The original Taylor Building was constructed by William Freeman Taylor, a Nova Scotia native who ran a grain warehouse and livery stable on adjoining lots, as a general merchandise store with living quarters above.

Occidental is close to the northern rupture of the San Andreas Fault. The seismic shaking of the 1906 earthquake was intense enough to topple nearly every brick chimney in town and cause the structural failure of several commercial and residential buildings. The Taylor Building was destroyed by fire and was rebuilt by Taylor to replicate the original building.