Joseph Walters Taylor (July 12, 1820 – 1872), also sometimes mis-identified as Joseph Wright Taylor, was an Alabama politician, newspaper editor, and lawyer.

Early life

Joseph Walters Taylor was born on July 12, 1820 in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. He was educated at Cumberland College (Princeton, Kentucky), graduating in 1838).

Career

Taylor served in the Alabama legislature from Greene County from around 1845 to 1849. In addition to serving in the Alabama legislature, Taylor also edited the ''Eutaw Whig'' newspaper and delivered a series of addresses on political and educational topics in both Alabama and Virginia. His addresses included ''A Plea for the University of Alabama'' in 1847, ''The Young American: His Education, Duties, and Rewards: An Address Delivered Before The Adelphi and Franklin Societies of Howard College'' in 1849, ''Henry Clay: His Life, Character, and Services'' in 1852, ''The Southern University: Its Origin, Present Condition, Wants, and Claims: An Address Delivered before the Belles Lettres and Clariosophic Societies of the

Southern University Southern University and A&M College (Southern University, Southern, SUBR or SU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It is the largest historically black college or university (HBCU) in Louisiana, a ...

, on Their Anniversary Occasion, July 2, 1861'', and ''An Address Before the Literary Societies of

Washington and Lee University , mottoeng = "Not Unmindful of the Future" , established = , type = Private liberal arts university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.092 billion (2021) , president = William C. Dudley , provost = Lena Hill , city = Lexingto ...

'' in 1871. After the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, Taylor purchased the Tuscaloosa ''Independent Monitor'' newspaper and renamed it the ''Tuscaloosa Times''. In the 1870s, Taylor also worked to raise money for

.Dan R. Frost, Thinking Confederates: Academia and the Idea of Progress in the New South 73 (2000).

Death

Taylor died in 1872.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Joseph Walters 1820 births 1872 deaths People from Kentucky Members of the Alabama Legislature 19th-century American newspaper editors 19th-century American politicians