James L. Taylor

James L. Taylor was inducted into the College of Applied Human Sciences Hall of Fame in the fall of 2025. He was previously inducted into the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences Hall of Fame in 2020.

A native of Charles Town, W.Va., Taylor served in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War before enrolling at Shepherd College (now Shepherd University), where he earned bachelor’s degrees and a Corrective Therapist Certification. He later earned a master’s degree in physical education from West Virginia University in 1965. At Shepherd, he became the first African American to play on the football team, which went undefeated and untied during his career, and also coached tumbling, boxing, wrestling, and gymnastics as a teacher’s assistant.

Taylor began his teaching and coaching career at Page-Jackson High School in Jefferson County, where he taught science and physical education and coached football, basketball, and track. He later taught and coached at Charles Town Junior High and Charles Town High School before joining the Harpers Ferry Job Corps in 1965, where he remained until 1972. He then began a long tenure at Jefferson High School, teaching biology, anatomy, and physiology while coaching football, basketball, cross country, and track and field. Among the many athletes he coached was James Jett, who went on to win an Olympic gold medal in 1992. Taylor was named West Virginia High School Track Coach of the Year in 1994 and retired in 1995.

In 2000, Taylor co-founded the Jefferson County Black History Society and served as its president. He placed several state highway and city markers commemorating African American history and authored the book African Americans in the Lower Shenandoah Valley. In 2001, he appeared in an ESPN special on Black jockeys and the Kentucky Derby, where he shared his knowledge of Jimmy Winkfield, the last African American jockey to win the event.

Taylor passed away in 2021.