Taul Bradford (January 20, 1835 – October 28, 1883) was an attorney and politician from

Talladega, Alabama Talladega (, also ) is the county seat of Talladega County, Alabama, United States. It was incorporated in 1835. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 15,861. Talladega is approximately east of one of the state's la ...

, who served both in the State House and one term as

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

following the American Civil War. During the war, he served as an officer in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

, commissioned in his second regiment as a lieutenant colonel.

Early life

Taul Bradford was born in 1835 in

, the county seat, to Jacob Tipton Bradford (1807-1866) and Louisiana (née Taul) Bradford (1808-1863). His given name is that of his mother's birth family. His maternal grandfather

Micah Taul Micah Taul (May 14, 1785 – May 27, 1850) was an American pioneer, planter, lawyer, and politician. He served one term in the United States House of Representatives for Kentucky. In 1826 he moved to Winchester, Tennessee, where he practiced law ...

had moved with his family from Tennessee to Alabama in 1846, where he bought and operated a cotton plantation near Mardisville. Bradford attended the local school for his basic education. He later graduated from the

University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the old ...

in 1854, studying law. After being

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1855, he started a practice in Talladega.

Military service

When the American Civil War broke out, Bradford was commissioned in the

as a major of the Tenth Regiment, Alabama Infantry. He later resigned; his dates with the regiment are not known. It had suffered casualties of more than one-third by the time the regiment furled its colors at Appomattox. He entered the war again, serving as a lieutenant colonel of the Thirtieth Regiment, Alabama Infantry. He resigned this post before the end of the war, although his dates are not known for sure.

Political career

After the war, in the later years of the

Reconstruction era The Reconstruction era was a period in History of the United States, US history that followed the American Civil War (1861-65) and was dominated by the legal, social, and political challenges of the Abolitionism in the United States, abol ...

, Bradford entered politics. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected to the State House of Representatives, serving in 1871 and 1872. Bradford ran for Congress, and was elected in 1874 as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the Forty-fourth Congress from Alabama, serving March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877. He did not stand for renomination in 1876.

Later life

Bradford continued the practice of law in Talladega, until his death on October 28, 1883. He was interred in the town's Oak Hill Cemetery.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bradford, Taul 1835 births 1883 deaths People from Talladega, Alabama Confederate States Army officers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Alabama University of Alabama School of Law alumni 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Alabama Legislature