William S. Taylor (1795–1858) was an American politician that served in the
Alabama,
Mississippi, and
Texas State Legislatures, and was
Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives briefly in the
Seventh Texas Legislature
The Seventh Texas Legislature met from November 2, 1857 to February 16, 1858 in its regular session. All members of the House of Representatives and about half of the members of the Senate were elected in 1857.
Sessions
* 7th Regular session: Nove ...
. Taylor, at 62, is the oldest person to assume the office of Speaker of the Texas House.
Taylor was born in
Georgia in late 1795. After moving to
Alabama, Taylor enlisted and fought in the
First Seminole War and
Second Seminole War
The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between the United States and groups collectively known as Seminoles, consisting of Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans and ...
, serving as a captain in the latter. He was appointed
brigadier general of the Alabama State Militia in 1841, and thereafter was always known as General William S. Taylor.
From 1836 to 1842, Taylor represented
Fayette County, Alabama, in the
Alabama Legislature
The Alabama Legislature is the legislative branch of the state government of Alabama. It is a bicameral body composed of the House of Representatives and Senate. It is one of the few state legislatures in which members of both chambers serv ...
in the Fifteenth through the Twenty-first, and Twenty-third Alabama Legislatures. By 1844, Taylor had moved to
Tippah County, Mississippi where he served as a member of the
Mississippi House of Representatives
The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected fo ...
. In April 1847, Taylor and family moved to
Larissa, Texas (ten miles northeast of
Rusk) in
Cherokee County Cherokee County is the name of eight counties in the United States:
* Cherokee County, Alabama
* Cherokee County, Georgia
* Cherokee County, Iowa
* Cherokee County, Kansas
* Cherokee County, North Carolina
* Cherokee County, Oklahoma
* Cherokee Cou ...
. In 1855, Taylor was elected to the
Sixth Texas Legislature for the first of two terms to the
Texas House of Representatives, where he represented Cherokee and
Anderson counties.
When the Seventh Legislature convened on 2 November 1857, Taylor was the only nomination for
speaker. He was elected and served until he became ill on 26 December 1857 and took leave of absence. On 18 January 1858, Taylor resigned as Speaker.
Taylor died on 22 July 1858 and was buried in Larissa. One of his fifteen children with wife Elizabeth, son William S. Taylor, Jr., fought in the
Battle of San Jacinto.
Notes
References
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1795 births
1858 deaths
Members of the Alabama House of Representatives
Members of the Mississippi House of Representatives
Speakers of the Texas House of Representatives
Members of the Texas House of Representatives
American people of the Seminole Wars
19th-century American legislators
People from Cherokee County, Texas
19th-century Alabama politicians
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