Polk Taylor

Reverend Polk Taylor (September 8, 1833 – June 18, 1934) was a formerly enslaved American Methodist minister who was inaccurately reported to have been owned by two former U.S. presidents, James K. Polk and Zachary Taylor. This claim was inaccurate, as he had been the property of Zachary Taylor's daughter Ann Eliza Taylor, and had merely been named after Polk. Ann Eliza later gave Polk Taylor to her niece as a gift. Zachary Taylor had three daughters who survived to adulthood, the oldest was Ann, the youngest was Eliza; it's unclear which one owned Polk Taylor.

Polk Taylor was born 1833 in Brownsville, Tennessee. His father was Tom Alexander, a native of Tennessee; and on his second marriage documents she is listed as Phyllis Richard. Polk Taylor was apparently manumitted sometime around 1858 and then studied for the Methodist ministry. He lived for some time in Colorado, where he seemingly lived and preached in Calhan. His wife and adult son both died in 1913 and services were held for them in Colorado Springs. He moved to Washington state about 1915. In Washington, he was called "Uncle," tended a vegetable garden at his home, and voted in every election. He died June 18, 1934, of chronic myocarditis at the county home in Yakima, Washington, at age 100.