[2] On November 2, 1949, Taylor received a recess appointment from President Harry S. Truman to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee vacated by Judge George Caldwell Taylor.

Formally nominated to the same seat by President Truman on January 5, 1950, Taylor was confirmed by the United States Senate on March 8, 1950, and received his commission on March 9, 1950.

He assumed senior status on January 15, 1984, serving in that capacity until his death on July 11, 1987.

[2] He ordered an injunction against officials at Clinton High School in Clinton, Tennessee after they refused to abide by the U.S. Supreme Court ruling prohibiting the exclusion of African Americans from public schools.

[3] The Clinton 12 faced threats and attacks as they attended the school and it was destroyed by dynamite.