E. H. Taylor Hay, Jr.
Friday
21
February

Visitation

3:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Friday, February 21, 2025
Rogers Funeral Home
507 West 2nd Street
Frankfort, Kentucky, United States

Obituary of E. H. Taylor Hay, Jr.

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E. H. Taylor Hay Jr. of Frankfort, Kentucky lived a long life of curiosity, creativity and neverending enthusiasm. He was born in San Diego, California on February 11, 1930. He died on February 2, 2025, at home in Frankfort, by a warm fire, surrounded by his loved ones. As a child he lived in San Diego, Los Angeles and Chicago with his parents, E. H. Taylor Hay Sr. and Ruth Patrick Williams Hay. He attended Harris School in Chicago, graduated from Frankfort High School, played football and earned a history degree from Virginia Military Institute. In childhood, he was inseparable from his sister Mary Belle Taylor Hay Harwich (husband Murray), and they adored their much younger brother John Hay who was raised at Scotland Farm in Frankfort. During the Korean War, Taylor served as a first lieutenant in the United States Air Force. He was stationed in Bangor, Maine and Alexandria, Louisiana. Married to Alice Summers Hay and later Ambie Hutcherson, Taylor raised his beloved children in Louisville while creating successful businesses in real estate, building and land development. He built more than 100 homes around Louisville, developing neighborhoods with a passion for energy efficiency, functional design and historic preservation. He designed his neighborhoods around the natural landscape, laying out the roads on horseback, preserving the existing trees and planting hundreds and hundreds of hardwoods. He adored his eight children: E. H. Taylor Hay III, Shelley Summers Hay (Tom Neff), Diane Hay Beckman (David), Ambie Hutcherson Hay, Robert Taylor Hay (Kathleen), Douglas Wickliffe Hay (Kristen), Elisabeth Hay Sackfield (Tom), and Williams Crittenden Hay (Jill). He was “Pa” to his grandchildren and great-grandchildren: David Whitworth Beckman (daughter Violette), Lindley Beckman Turner (husband Chad), Hillary Beckman Patil (husband Neil, children Everett, Bodie, Zoey), Beau Taylor Beckman (wife Olivia, children Bruce, Fred, Nell); Mason Crittenden Kennelly, Juliet Kennelly Syben (husband Mark, son Beau); Hannah Sackfield Wolff (husband James, daughter Elizabeth), Frederick Joseph Sackfield (wife Caroline); Madeleine Francis Hay, Isabelle James Hay (husband Axl Wheeler, daughter Emerine); Taylor Williams Hay, Sarah Adele Hay, Emma Elizabeth Hay, Meaghan Kelley Hay; Williams Crittenden Hay Jr., Zachary Hutcherson Hay, and Ruth Clara Hay. In 1987, Taylor married Joanna Thornewill Hay. They settled in Frankfort, Kentucky. Together for nearly 40 years, they restored and lived in old farmhouses, created small businesses and surrounded themselves with family and friends. They traveled the U.S. with Synergetics Health Publications, and opened Scotland Gardens, growing organic vegetables. Taylor was a writer (Synergetics), inventor (PocketGym), painter, and played a mean boogie-woogie on the piano. For the final years of his life, he and Joanna lived in a house in town on the Kentucky River. Taylor never met a stranger and loved telling stories about football triumphs, his diverse spiritual beliefs, and historical heroes (including his great-great grandfather, the iconic bourbon distiller Colonel E. H. Taylor Jr.). Always ahead of his time, he never missed an opportunity to encourage people to stay healthy and to appreciate every moment of every day — living by these principles himself, though he was also known to indulge in ice cream and a tipple. He was an insatiable seeker of spiritual and practical knowledge, always certain he had discovered the fountain of youth. He was an inspiration to many and wanted us all to “live without fear, with a light heart and a serious mind.” Visitation will be at Rogers Funeral Home from 3:00 to 6:00 pm Friday, February 21st. The family will hold a private committal. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Yes Card Fund or Jordon C. Ellis Fund, both in care of the Bluegrass Community Foundation, or to the Grand Theatre.
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E. H. Taylor