the interment taking place in the local cemetery on Friday, the 31st May, the Rev. A. Taylor conducting the funeral service. The deceased, who leaves a widow and a young family of six children, was a resident of the district for forty years, and was much respected.(P.2,Mornington Standard, 13-6-1895.)

William Taylor’s burial at Dromana is recorded on the ozgen list. The age at death is given as 46 but the date of death inscribed on the gravestone is wrong; i.e. 29-5-1896. I believe that Mrs Frances Pidoto has had the gravestone erected quite some time after the burial."

I HATE LOOSE ENDS!
No burial of Mary Christine Taylor was found at the Dromana or Rye Cemeteries and I could find no record of her death on Victorian BDM. I tried a google search for MARY CHRISTINA ROWLEY MARRIED WILLIAM TAYLOR IN 1883 and discovered why, as well as TOWNSEND and MCNAB links.

TOWNSEND SURNAME IN AUSTRALIA
Mary Christina Rowley
F, b. 1866, d. 1958
Father: Robert Rowley b. c 1840 (sic, 1822)
Mother: Christena Edwards b. c 1840
Birth*: Mary Christina Rowley was born in 1866 at Dromana, Rye, Vic, AustraliaG.
She was the daughter of Robert Rowley and Christena Edwards.
Marriage*: Mary Christina Rowley married William Taylor in 1883 at Vic, AustraliaG.
Marriage*: Mary Christina Rowley married Nathaniel James Townsend, son of John Townsend and Alison Mitchell, in 1896 at Vic, AustraliaG.
Marriage*: Mary Christina Rowley married Robert McNab in 1906 at Vic, AustraliaG.
Death*: Mary Christina Rowley died in 1958 at Rye, Vic, AustraliaG; Age 91 years.
Married Name: As of 1883,her married name was Taylor.
Married Name: As of 1896,her married name was Townsend.
Married Name: As of 1906,her married name was McNab.
Last Edited: 4 Feb 2008
Family 1: William Taylor b. c 1860
Marriage*: She married William Taylor in 1883 at Vic, AustraliaG.
Family 2: Nathaniel James Townsend b. 1867, d. 23 May 1904
Marriage*: Mary Christina Rowley married Nathaniel James Townsend, son of John Townsend and Alison Mitchell*, in 1896 at Vic, AustraliaG.
Florence Mabel Townsend+ b. 1901, d. 1971
Frederick Stanley Townsend b. 1903, d. 1967
Family 3: Robert McNab b. c 1870
Marriage*: Mary Christina Rowley married Robert McNab in 1906 at Vic, AustraliaG.

Robert Rowley
M, b. circa 1840 (sic., 1822)
Birth*: Robert Rowley was born circa 1840.*
Marriage*: He married Christena Edwards circa 1860.
Last Edited: 3 Feb 2008
Family: Christena Edwards b. c 1840
Mary Christina Rowley+ b. 1866, d. 1958

* Robert was born in about 1820 according to the article about Frank Rowley of Munro. His death record almost agrees with this. His gravestone at Rye apparently states that he was "born London,(1822) arrived Sydney 8/7/1826" which accords with his death record.

EventDeath Event registration number14401 Registration year1911
Personal information
Family nameROWLEY Given namesRobt SexUnknown Father's nameRowley Jas Mother's nameElizth (King) Place of birth Place of deathPt Nepean Age89

It will be a mammoth, perhaps impossible, task to find any reference to Mrs McNab (or McNabb) at Rye on trove but I am fairly sure that Nell Arnold's history of Rye not only mentions this lady but reasonably specifically gives the location of her house.

* The mention of Allison Mitchell reignited my curiosity about the mysterious Mitchell family mentioned only once in relation to early Dromana on trove(in connection with John Mitchell, who, neglected by his family, died in 1862) and in A DREAMTIME OF DROMANA (in connection to John Bryan, whose real name was Peter Watson, having married a Miss Mitchell.) I wondered whether Allison Townsend and Margaret Watson were daughters of the unfortunate John Mitchell and have managed to prove to my satisfaction that they were in my journal:
JOHN MITCHELL, NEGLECTED BY HIS FAMILY, DIED NEAR DROMANA, VIC., AUST., IN 1862.

The only surname mentioned above that does not seem to be connected with Dromana is McNAB. Robert Rowley, associated with the Nepean Peninsula in the early 1840's and again in about 1850 was living in Dromana near today's Carrigg St in 1860, and for some years after his marriage, before Rye claimed him as a pioneer. After the death of Nathaniel James Townsend, Robert's daughter may have moved to Rye and met her third husband, Robert McNab, there. It is of interest that Robert Rowley retained an interest in the Dromana area, purchasing land on the summit of Arthurs Seat in 1904.