Frederick Southgate Taylor (December 16, 1847 – February 16, 1896), was an American politician and businessman. He served two terms in the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two houses of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...

. Taylor is noted as a founder of

Pi Kappa Alpha Pi Kappa Alpha (), commonly known as Pike is a college fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1868. The fraternity has over 225 chapters and provisional chapters across the United States and abroad with over 15,500 undergraduate mem ...

fraternity.

Early life

Frederick Southgate Taylor was born in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

on December 16, 1847. His father was Tazewell Taylor, the

bursar A bursar (derived from ''wikt:bursa, bursa'', Latin for 'Coin purse, purse') is a professional Administrator of the government, administrator in a school or university often with a predominantly financial role. In the United States, bursars usual ...

of the

College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (abbreviated as W&M) is a public university, public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1693 under a royal charter issued by King William III of England, William III and Queen ...

and a lawyer in Norfolk. Taylor grew up in and around Norfolk. Taylor attended the College of William & Mary, graduating with an A.B. degree. He then, enrolled in the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

in the fall of 1867. Taylor lived in 47 West Range (part of The Range) until 1869, studying pre-law. On Sunday evening March 1, 1868, at 47 West Range,

was founded by Taylor, his cousin and roommate Littleton Waller Tazewell Bradford, and four other students. Taylor was behind the founding of Pi Kappa Alpha and gave the fraternity its name, rituals, and motto.

Career

After graduating from the university, Taylor practiced law briefly in Norfolk. He engaged in a variety of commercial enterprises and real estate in Norfolk, amassing a small fortune. He was the treasurer of the Norfolk Draw Bridge Company and the secretary and tresurer of the Norfolk and Ocean View Railroad. He served on the board of directors of the City Gas Light Company of Norfolk and the Upshur Guano Company. With George R. Wilson, he formed Wilson & Taylor, a wholesaler and retailer of ice they imported from ponds in Boston, Massachusetts. He also was the secretary of the Ocean View Hotel, a 25-room hotel that was on the Chesapeake Bay. In March 1870, Virginia's Governor Gilbert C. Walker appointed Taylor the

notary public A notary public ( notary or public notary; notaries public) of the common law is a public officer constituted by law to serve the public in non-contentious matters usually concerned with general financial transactions, estates, deeds, powers- ...

for Norfolk. Taylor was elected as a Democratic member of the

for Norfolk from 1874–1875. He was elected president of the Select Council of Norfolk on July 1, 1880. Later, he became the president of the Common Council of Norfolk, resigning in October 1889 to return to the House of Delegates. In January 1888, Taylor and his partners incorporated the Elizabeth River Navigation Company to operate a toll ferry between Norfolk and

Portsmouth, VIrginia Portsmouth is an Independent city (United States), independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. It lies across the Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth River from Norfolk, Virginia, Norfolk. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...

. Taylor was reelected to the Virginia House of Delegates for Norfolk, serving from 1890–1891. In May 1892, he was elected president of the Norfolk Real Estate Investment Company.

Personal life

Taylor married Anna Brooke. They had a daughter and four sons—Brooke Taylor, Tazwell Taylor, Southgate Taylor, Anna Taylor, and Seldon Taylor. The family lived in Norfolk and had a cottage at

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the most populous city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeastern Virginia. It is the sixth-most populous city in the ...

. Taylor was known as a philanthropist, contributing to community service projects. In 1872, he served on the executive committee of the Virginia and North Carolina Agricultural Society which arranged a fair with a

regatta Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wa ...

, auction, and sailing boat race. In November 1881, Governor Frederick W. M. Holliday appointed Taylor to the state board of visitors of the Eastern Lunatic Asylum. He also served on the board of directors of the Retreat for the Sick. He was a member of the vestry of Christ Church in Norfolk and served on the Committee of Entertainment and Quarters of the Delegates to the Protestant Episcopal Council of Virginia. He served on the executive committee of the alumni association of the College of William & Mary. He was also a member of the Owens Lodge of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. Taylor died on February 16, 1896, in front of the Hume & Billsoly store on Main Street in Norfolk. He died from heart failure. He was forty-eight years old, and most of his children were still young. He was buried in Elmwood Cemetery in Norfolk.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Frederick Southgate 1847 births 1896 deaths Politicians from Norfolk, Virginia Members of the Virginia House of Delegates College of William & Mary alumni University of Virginia School of Law alumni Pi Kappa Alpha founders 19th-century American Episcopalians 19th-century American railroad executives American Freemasons 19th-century members of the Virginia General Assembly