[2] Living in Bacup, Taylor was a shoemaker, and in 1895 he was a founder member of the Rossendale Union of Boot, Shoe and Slipper Operatives, and soon became its part-time general secretary, becoming full-time in 1909.
[3] Taylor opposed World War I, and was a conscientious objector, although he served on the Rawtenstall Tribunal until late 1916, when he was removed over the protests of the local labour movement.
[5] At this time, Taylor was a candidate in the 1917 Rossendale by-election, describing his campaign as "Peace by Negotiation".
He was a member of the British Socialist Party,[6] but also received the support of the No Conscription Fellowship, and individuals including Charles Roden Buxton, R. C. Wallhead, and J. H. Standring, who acted as his election agent.
The Manchester Guardian stated that "if Mr Taylor had had the arrangement of the time-table himself he could not have managed it more to his own advantage as a candidate".