Sarah Taylor (maiden name: Grimes) was born on February 15, 1820, in Indiana to Thomas Grimes and Nancy Woodward. Her father was a farmer who owned $1,200 of real estate by 1850. She married Robert Taylor in the 1850s, and their son Irvin was born around 1859. They lived in Clear Creek, Indiana, and her husband worked as a farmer. By 1860, they owned $4,500 of real estate and $1,200 of personal property. A decade later, their wealth had grown to $13,150 of real estate and $2,875 of personal property. Her husband died on December 13, 1885, and she passed away on March 14, 1895.