Preston Taylor

Preston Taylor. Minister, Entrepreneur, and Business Leader. . (side 1) . Preston Taylor was born a slave on November 7, 1849 in Shreveport, Louisiana. He served as a drummer boy in the Union Army during the siege of Richmond, Virginia. After the Civil War, he secured a contract to build several sections of the Big Sandy Railway from Mt. Sterling to Richmond, Virginia. Taylor came to Nashville around 1884 and three years later purchased thirty-seven acres of land at Elm Hill Pike and Spence Lane. A year later, he established Greenwood Cemetery, Nashville's second oldest cemetery for African-Americans. (Continued on other side). (side 2) (Continued from other side). Founding minister of Lea Avenue Christian Church, Taylor, an undertaker, also founded Taylor Funeral Company, the first African-American undertaking business in the city. A founder of the Citizens Savings Bank and Trust Company, in 1905 he established Greenwood Recreational Park, the first park for African-Americans. Taylor was among those instrumental in Nashville securing Tennessee A&I State Normal College. Twenty years after his death, the Preston Taylor public housing complex was named in honor of one of Nashville’s most powerful African-American leaders. . This historical marker was erected by Tennessee Historical Commission. It is in Nashville in Davidson County Tennessee