Town of Taylor, Alabama

Town of Taylor, Alabama. . Taylor, one of the area's oldest communities, became a small town around 1870. Billy Taylor, son of James and Wealthy Taylor, established the post office and was appointed the first postmaster. Thus Taylor derived its name from the first postmaster in the latter part of 1870. In 1884, the first school opened in a one-room building A two-story school was later built. The first floor was used as a school and the second as the Masonic Lodge. The school served as the community center for the area. It burned in the mid-1970s. The Central of Georgia Railroad was built through Taylor in 1901 and Taylor began to grow. During the earlier years, Taylor had nine stores, five fertilizer warehouses, a cotton gin, saw mill, turpentine still, two churches, school, barbershop, three doctors and a railroad depot. The closing of the railroad brought the decline of the business community. , On June 6 1967, Taylor residents voted 41 to 4 in favor of incorporation. The first mayor was Travis Cheshire and first council members were Geraldine Parker, Rubye Register, Homer Lee, Thaxton Whiddon and Howard White. While the town had a population of 125, it has since grown to approximately 1,884 and has continued to prosper. Taylor has 25 businesses, seven churches and a shopping plaza. The town has two ball fields with a park pavilion and a walking trail. Taylor also has one of the largest rural water tanks with approximately 130 miles of water lines servicing 2,500 water customers. Elected in 2008 were: Joel Napier, Mayor, and council members Dana Watts, Larry Whiddon, Merritt Carothers, Billy Snell Jr. and Kenneth Thompson Sr.