Taylor was a company town in King County, Washington.
Geography[]
Taylor was located in south King County in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. The former site of Taylor is located in a restricted area of the Cedar River Watershed.
Issaquah and Preston are to the north. Cedar Falls is to the east, and Hobart to the west. Trude and Selleck are to the south.
History[]
In 1890, the Denny Clay Company started mining operations in south King County along the Cascade Range. They created the company town of Taylor and laid it out in 1893. In 1904, a post office named Taylor was established. In 1905 the Denny company merged to become the Denny Renton Clay and Coal Company. By 1910, Taylor had a population of 1,000 people. By this time, Taylor consisted of a hotel, saloon, company store, the factory, and numerous company homes.
The company's main products were pipe, conduit, tile, and pressed brick which were all transported to the growing cities around the Puget Sound, including Seattle.
By the 1930s, the town began to see a decline. By the 1940's the town and factory operations were only a shadow of their former self. The post officer closed in 1944.
The factory produced a lot of pollution and in 1947 the City of Seattle successfully condemned the town and factory site in order to preserve the integrity of the city's water supply. This ended the town of Taylor as the remaining residents were forced to leave.
Building remains can still be seen.