Robert Love Taylor
Encyclopedia
Robert Love Taylor was a U.S. Representative
from Tennessee
from 1879 to 1881, Governor of Tennessee from 1887 to 1891 and from 1897 to 1899, and subsequently a United States Senator
from that state from 1907 until his death. He is notable for winning the governor's office in an election against his older brother, Alfred A. Taylor
.
His father, Nathaniel Green Taylor
was also a Congressman from Tennessee, and he was also a first cousin of Nathaniel Edwin Harris
, Governor of Georgia from 1915 to 1917.
"Our Bob", was a native of Carter County, Tennessee
and was a Democrat, a relatively rare affiliation for a native of that part of northeastern Tennessee
. He was both admitted to the bar
and elected to the U.S. House of Representatives
in 1878, winning one term but failing to be reelected in 1880. (Taylor would be the last Democrat to serve in Tennessee's 1st congressional district
; since 1881 the seat has been continuously held by Republicans.) He was again a Democratic congressional nominee in 1882 and again defeated.
in 1886. His Republican opponent was his older brother, Alfred A. Taylor
. The subsequent campaign is known in Tennessee history as The War of the Roses
after the conflict in English history
of that name and the fact that Bob's supporters wore white rose
s, Alf's red. The two men travelled the state together, debating publicly at every stop and often sleeping at night in the same bed. Bob Taylor won election and was elected to a second term in 1888 and a third, non-consecutive term in 1896. (Alf was eventually elected governor himself in 1920, eight years after Bob's death.) Bob Taylor was also a newspaper publisher (co-founder of the Johnson City Comet).
The most notable event of Taylor's final term as governor was the Tennessee Centennial Exposition, a World's Fair
held in Nashville
's Centennial Park
, which was developed for the occasion, in the summer of 1897. (Tennessee's actual centennial as a state
was in 1896, but it had become apparent early on to the organizers that they were not going to be able to put the event together in a timely manner, and hence they postponed it for a year.) Unlike most such events, it was something of a financial success in that it succeeded in essentially breaking even (with a reported profit of under $50!). This event is probably most remembered today as the origin of Nashville's unique full-sized reproduction of the Athenian
Parthenon
.
, which served to discourage voting among poor Tennesseans, as well as African American voters. An early attempt at statewide Prohibition
was repealed during his term; however, this issue was certainly to surface again later.
, the method used prior to ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment
in 1913. He served in that office from 1907 until his death in 1912.
withdrew from his contest for reelection due to the turmoil created within the party over the Prohibition
issue, he agreed to serve as a replacement nominee. He was defeated by Republican nominee Ben W. Hooper
, who had previously defeated Alf Taylor for the Republican nomination. This is a rare example of two brothers being defeated by the same opponent in the same year but in different races. Following his defeat in the gubernatorial race, Taylor continued to serve in the Senate until his death less than two years later. He was originally buried at Old Gray Cemetery in Knoxville
, but his remains were subsequently disinterred in 1938 and reburied at Monte Vista Cemetery in Johnson City
in a family plot adjacent to his brother Alf.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
from 1879 to 1881, Governor of Tennessee from 1887 to 1891 and from 1897 to 1899, and subsequently a United States Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from that state from 1907 until his death. He is notable for winning the governor's office in an election against his older brother, Alfred A. Taylor
Alfred A. Taylor
Alfred Alexander Taylor, nickname Alf Taylor , was a lawyer and politician, serving as United States Congressman from 1889–1895, and later elected the Governor of Tennessee, serving from 1921 to 1923. Notably, in 1886 he lost the gubernatorial race to his younger brother Robert, a Democrat.- Early...
.
His father, Nathaniel Green Taylor
Nathaniel Green Taylor
Nathaniel Green Taylor was an American lawyer, farmer, and politician from Tennessee. He was U.S. Representative from Tennessee from 1854 to 1855, and again from 1866 to 1867, and Commissioner of Indian Affairs from 1867 to 1869...
was also a Congressman from Tennessee, and he was also a first cousin of Nathaniel Edwin Harris
Nathaniel Edwin Harris
Nathaniel Edwin Harris was an American lawyer and politician, and the 61st Governor of Georgia.-Early life:...
, Governor of Georgia from 1915 to 1917.
Early life and career
Taylor, known by the nicknameNickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
"Our Bob", was a native of Carter County, Tennessee
Carter County, Tennessee
Carter County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2010, the population was 57,424. Its county seat is Elizabethton.Carter County is part of the Johnson City Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is a component of the Johnson City–Kingsport–Bristol, TN-VA Combined...
and was a Democrat, a relatively rare affiliation for a native of that part of northeastern Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. He was both admitted to the bar
Bar (law)
Bar in a legal context has three possible meanings: the division of a courtroom between its working and public areas; the process of qualifying to practice law; and the legal profession.-Courtroom division:...
and elected to the U.S. House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
in 1878, winning one term but failing to be reelected in 1880. (Taylor would be the last Democrat to serve in Tennessee's 1st congressional district
Tennessee's 1st congressional district
The Tennessee 1st Congressional District is the congressional district of northeast Tennessee, including all of Carter, Cocke, Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, Hawkins, Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi, and Washington counties and parts of Jefferson County and Sevier County...
; since 1881 the seat has been continuously held by Republicans.) He was again a Democratic congressional nominee in 1882 and again defeated.
Governor's race
He was first nominated by the Democrats for governorGovernor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
in 1886. His Republican opponent was his older brother, Alfred A. Taylor
Alfred A. Taylor
Alfred Alexander Taylor, nickname Alf Taylor , was a lawyer and politician, serving as United States Congressman from 1889–1895, and later elected the Governor of Tennessee, serving from 1921 to 1923. Notably, in 1886 he lost the gubernatorial race to his younger brother Robert, a Democrat.- Early...
. The subsequent campaign is known in Tennessee history as The War of the Roses
Wars of the Roses
The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic civil wars for the throne of England fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet: the houses of Lancaster and York...
after the conflict in English history
History of England
The history of England concerns the study of the human past in one of Europe's oldest and most influential national territories. What is now England, a country within the United Kingdom, was inhabited by Neanderthals 230,000 years ago. Continuous human habitation dates to around 12,000 years ago,...
of that name and the fact that Bob's supporters wore white rose
Rose
A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows...
s, Alf's red. The two men travelled the state together, debating publicly at every stop and often sleeping at night in the same bed. Bob Taylor won election and was elected to a second term in 1888 and a third, non-consecutive term in 1896. (Alf was eventually elected governor himself in 1920, eight years after Bob's death.) Bob Taylor was also a newspaper publisher (co-founder of the Johnson City Comet).
Tennessee Centennial Exposition
World's Fair
World's fair, World fair, Universal Exposition, and World Expo are various large public exhibitions held in different parts of the world. The first Expo was held in The Crystal Palace in Hyde Park, London, United Kingdom, in 1851, under the title "Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All...
held in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
's Centennial Park
Centennial Park (Nashville)
Centennial Park is a large urban park located approximately two miles west of downtown Nashville, Tennessee, across West End Avenue from the campus of Vanderbilt University and adjacent to the headquarters campus of the Hospital Corporation of America.The park was originally farmland that had...
, which was developed for the occasion, in the summer of 1897. (Tennessee's actual centennial as a state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
was in 1896, but it had become apparent early on to the organizers that they were not going to be able to put the event together in a timely manner, and hence they postponed it for a year.) Unlike most such events, it was something of a financial success in that it succeeded in essentially breaking even (with a reported profit of under $50!). This event is probably most remembered today as the origin of Nashville's unique full-sized reproduction of the Athenian
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
Parthenon
Parthenon
The Parthenon is a temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their virgin patron. Its construction began in 447 BC when the Athenian Empire was at the height of its power. It was completed in 438 BC, although...
.
Poll tax
The most unfortunate aspect of Taylor's administration was probably the increase in the poll taxPoll tax
A poll tax is a tax of a portioned, fixed amount per individual in accordance with the census . When a corvée is commuted for cash payment, in effect it becomes a poll tax...
, which served to discourage voting among poor Tennesseans, as well as African American voters. An early attempt at statewide Prohibition
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
was repealed during his term; however, this issue was certainly to surface again later.
Senate career
Years after his final term as governor he was elected to the United States Senate by the state legislatureTennessee General Assembly
The Tennessee General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee.-Constitutional structure:According to the Tennessee State Constitution of 1870, the General Assembly is a bicameral legislature and consists of a Senate of thirty-three members and a House of Representatives of...
, the method used prior to ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment
Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution established direct election of United States Senators by popular vote. The amendment supersedes Article I, § 3, Clauses 1 and 2 of the Constitution, under which senators were elected by state legislatures...
in 1913. He served in that office from 1907 until his death in 1912.
Final years
In 1910, when incumbent Democratic governor Malcolm R. PattersonMalcolm R. Patterson
Malcolm Rice Patterson was the governor of the U.S. state of Tennessee from 1907 to 1911.-Biography:A native of Somerville, Alabama, Patterson was a son of Colonel Josiah Patterson, a distinguished Confederate cavalry officer and a United States Representative for Tennessee, and his wife Josephine...
withdrew from his contest for reelection due to the turmoil created within the party over the Prohibition
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
issue, he agreed to serve as a replacement nominee. He was defeated by Republican nominee Ben W. Hooper
Ben W. Hooper
Ben Walter Hooper was governor of the U.S. state of Tennessee from 1911 to 1915.-Biography:Hooper, who was of illegitimate birth, spent part of his childhood in an orphanage, was unofficially "adopted" by members of his rural Baptist church, and was belatedly acknowledged by his natural father, a...
, who had previously defeated Alf Taylor for the Republican nomination. This is a rare example of two brothers being defeated by the same opponent in the same year but in different races. Following his defeat in the gubernatorial race, Taylor continued to serve in the Senate until his death less than two years later. He was originally buried at Old Gray Cemetery in Knoxville
Knoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
, but his remains were subsequently disinterred in 1938 and reburied at Monte Vista Cemetery in Johnson City
Johnson City, Tennessee
Johnson City is a city in Carter, Sullivan, and Washington counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee, with most of the city being in Washington County...
in a family plot adjacent to his brother Alf.
External links
- Life and career of Senator Robert Love Taylor (Our Bob) published 1913, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
- "Robert Love Taylor of Tennessee"