Artist: Robert Wadsworth Grafton (1876–1936)
Edmund Haynes Taylor Jr.
TAYLOR, EDMUND HAYNES JR. (1830–1923), inducted 1922
This great nephew of President Zachary Taylor was born in Columbus, Kentucky. Edmund Haynes Taylor was named for his uncle, who raised him following his father, John Taylor’s, death. In gratitude, he added “Junior” to his name. E. H. Taylor followed his uncle into the banking field, and then in the 1860s, he invested in the Hermitage distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky, helping to establish the brands Old Crow and Old Hermitage. In 1869, Taylor launched the O. F. C. Distillery and was, thereafter, focused on his own brand, Old Taylor. Given the honorary title of a Kentucky Colonel, Colonel Taylor garnered as much recognition from his secondary pursuit: Hereford cattle. Late in life, he established Hereford Farms in Woodford County, becoming a successful importer and breeder of livestock. The bull Woodford was the celebrated sire of the herd. E. H. Taylor Jr. also served as mayor of Frankfort for sixteen years (1871–1877 and 1881–1890), was a Kentucky representative (1891–1893), and was elected a state senator twice, in 1893 and again in 1901.
Source: Saddle & Sirloin Guidebook 2026, p. 186