Hoyt Patrick Taylor Sr. (June 11, 1890 – April 12, 1964) was the 21st

Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina The lieutenant governor of North Carolina is the second-highest elected official in the U.S. state of North Carolina and is the only elected official to have powers in both the legislative and executive branches of state government. A member of ...

from 1949 to 1953.

Early life

Taylor was born in Winton, North Carolina on June 11, 1890 to Simeon P. and Kate (née Ward) Taylor.

Education

Taylor attended Winton Academy, Winton High School,

Horner Military Academy Horner Military School was a private educational institution in North Carolina that operated from 1851 until 1920. It was founded by James Hunter Horner in 1851 in Oxford, North Carolina as The Horner School. An 1844 graduate of the University ...

and Wake Forest College.

Family life

In 1923 Taylor married Inez Wooten of Chadbourn. They had three children: Hoyt Patrick Taylor Jr., Caroline Corbett Taylor, and Frank Wooten Taylor. Hoyt Patrick "Pat" Taylor Jr. was also elected lieutenant governor, twenty years after his father.

Military service

Taylor served as a second lieutenant in the 371st Infantry during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and received the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

and

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

as well as a personal citation from General

John Joseph Pershing General of the Armies John Joseph Pershing (September 13, 1860 – July 15, 1948), nicknamed "Black Jack", was an American army general, educator, and founder of the Pershing Rifles. He served as the commander of the American Expeditionary Forc ...

Business career

For many years Taylor practiced law in

Wadesboro, North Carolina Wadesboro is a town in and the county seat of Anson County, North Carolina, Anson County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 5,008 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The town was originally found in 1783 as New Town but ...

, for a time in partnership with Congressman A. Paul Kitchin.

Early political career

A Democrat, Taylor served as mayor of Wadesboro, as chairman of the Anson County Democratic Executive Committee, as a member of the

North Carolina Senate The North Carolina Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the North Carolina General Assembly, which along with the North Carolina House of Representatives—the lower chamber—comprises the state legislature of North Carolina. The Senate ...

from the 19th district (sessions of 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, and 1943), and as legislative assistant to Governor Robert Gregg Cherry (1945). Taylor served as a trustee of the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...

and

Meredith College Meredith College is a private women's liberal arts college and coeducational graduate school Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qu ...

End Notes

References

Hoyt Patrick Taylor, Sr., Papers at East Carolina University

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Hoyt Patrick 1890 births 1964 deaths Lieutenant governors of North Carolina North Carolina state senators Wake Forest University alumni Federal Bureau of Investigation agents Recipients of the Silver Star Meredith College people North Carolina lawyers People from Winton, North Carolina People from Wadesboro, North Carolina Military personnel from North Carolina American military personnel of World War I Mayors of places in North Carolina 20th-century members of the North Carolina General Assembly