James Taylor

James Taylor V (April 19, 1769 – November 7, 1848) was an American quartermaster general and one of the wealthiest early settlers of Kentucky. He was a founder of the city of Newport, Kentucky.

Early life James Taylor Jr. was born on April 19, 1769, in Midway, Caroline County, Colony of Virginia, British America, to Ann (née Hubbard) and James Taylor Sr. His father was a colonel in the Revolutionary War. His great-grandfather was James Taylor II, a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses. He was a member of the Taylor family of Virginia. James Madison and Zachary Taylor were his second cousins. His great uncle was George Taylor and his first cousin once removed was Richard Taylor. He attended private schools and Rappahannock Academy. His father, James Taylor IV, bought of land in Northern Kentucky from his friend George Muse, which was part of the land Muse had been awarded for his military service in the French and Indian War. On April 1, 1792, he left his father's plantation for Kentucky accompanied by three slaves, Moses, Humphrey and Adam, along with an English Army deserter, Robert Christy, and Christy's wife and their three children. They reached Newport June 20 but couldn't find lodging, so he stayed at Fort Washington in Cincinnati. His enslaved men worked through the summer to clear in fields along the Licking River, plant two corn crops, and build a small cabin on lot no. 6 at the southwest corner of Second Street and Central Avenue.

In 1792, Taylor supervised the sale of his father's land on Licking River. Preferring the pioneer life, he settled in Newport, Kentucky, in 1793 and helped his brother Hubbard Taylor lay out the town. He laid out the first road to Lexington in August with Jacob and Edward Fowler. In 1794, Taylor tapped his connections with Kentucky's leaders to lobby at Frankfort for acts incorporating Newport and creating Campbell County, Kentucky. The legislature established the county on December 17, 1794, from parts of Mason, Scott and Harrison Counties. On December 14, 1795, it approved Newport's charter.

In 1797, Taylor received of land in Jefferson County from his father. In 1803, he was supervisor of the construction of Newport Barracks, a arsenal on the Licking and Ohio rivers. He donated a portion of the land it was built on. Taylor was among a group of officers that planned to turn over command of the American fort in Detroit from General William Hull to Duncan McArthur. In August 1812, Taylor, then a major, and Thomas Jesup were among the officers that refused in assisting General Hull in his capitulation to British general Isaac Brock in Detroit. Prior to the Battle of New Orleans, he took out a mortgage on his land to outfit Kentucky soldiers with boats to reach New Orleans. In 1817, he was one of the directors of a branch of the Second Bank of the United States in Lexington. In January 1818, the Newport Bank was chartered by the Kentucky legislature and he served as one of its directors. On his death bed, election judges were present to allow him to cast the first vote of Newport for his relative, presidential candidate Zachary Taylor. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 22, 1976. He began selling his land in Jefferson County in 1814.

Taylor incorporated the Newport Manufacturing Company in November 1831. His son James was a banker and married Susan Barry, the daughter of congressman William T. Barry. He was related to Kentucky politician Edmund H. Taylor Jr.

Taylor was friends with Henry Clay.

General James Taylor Park, formerly the Newport Barracks, was named after Taylor. The city Bellevue, Kentucky, was named after his Bellevue estate in Newport. In the mid-19th century, Newport became a hub for trade, industry and culture. His grandson established the wealthy area of East Row, a collection of elegant homes. Today, the East Row Historic District is the second-largest local district in Kentucky and the Taylor Mansion is the district's oldest house.