James Taylor (Ceylon)
| James Taylor | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
James Taylor 29 March 1835 Kincardineshire, Scotland |
| Died | 2 May 1892 (aged 57) Kandy, British Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka) |
| Known for | First tea plantation to British Ceylon (Sri Lanka) |
James Taylor (29 March 1835 Kincardineshire, Scotland - 2 May 1892 Kandy, British Ceylon) was a British citizen who introduced tea plantation to British Ceylon. He arrived to British Ceylon in 1852 and settled down in Loolecondera estate in Galaha. Here he worked with Thomas Lipton, a Scottish immigrant, to develop the tea industry in British Ceylon. He continued to live in British Ceylon until his death (more than half of his lifetime).
Taylor visited India in 1866 to learn the basics of growing tea on plantations; following his return, he started a plantation in Loolecondera estate in Kandy (Sri Lanka - formerly known as Ceylon). He began the tea plantation an estate of just 19 acres (77,000 m2) in 1867. He started a fully equipped tea factory on the Loolecondera estate in 1872.
During the period when Taylor lived on the Loolecondera estate, the export of tea accelerated from 23 pounds to 81 tonnes and in 1890 it reached the level of 22,900 tonnes.
The story of tea in British Ceylon began in the year of 1867. A Scotsman, James Taylor had cleared 19 acres (77,000 m2) of forest in the District of Hewaheta Lower to plant the first seedlings in what is now known as the No.7 field of the Loolecondera Estate.[1] Today even people who have never heard of Sri Lanka are familiar with Ceylon tea, which is known for its quality.
In year 1872 Taylor attended the work of building a larger tea factory in Loolecondera and after that it started manufacturing of packeted tea. He already wrote about his success of starting a larger tea factory as "I have a machine of my own invention being made in Kandy for rolling tea which I think will be successful". In 1875 Taylor managed to send the first shipment of Ceylon tea to the London Tea Auction.
Thomas Lipton a millionaire in United Kingdom visited British Ceylon (Sri Lanka) in the 1890s, during his journey to Australia, and met Taylor. They discussed the business of exporting tea from British Ceylon. Lipton's company became interested and started buying Ceylon tea.
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