J. Vincent Taylor, Georgetown, D.C. 

Washington July 5^th 1863

 To the: Supt Wood, 

Old Capitol Prison 

            You will receive and confine in the prison under you charge, until further order, the person of  J. Vincent Taylor, a secessionist. Disloyal person who has violated his Parole & cheered for Jefferson Davis. 

Refused to take the oath. 

By Command of
            Henry B.. Todd
            Provost Marshall 

Chas. N. Thompson  Lvo Adgz. 

Civil War

The District of Columbia was populated by many southerners with Confederate ties.
During the Civil War many of its citizens were arrested in order to obtain information
about Confederate activities. The oath of allegiance was required of all persons
holding licenses of any sort from the town-businesses, individual members, renters of
stalls in the market, manufacturers selling their own goods, clergymen, lawyers,
physicians, school teachers, both male and female, bankers and bank officers.

Julius St. Vincent Taylor, born 1843, Georgetown, D.C. , was the son of
Vincent  J. Taylor, the head miller of the first flourmill built in Georgetown in 1836,
and business partner with Robert P. Dodge. ⁽¹⁾  The 1853 Georgetown-Washington directory lists Taylor's Mill, was located on the north side Water, near aqueduct.  ⁽²⁾

In 1851, Vincent J. Taylor, (b.1812), purchased a two-story house located at 3307 N. Street for $2,000. William Marbury originally built the house in 1812. The original address of the property was  58 First Street, which was the northwest corner of Potomac and 1st Street.  ⁽²⁾   

On New Year's Eve 1858, Vincent Taylor, died leaving his widow Mrs. Annie Taylor, the N Street property. Mrs. Taylor rented the property from 1861 to 1866 selling it to Reverend Nicholas P. Tillinghast from Rhode Island for $3,000.

 In 1866 Mrs. Taylor used the income from the N. Street house and another large house she owned on M Street, to move to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with her two daughters Sarah and Rose. Son Charles was also residing in Philadelphia. President John F. Kennedy owned the house at 3307 N. Street in 1961 when he became president, who later sold the property for $100,000. ⁽³⁾
 

War of 1812

George C. Washington, Maryland representative, submitted a private claim petition for Vincent Taylor, Sr., (Julius Taylors' grandfather)  of the District of Columbia, to the House of Representatives, dated 3 May 1830, "Praying to be paid for beef and
a barrel of  flour taken from him by Lieutenant Spencer, in the fall of 1814, in Fairfax County, Virginia, for the use of troops of the United States, in the year 1814, amounting to the value of $34.50." The beef was valued at $30 and the flour $4.50.
The review committee resolved, that the claim be not allowed. ⁽⁴⁾

Georgetown 1696-1801  ⁽⁵⁾
Sea Port - Tobacco Trade - Scottish  immigrants

The town of Georgetown was originally part of a tract patented to William Hutchinson in 1696 called "The Vineyard." The Washington, D.C. region was known as the "New Scotland Hundred," Colony of Maryland.

In 1748 Frederick County, Maryland was created out of the upper part of Prince George's. Frederick County comprised the territory from Rock Creek along the Potomac to the western boundary of the Maryland Province.

The first settlements, mainly by Scottish immigrants, in Frederick County were made in the vicinity of Georgetown, the chief mart and seaport of the county.

 In 1751 the town of Georgetown comprising 60 acres was laid out into 80 town lots. Montgomery County was cut from Frederick County in 1776. Georgetown, now in Montgomery Co., Maryland,  was incorporated in 1789.

Georgetown, in 1791, ranked as a great tobacco market. Its trade extended as far as Fort Osage on the Missouri to Lake Erie and Mobile. The town also engaged in foreign trade with England and the West Indies.

One of the largest ships owned in the Georgetown area was the "Caledonia" capable of carrying 648 tons. The vessel was owned by Walter Smith, Clement Smith, E. M. Linthicum, and Francis Dodge, father of  Robert P. Dodge.

Francis Dodge was also a co-owner of the vessels, " Adeline, Francis Depau, Hope & Polly, Rubicon, and Rambler." ⁽⁶⁾

Discussions to establish the federal territory, the District of Columbia, were initiated in March 29, 1791. Meetings were held at the Fountain Inn, more commonly known as Suter's Tavern, operated by John Suter, a Scotsman.

Suter's Tavern, located at Bridge Street (now M Street) in Georgetown,  was built in the late 1700s by Robert Peter, first mayor of Georgetown, who owned part of "The Vineyard" in 1791.

Suter's Tavern, was a gathering place of "gentlemen" and the scene of many of the transactions in connection with the establishment of the Federal City across Rock Creek. George Washington met with landowners and made an agreement to compensate them for property taken to build the President's Palace, the Capital, and Navy yard.

"Nineteen original proprietors signed an agreement the next day which was to convert the tobacco farms and frog ponds into the Nation's Capital." ⁽⁷⁾

 

1) Mitchell, Mary A, "An Intimate Journey Through Georgetown in April 1863" Records
    of the Columbia Historical Society, 1960-1962.Washington, D. C.  Volume 60-62,
    The Waverly Press, Baltimore, MD, 1963. pp. 84-102.
2) Compiled and published by Hunter, Alfred. 1853 "The Washington and Georgetown
    Directory, Strangers' Guide-book for Washington, and Congressional and Clerks'
    Register"
3) ibid, Ref. No. 1.
4)  Journal of House of Representatives, 23rd Congress, Session 1, dated 25 March 1834,
     journal page 448. Mr. Taylor's petition was again denied on 4 April 1834
5) "Washington, City & Capital,"  a Federal Writers' Project, American Guide Series,
    Washington, 1937
6) Taggart, Hugh T., "Old Georgetown" Records of the Columbia Historical Society,
    Washington D.C., published 1908, Volume 2, pp. 120-224).
6) Contributed by Higgins, Margo Elliott, "Taylor Family Bible" Washington, D.C. National
    Genealogical  Society Quarterly, Volume 66, No. 4, December 1978, page 251
7) Lewis, David L. "District of Columbia" A Bicentennial History,"  W.W. Norton &
     Company, Inc., New York, 1976, pp. 6&7
8) 1810 Federal Census - Fairfax, Virginia.  3-0-0-1/2 0 0 1 = 7 Vincent Taylor
9) 1830 Federal Census, City of Washington, east of Rock Creek & west of 7th Street Turnpike
     Head of Household Vincent Taylor Sr, b. 1775. Wife, 3 children and and seven slaves
     (6 males/1female)
10) 1840 Federal Census - Georgetown, Head of Household: Vincent Taylor Jr, b. 1812, wife
     Anna, b. 1816, one son George, age 11, grandmother, Margaret, age 60, and one
     identified male, born between 1800-1810.
11) 1850 Federal Census - Georgetown, Head of Household Vincent Taylor, age 38, miller,
     property value $3,000. Dwelling 154, Family 166, page 159. One servant, Nancy Lee, black,
     b. 1833, Virgin Islands
12) Vincent Taylor Will, Certified Copy of the original will, May 16, 1901, Box 49, 1859.
13) Vincent J. Taylor, Jr. died 31 December 1858. The "Evening Star" dated, Saturday,
      January 1, 1859, page 3, reported his death: "In Georgetown, D.C. on the 31st ultimo,
      VINCENT J. TAYLOR, in the 47th year of his age. The friends of his family are
      affectionately invited to attend his funeral, to-morrow, (Sunday,) at two o'clock p.m."
14) 1880 Federal Census-Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
       Head of household: Sarah L. Taylor, age 30, dressmaker, sister Rosa, age 24, dressmaker,
       and boarder George E. Vickers, age 26, journalist, born Maryland.
15) Charles H. Farnam, A.M., "History of the Descendants of John Whitman of
      Weymouth, MA." Tuttle, Morehouse & Taylor, Printers, 1889, pp. 221-222.
      Godfrey Memorial Library, Connecticut).