Isaiah Taylor was born on the 22nd of March 1900 in Blackwell near Alfreton. His parents were Mary Ann Taylor [born 1875] and George Henry Taylor [born 1879]. Isaiah had one older brother named George [born 1898].

Unfortunately, George died just after Isaiah’s birth. Isaiah’s mother Mary then remarried in 1901 to James Bingham, a coal miner from Tibshelf and the family then all moved to Tibshelf.  From 1901 Isaiah lived with his mother, brother, stepfather and several half siblings: James Bingham [born 1901], Noah Bingham [born 1903], Fred Bingham [born 1904], Joseph Bingham [born 1906] and Sampson Bingham [born 1908].

Isaiah was a collier before he joined up to the navy aged 17, firstly as a ships boy on the 14th of September 1917 on the Powerful, the Victory I, then as a seaman in March 1918 on the Kildoman Castle, the Victory I, The Dolphin, the Victory I again and the Greenwich. In August 1919 Isaiah became a Stoker aboard the Greenwich and then on the Victory II. During his time as a Stoker, his conduct was recorded as ‘good’ and ‘satisfactory’, he also completed an oil fuel course. In February 1922 Isaiah was invalided aboard the Victory, possibly due to astigmatism which causes blurred vision. He was awarded unemployment insurance by the navy.

Isaiah was 5ft 5 and had brown hair and blue eyes. He had a scar on his left eyebrow, his index finger and two scars on his back.