Joseph Taylor Sr. was an American Colonel and State Senator who served in the American Revolutionary War at the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge and the Battle of Guilford Court House, where he commanded the Granville County Regiment of Militia.
Joseph Taylor Sr. was born in 1742 to John Powell Taylor and Catherine Pendleton. He married Frances Anderson in 1763 at aged 21 and they would have five children together.
He commanded the Granville County Militia during the American Revolutionary War, serving as their commander at the Battles of Moore's Creek and Guilford Court House. Starting during the later years of the American Revolutionary War, and on through into the early nineteenth century, he served as a State Senator for Granville County, North Carolina, overseeing many of the States early sessions and foundational laws and actions including the foundation of the University of North Carolina, the Cession of Western lands to areas that later became the state of Tennessee, the establishment of the Federal Election Sytem, and the formation of the modern county set up of North Carolina.
Joseph Taylor Sr. died in 1815 at age 73. His decendants and relatives in Granville County, North Carolina have several plantation cites still standing today, including the Archibald Taylor Plantation House and the Col. Richard P. Taylor House. His 3rd great-granddaughter is Elizabeth Taylor.