Hilton James Taylor papers, 1935-1967

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Summary

Creator:
Taylor, Hilton James, 1923-2017
Abstract:
Hilton James Taylor (1923-2017) was a Black American minister originally from Pike County, Georgia. He served in the U.S. Army's 412th Engineer Dump Truck Company during World War II. This collection contains photographs, scrapbook pages, and printed items documenting his WWII experiences in Europe, as well as photographs, genealogy, and other assorted materials from members of the Taylor family.
Extent:
0.5 Linear Feet
Language:
Materials in English.
Collection ID:
RL.13094

Background

Scope and content:

Collection contains personal materials documenting Hilton James Taylor's service in the 412th Engineer Dump Truck Company, which served in Europe. Materials include photographs, a scrapbook, and printed materials.

The photographs document Black American soldiers in England, France, and Belgium. The largest photo is a 9¾ x 8-inch tinted formal portrait of Taylor in uniform. About ten of his fellow soldiers have provided signed postcard-sized photos, some posed with their weapons. Candid snapshots of base life and European scenes are also included; one shows two soldiers on a picnic with an English woman. Two postcard portraits of a young couple are captioned "Belgium Friends," and a British soldier is captioned "English friend Willie Cunningham." One shot shows a baseball game at the base, and another shows the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial Bridge built by the company across the Rhine River at Mainz. A commendation letter describes the unit's service, starting at Normandy in June 1944, on "rehabilitation of rail lines across France, which kept our rapidly advancing armies supplied." The June 1945 yearbook of his unit, titled "Our Job: ADSEC Engineer Mission on the Continent," is signed by about 35 of his fellow soldiers on the final blank.

The remainder of the collection consists of Taylor family photographs and ephemera. There are approximately 100 photographs showing Taylor's friends and family, during and after the war. Many are captioned; others are unidentified. Four pages from family Bibles show births and deaths back to 1902. The collection also includes Taylor's 7th grade diploma from 1940, and materials from Taylor's graduation from Carver Bible Institute in Atlanta in 1952.

There are two bound volumes: a spiral-bound notebook, 12 x 7½ inches, which was used for different purposes over a period of years. The early pages contain essays written by a student at a teacher's college in 1943. It also includes records of several Georgia weddings and funerals attended by Rev. Isaac Taylor, 1946-1960. The other volume is a 1944-1948 record book of Lodge #3 of a fraternal benefit society in Concord, Georgia, signed by Rev. Taylor's mother, Mary L. Taylor as assistant secretary.

Biographical / historical:

Hilton James Taylor was born on October 21, 1923 to parents Rev. Isaac Taylor and Mary Lou Taylor in Concord, Pike County, Georgia. The Taylors had five children: Isaac Taylor Jr., Hilton James Taylor, Leila Mae Taylor, Robert Lee Taylor, and George Wilburn Taylor.

Hilton James Taylor joined the U.S. Army in 1942 at age 18, and served in the 412th Engineer Dump Truck Company during World War II. The unit was stationed in England, France, and Belgium. He was discharged in 1945.

According to the 1950 U.S. Census, Taylor worked as an elevator operator. He married Ora Wilmort Taylor; it does not appear the couple had children. The collection's records indicate he attended Carver Bible Institute in Atlanta in 1952, and became a reverend. An Atlanta city directory indicates he was a Baptist minister in 1960.

Taylor died on May 24, 2017, in Atlanta, Georgia.

Sources cited: U.S. Census; Atlanta City Directory, 1960 (via Ancestry.com); Family Bible excerpts (in the collection).

Acquisition information:
The Hilton James Taylor Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a purchase from Swann Galleries in 2024.
Processing information:

Processed by Meghan Lyon, 2024 July

Accessions described in this collection guide: 2024-0059

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Subjects

Click on terms below to find related finding aids on this site. For other related materials in the Duke University Libraries, search for these terms in the Catalog.

Subjects:
World War, 1939-1945 -- African Americans
African Americans -- Education -- Georgia
African American fraternal organizations
African American clergy
Format:
Genealogies
Scrapbooks
Names:
United States. Army. European Theater of Operations. Advance Section
Places:
Europe -- Photographs
Pike County (Ga.)

Contents

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Restrictions:

Collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the Rubenstein Library's Citations, Permissions, and Copyright guide.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Hilton James Taylor Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

Permalink:
https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/m1273f