Taylor, William Sylvester, 1853-1928.

Governor of Kentucky, politician, lawyer.

William S. Taylor (1853-1928) was, after serving a term as Kentucky's attorney general, chosen as the Republican Party nominee for the 1899 gubernatorial contest. His opponents, in what was probably the most tumultuous election in Kentucky history, included representatives of two Democratic factions: state senator William Goebel (1856-1900) and former Governor John Young Brown (1835-1904). After a heated campaign the two front runners, Taylor and Goebel, waited over a month for the election commission's announcement of the official results. Shortly before inauguration day Taylor was declared the winner by about two thousand votes.

While a complaint filed by Goebel's supporters was pending before the legislature, an assassin wounded Goebel outside the capitol building. Taylor, ensconced in the state house and surrounded by militia, barred the heavily Democratic legislature from the building. They met in a hotel instead and declared Goebel as governor. Following a hasty inauguration, Goebel died and was succeeded by his lieutanant governor, J.W.C. Beckham. While the election results were being considered in the courts, Taylor and his Secretary of State, Caleb Powers, were accussed of being accessories in the assassination. After the courts decided in favor of the Goebel-Beckham ticket, Taylor fled to Indianapolis, Indiana where he practiced law and resisted extradition until he was pardoned by Governor Augustus E. Willson in 1909.

From the description of William Sylvester Taylor papers, 1899-1937. (University of Kentucky Libraries). WorldCat record id: 15257694