Lewis and Lucretia Taylor House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Taylor House
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 Location in Florida
Location in the United States
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| Location | Tallahassee, Florida |
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| NRHP reference No. | 15000127 |
| Added to NRHP | April 6, 2015 |
The Taylor House is a special old home in Tallahassee, Florida. It's a place with a lot of history! This house was officially recognized as a historic place in the U.S. on April 6, 2015. The Taylor House Museum, found at 442 West Georgia Street, was also added to the Tallahassee-Leon County Register of Historic Places on October 26, 2011. A year later, on July 27, 2012, the state of Florida named it a Florida Heritage Site.
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Taylor House: A Historic Museum
The Taylor House is a very important landmark in the Tallahassee community. It was built way back in 1894 by Lewis Washington Taylor and Lucretia McPherson Taylor. Today, it serves as a historical museum and a place where people can research the history of Leon County, Florida.
Who Was Lewis Washington Taylor?
Lewis Washington Taylor, often called L.W. Taylor (1865-1931), was a well-known teacher, businessman, and community leader. He taught at several schools, including Centerville School, Old Lincoln High School (Tallahassee, Florida), and Bel Air. Bel Air was a small, one-room schoolhouse located on land that used to be a large plantation.
L.W. Taylor helped break down barriers for African-Americans in Leon County. He even taught and tutored white children from wealthy families, charging only 10 cents. Besides teaching, he owned a jewelry store. He made his jewelry from gold wire, which he kept in an upstairs bedroom of his home.
Who Was Lucretia McPherson Taylor?
Lucretia McPherson Taylor was born on May 19, 1865, in Tallahassee. She came from the Edwards family, who were early settlers in Leon County. Lucretia was an amazing cook and a skilled seamstress. She was born into slavery, just one day before the Emancipation Proclamation was read in downtown Tallahassee.
She cooked for the family of Lewis M. Lively. The Lively Technical Center, located at Tallahassee Community College, is named after him. Lucretia and Lewis were married on December 17, 1887. They had 13 children, and all of them spent time learning in a classroom.
The Story of the Taylor House
The Taylor family lived in this house for many years. However, in 1978, the house was left empty. By 1995, the Taylor House was almost torn down by the city. It was saved just in time by Aquilina Howell, who was a granddaughter of the Taylors.
Aquilina Howell was a legendary community leader. She became the first woman assistant school superintendent in Leon County. She reached out to the Tallahassee Urban League, Inc. for help. The Urban League bought the house and worked to restore it to its original look. The restoration was finished in 2001.
Today, the Taylor House is known as the Taylor House Museum of Historic Frenchtown. The Tallahassee Urban League, Inc. owns and operates this important museum.
