John Stansel Taylor
Encyclopedia
Largo, Florida
Largo is the third largest city in Pinellas County, Florida, USA and is part of the Tampa Bay Area. Centrally located, it is the crossroads of the county. As of the 2000 census, the City had a total population of 69,371. As of 2004, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau was...
politician, citrus
Citrus
Citrus is a common term and genus of flowering plants in the rue family, Rutaceae. Citrus is believed to have originated in the part of Southeast Asia bordered by Northeastern India, Myanmar and the Yunnan province of China...
grower, and businessman who served as the first State Senator
Florida Senate
The Florida Senate is the upper house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida. The Senate is composed of 40 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 470,032....
from Pinellas County, Florida
Pinellas County, Florida
Pinellas County is a county located in the state of Florida. Its county seat is Clearwater, Florida, and its largest city is St. Petersburg. This county is contained entirely within the telephone area code 727, except for some sections of Oldsmar, which have the area code 813...
. He was born "six miles south of Largo" on March 21, 1871, before Largo became a municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
and when Pinellas County was still Western Hillsborough County
Hillsborough County, Florida
As of the census of 2000, there were 998,948 people, 391,357 households, and 255,164 families residing in the county. The population density was 951 people per square mile . There were 425,962 housing units at an average density of 405 per square mile...
. Taylor’s parents were among the Pinellas
Pinellas
Pinellas is the name of a peninsula located roughly half-way down the west coast of Florida. It forms the western boundary of Tampa Bay and comprises the bulk of Pinellas County. There is a city named Pinellas Park in south Pinellas. The peninsula is bounded on the north by Pasco County, Florida,...
Peninsula's first pioneers, and he was one one of the first residents to be born in the Largo area. He was one of four members of his family to serve in the State Legislature. He was one of the largest landowners in Pinellas County, owning citrus groves and a packing plant at a time when Largo was nicknamed "Citrus City."
Taylor was President of the Florida Citrus Exchange and a Member of the State Citrus Commission. He has been called "the father of Pinellas County." He died in 1936. Taylor Lake Park, a Pinellas County park, was named in his honor.
As a child, he worked in his family's groves and packing plant. On May 2, 1901, he married Flossie Campbell.
In 1903, Taylor built his citrus packing plant at the corner of Missouri Avenue and Bay Drive in Largo. Taylor served as a Hillsborough County's Representative in the State Legislature from 1905 until 1910 and advocated for the separation of Pinellas from Hillsborough County. In 1911 he served as mayor of Largo
Largo, Florida
Largo is the third largest city in Pinellas County, Florida, USA and is part of the Tampa Bay Area. Centrally located, it is the crossroads of the county. As of the 2000 census, the City had a total population of 69,371. As of 2004, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau was...
and in 1913 was instrumental in making Largo the first Florida town to use a council-manager government
Council-manager government
The council–manager government form is one of two predominant forms of municipal government in the United States; the other common form of local government is the mayor-council government form, which characteristically occurs in large cities...
. He continued the campaign for the separation of the Pinellas Peninsula from Hillsborough County. He lobbied the Legislature and presided at a rally in Largo where the "Pinellas Declaration of Independence" (written by St. Petersburg Times
St. Petersburg Times
The St. Petersburg Times is a United States newspaper. It is one of two major publications serving the Tampa Bay Area, the other being The Tampa Tribune, which the Times tops in both circulation and readership. Based in St...
editor W. L. Straub) was read. The Legislature created Pinellas County on January 1, 1912, and Pinellas County elected Taylor to the Florida Senate in September 1912. He defeated the Socialist candidate 384 to 307.
He also served as chair of the Pinellas County Board of Commissioners from 1915 to 1923. There he helped reform the awarding of contracts for roads construction. He advocated for construction of a county wide road system at a time when Pinellas roads were inadequate and construction was controversial. In May 1924, he became president of the "Citrus City" Growers Association. In 1925, he became president of the Florida Senate. The issue of evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
caused consternation among Floridians at that time, and the
1927 session of the Legislature sought to pass an "anti-evolution bill" to prohibit the teaching of evolution in public schools. Senator Taylor was a vice-president in the "Bible Crusaders of America" and a strong anti-evolutionist. He used his power as Senate President
President of the Senate
The President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate, and is the speaker of other assemblies.The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for example, the President of the Senate of Nigeria is second in line...
to have the Bill calendared and voted on by number only, but the Bill's opponents discovered what had been done and successfully fought its passage. In 1928, he ran unsuccessfully for governor.
In 1929, he became president of the Florida Horticultural Society.
Taylor's groves and packing plant were mainstays of Largo's economy during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. On April Fools' Day
April Fools' Day
April Fools' Day is celebrated in different countries around the world on April 1 every year. Sometimes referred to as All Fools' Day, April 1 is not a national holiday, but is widely recognized and celebrated as a day when many people play all kinds of jokes and foolishness...
eve, 1931, the packing plant burned down. Taylor rented space from another packer and built a new plant on Seminole Boulevard at East Bay Drive, where Largo Central Park was built after the plant's demolition. His business interests included serving as president of the Bank of Clearwater
Clearwater, Florida
Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, US, nearly due west of Tampa and northwest of St. Petersburg. In the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and in the east lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 108,787. It is the county seat of...
. He was a director of the People's Bank of Clearwater and Largo. He was a Knight of Pythias
Knights of Pythias
The Knights of Pythias is a fraternal organization and secret society founded at Washington, DC, on 19 February 1864.The Knights of Pythias was the first fraternal organization to receive a charter under an act of the United States Congress. It was founded by Justus H. Rathbone, who had been...
and an Elk
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks
The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks is an American fraternal order and social club founded in 1868...
. He was also a steward of Largo First Methodist Church. He was a member of the Democratic National Committee
Democratic National Committee
The Democratic National Committee is the principal organization governing the United States Democratic Party on a day to day basis. While it is responsible for overseeing the process of writing a platform every four years, the DNC's central focus is on campaign and political activity in support...
in 1932. In 1935, he was elected president of the Florida Citrus Exchange. He served in the Florida Senate and as an advocate for Florida citrus until his death. He suffered a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
while making a trip to promote Florida citrus, and died at home a week later in August 1936.
Sources
- Blackwell, Theresa. "Tribute marks funeral of John S. Taylor." St. Petersburg Times. Aug. 17, 1936. reprinted August 20, 2006. Online. June 19, 2008.
- Cain, Gretchen. "Taylor Family reunion draws 140 together." Largo Leader. May 10, 1990.
- Goldman, Sue Searcy .Pinellas County, Florida. A History of the Board of County Commissioners of Pinellas County
- Goldman. Sue Searcy. A History of the Board of County Commissioners of Pinellas County. Online. June 25, 2008.