Hubert G. Taylor

Hubert G. Taylor (July 9, 1847 – July 8, 1928) was an American banker, real estate agent, and politician from New York. During his teenage years, he organized the Brooklyn Gray Cadets to fight in the American Civil War. During his adulthood, he worked in banking, the cottonseed oil industry, real estate, and held positions such as county treasurer, treasurer of Brooklyn, and president of the Kings County Savings Bank. He also served in the New York State Assembly in 1893.

Life Taylor was born in Brooklyn, New York, on July 9, 1847. He attended the Polytechnic Institute. His father, William Taylor, was a trustee of the Brooklyn Bridge in 1870.

Congressman Martin Kalbfleisch offered Taylor an appointment as a cadet to West Point. Instead, he decided to leave for California. In January 1863, at the age of fifteen, he sailed from New York on the clipper Snow Squall. After escaping a Confederate privateer off the coast of South America, the clipper was wrecked by rocks while trying to cross the Straits of Magellan. The crew abandoned the ship and made their way to the Falkland Islands. From there, Taylor was able to reach San Francisco via a British ship, with only 75 cents in his pocket. After explaining what happened to Messers Dibble and Hyde, to whom the Snow Squall was consigned, they gave him a package with $100. He then went to Sacramento, where a friend of his got him a job as a bookkeeper.

While in Sacramento, he befriended Edward B. Patridge, and the two of them became inspired to acquire a fortune in China. They boarded the ship Rival that brought them both to Hong Kong. Although they both had letters of recommendation from prominent California businessmen, they were unsuccessful in finding any employment. They returned to the Rival, still in port, and took the ship to Ireland. When the ship landed in Cork, Taylor discovered the American Consul received letters from his parents asking to arrange for him to be sent home. He declined an offer from the captain of the Rival to stay as second officer and agreed to return home, under the condition Patridge come with him.

In 1892, Taylor was elected to the New York State Assembly as a Republican, representing the Kings County 5th District. He served in the Assembly in 1893. He then returned to the Manufacturers National Bank as a receiving teller. In 1894, he was elected county treasurer. While serving as county treasurer, he was also treasurer of Brooklyn, treasurer of the board of education, a member of the board of estimate, and a member of the Thirteenth Regiment Commission. In 1902, he became president of the Kings County Savings Bank. He was also a director of the First National Bank of Brooklyn and treasurer and director of the Kings Highway Association. He was buried in Green-Wood Cemetery.