Alfred A. Taylor

Alfred Alexander Taylor
34th Governor of Tennessee
In office
January 15, 1921 – January 16, 1923
Preceded byAlbert H. Roberts
Succeeded byAustin Peay
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Tennessee's 1st district
In office
March 4, 1889 – March 3, 1895
Preceded byRoderick R. Butler
Succeeded byWilliam C. Anderson
Member of the Tennessee House of Representatives
In office
1874–1876
Personal details
Born(1848-08-06)August 6, 1848
Carter County, Tennessee
DiedNovember 25, 1931(1931-11-25) (aged 83)
Johnson City, Tennessee
Resting placeMonte Vista Memorial Park, Johnson City
Political partyRepublican
SpouseJennie Anderson (m. 1881)[1]
Parent
Relatives
ProfessionAttorney

Alfred Alexander Taylor (August 6, 1848 – November 25, 1931) was an American politician and lecturer from eastern Tennessee. He served as the 34th governor of Tennessee from 1921 to 1923, one of three Republicans to hold the position from the end of Reconstruction to the latter half of the 20th century. He also served three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, from 1889 to 1895.[1]

In 1886, Taylor ran for governor against his younger brother, Democrat Robert Love Taylor (1850–1912), in a memorable campaign known as the "War of the Roses." Canvassing the state together, the brothers often engaged in light-hearted banter and played fiddles, in contrast to previous gubernatorial campaigns, which involved fierce debates.[2] Taylor ran for governor again in 1910, but lost his party's nomination to Ben W. Hooper. He was victorious in 1920 due in large part to divisions within the Democratic Party over taxes and women's suffrage.[3]

  1. ^ a b Robert L. Taylor, Jr., "Alfred Alexander Taylor," Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture, 2009. Retrieved: 6 December 2012.
  2. ^ Paul Deresco Augsburg, Bob and Alf Taylor: Their Lives and Lectures (Morristown, Tenn.: Morristown Book Company, 1925).
  3. ^ Phillip Langsdon, Tennessee: A Political History (Franklin, Tenn.: Hillsboro Press, 2000), pp. 300–303.