Taylor was born in Victorian seaside town of Warrnambool, to parents William Walker Taylor and his wife Isabella (née Drever). His family was impoverished due to his father's drinking. He attended Hamilton State School until 1898 whereupon he began his working life, eventually becoming a shearer, working across Victoria, South Australia, New South Wales and Queensland. He joined the AWU in 1902, eventually becoming an organiser for the union in Adelaide from 1909 until 1911.[1]
1912 saw him working as a miner in Ballarat and Broken Hill and in 1914 he served in the AIF including at Gallipoli where he was wounded and subsequently discharged in 1915. In 1918 he joined the Labor Party and acquired a reputation as a soapbox orator who spoke on topics, usually involving political theory, economics and rationalism, in great detail and with utmost seriousness.[1]
In 1919 he was involved in the Merivale Street riots where returned soldiers clashed with Russians and trade unionists. He was one of the 15 charged under War Precautions Act for publicly displaying a red flag at the 'International Socialist' march in contravention of a prohibition made by the then Minister for Defence. He appealed his conviction to the Supreme Court of Queensland where he was represented by the Queensland Premier, T. J. Ryan. Although the court found in favour of the commonwealth, on that same day all the prisoners were released under a general amnesty granted to mark the official declaration of peace.[1]
His appeal was the start of a close friendship with Ryan, which was instrumental in Taylor securing a position in the Public Service as a clerk in the Tourist Bureau. This appointment was a stepping stone to his eventual entry into state politics, as it gave him more time to devote to his political career. He was also a member of the Freemasons and president of the Returned Soldiers Labour League.[1]
In 1915 he married Hilda Ward at Broken Hill and together had one daughter named Dorothy. He later entered into a de facto relationship with a Flora Jane Cameron in Brisbane which resulted in another daughter Jean and one son, George 1922.[1] He died in Brisbane in January 1957[1] and was cremated at the Mount Thompson Crematorium.[2]