M . D . K . Taylor Marion DeKalb Taylor or M . D . K . Taylor ( October 13 , 1818 – June 22 , 1897 ) was an American politician in Alabama and Texas , as well as a general in the Confederate army during the American Civil War . He was a member of the Alabama Legislature for two stints between 1842 and 1846 , and served in both the Texas House of Representatives and the Texas Senate . In the Texas House , Taylor served three non - consecutive terms as Speaker of the House , and , in the Texas Senate , was twice elected President " pro tempore " of the Texas Senate . Biography . Taylor was born in Jones County , Georgia to Anne Mathews and Ward Taylor , who was a blacksmith , farmer , and Methodist preacher . The family had moved to Butler County , Alabama , by 1822 . M . D . K . Taylor received his education in Alabama and studied medicine there . Taylor married the 14 - year - old Elizabeth Sarah McDaniel in 1838 and , for the next 24 years , they would have some nine children together . Taylor was elected to the Alabama Legislature from Butler County in 1842 . He was an advocate for the annexation of Texas , a position which cost him re - election in 1844 . However , he was again sent to the Alabama Legislature in 1845 , serving through the following year . In January 1847 , Taylor and family moved to Cass County , Texas ( present - day Marion County ) , where he served as Postmaster for a time . He was elected to the House of Representatives of Third Texas Legislature ( 1849 – 1851 ) , and the Senate of the Fourth Legislature from District 5 ( 1851 – 1853 ) . After a Senate redistricting , Taylor was elected from the 7th District for the Fifth , Sixth , and Seventh Legislatures ( 1853 – 1859 ) . In the Fifth Legislature , Taylor was elected President " pro tempore " of the Senate , a position he also held for part of the Seventh Legislature . He returned to the House for the Eighth Legislature and was elected Speaker , defeating Nicholas Henry Darnell 45 votes to 33 on the second ballot . In the Tenth Texas Legislature , Taylor was again elected Speaker , defeating Constantine W . Buckley , 45 votes to 18 . During this session , held in the midst of the Civil War , Taylor helped to pass resolutions praising Jefferson Davis , and stating support of the Confederate government . Taylor also served as a Brigadier General for the 7th Militia Brigade during the Civil War . In 1864 , his wife Elizabeth died , probably during childbirth . Shortly thereafter , Taylor married Sarah Adda Pardue , who would herself die in 1866 . In 1873 , for the Thirteenth Texas Legislature , Taylor was elected Speaker for an unprecedented third time , defeating W . A . Ellett 76 votes to 10 . Taylor was very active in Democratic Party affairs , attending the Democratic State Conventions in 1872 and 1888 , while serving as president of the 1876 , 1878 , and 1880 state conventions . Taylor was also a delegate to the 1876 Democratic National Convention in St . Louis . According to some sources , Taylor was the father of several illegitimate African American children , one of whom he sent east to attend school . Taylor died after a fall on June 22 , 1897 and is buried in the Taylor family cemetery near Jefferson .