A Nottingham success story – via the USA!
By: shortfinals
Tags: 1920s, 1940, 2.4 litre engine, 65 hp, Abingdon, Air Show, aircraft, artillery observation, Auster, Aviation, Barry, BL-65, British Army, British Taylorcraft, Clarence Taylor, club aircraft, Cub, damp night in a tent, early morning mist, England, fabric-covered, former RAF Station, G-BVRH, Gordon Taylor, Great Britain, Great Vintage Flying Weekend, GVFWE, high wing, high-wing and fabric-covered machines, L-2F, Leicester, liaison, Lycoming O-145 engine, Lycoming O-145-B2, medical evacuation, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, NY, Ohio, osier, Piper Cub, RAF, Rochester, Second World War, South Glamorgan, Taylorcraft, tent, Thurmaston, two-seat, two-seat trainer, US Army, USA, warbird, William Piper, WW2, WW2 hangar, WW2-era hangars
Category: aircraft, airshow, Aviation, British Isles, England, Great Britain, Great Vintage Flying Weekend, military, Second World War, United States, Wales
| Aperture: | f/4 |
|---|---|
| Focal Length: | 21mm |
| ISO: | 100 |
| Shutter: | 1/0 sec |
| Camera: | MVC-CD500 |
In the 1920s two brothers from Nottingham ,Clarence and Gordon Taylor, left for the USA and better times. The brothers formed their own aircraft company to build a light, two-seat trainer and ‘club’ aircraft. Relocating to Ohio, from Rochester, NY, they were joined by an oilman, William Piper, who quickly engineered a take-over of the company for his own benefit. Piper later renamed the firm, and the rest is, as they say, history. Clarence Taylor (his brother having been killed flying one of their aircraft) was forced out, and went on to found a new company which became Taylorcraft. Always concentrating on two-seat, tandem, high-wing and fabric-covered machines, these products were in direct competition with the much-more aggressively marketed Piper Cub. Both designs were used extensively during WW2 – the BL-65 shown was known by the US Army as the L-2F – on such tasks as artillery observation, liaison, medical evacuation, etc.
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This month’s offerings!
Useful links
- Courtesy Aircraft Courtesy Aircraft are a purveyor of fine, used warbirds and other aircraft
- DONATE to the The People's Mosquito DONATE to help The People’s Mosquito Ltd build a Mosquito!
- Passiondesavions Excellent blog from a pilot and Air Traffic Controller (en francais). The photography is exceptional. C’est magnifique!
- The Mighty Jingles A truly amazing wargaming channel; aircraft (War Thunder) as well as tanks (World of Tanks)
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- TPM Fund Help us build a Mosqutio for Britain!
- Travelforaircraft An excellent aircraft miscellany!
Shortfinals - aviation and more! 
Thanks for your posting. I think Clarence (Gilbert) and Gordon were born in Rochester, NY (or maybe Hamilton, ON). They were my great uncles. Their father, Arthur Taylor, was from the Nottingham area. If anyone else traces their lineage to these guys, drop me a line! My young son’s middle name is Taylor, which is appropriate as he’s inherited their mechanical intuition.
Interesting to hear about British Taylorcraft.
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