BORN HULL 06/03/1891. ELDEST SON OF GEORGE TAYLOR (1866-1927) & AUGUSTUS SARAH ROBINSON (1873-1958), OF 13 STUDLEY STREET, HULL & THEN TOOLEY STREET, LONDON. SON OF A MARINE ENGINEER. HE HAD YOUNGER SIBLINGS, GLADYS AND GEORGE. HE HAD WORKED AS AN ENGINEER IN SOUTHWARK, LONDON AND SERVED IN THE LONDON RIFLE BRIGADE FOR TWO AND HALF YEARS. DESCRIBED AS 5 FOOT, 9.5 INCHES TALL, 157 LBS WEIGHT, 34 INCH CHEST, BLUE EYES, FAIR HAIR, AND CHURCH OF ENGLAND RELIGION. HE THEN EMIGRATED TO AUSTRALIA. ARRIVING IN BRISBANE, ON 22/01/1911. HE WORKED AS A FARMER, ON HIS FATHER’S NEWLAND FARM, ACACIA FIELD, AYR, QUEENSLAND.
HE ENLISTED IN AYR, QUEENSLAND, ON 06/01/1915, AGED 23. SERVED IN THE 9TH AUSTRALIAN IMPERIAL FORCE. ARRIVED IN GALLIPOLI, ON 26/05/1915. WOUNDED BY A RIFLE BULLET TO THE RIGHT LEG, PASSING THROUGH, JUST BELOW THE KNEE, ON 12/10/1915. TRANSFERRED TO ALEXANDRIA HOSPITAL. WITH SEPSIS AND A FRACTURED RIGHT TIBIA. INVALIDED TO AUSTRALIA, ON 03/11/1915. ARRIVED IN ENGLAND, ON 23/07/1916, JOINING THE 42ND AIF, MACHINE GUN SECTION. PROMOTED TO LANCE CORPORAL, ON 02/10/1916. ARRIVED IN FRANCE, ON 25/11/1916. TRANSFERRED TO THE 25TH AIF, ON 25/02/1917. COMMISSIONED TO SECOND LIEUTENANT, ON THE 05/03/1917. INVALIDED TO BRIGHTON, ENGLAND WITH GASTRIC INFLUENZA, ON 16/04/1917. ALSO CONTRACTED MUMPS AND LARYNGITIS. RETURNED TO THE 25TH AIF, ON 25/12/1917. MADE FULL LIEUTENANT, ON 12/02/1918. KILLED IN ACTION, ON 11/06/1918, AGED 26. BURIED IN AN ISOLATED GRAVE WHERE HE FELL. HE IS COMMEMORATED AN THE VILLERS BRETONNEUX MILITARY CEMETERY.
HIS EFFECTS WENT TO HIS FATHER, BUT DUE TO AN ADMINISTRATIVE ERROR THESE WERE SENT TO TOOLEY STREET IN LONDON AND SOME WERE LOST. HIS FATHER ALSO QUERIED WHETHER THE ARMY HAD CONFUSED HIS SON’S LOSS WITH ANOTHER LEONARD TAYLOR, WHO ALSO ENLISTED IN AYR, QUEENSLAND AT THE SAME TIME. IT TOOK SOME TIME TO CONFIRM THAT LIEUTENANT, LEONARD TAYLOR, HAD BEEN KILLED.
