Richard H. Taylor was born in Patterson, New Jersey on October 6, 1943. He graduated from Marietta College in 1965 and attended Andover Newton Theological School, which he graduated from in 1969. He was then ordained as a minister in St. Luke’s United Church of Christ in Kittaning, PA and served as their pastor from 1968 to 1972. While there, he advocated for issues involving the civil rights movement and the Vietnam War, giving multiple sermons on these topics and prompting reactions from his parish recorded in this collection. After leaving St. Luke’s in Kittaning, Taylor continued his activism and service to the UCC through multiple organizations, particularly in the areas of historical research and LGBT rights. He served as board member of the UCC Historical Council and represented the UCC in Association for Statisticians of American Religious Bodies. He has also been an active supporter of the Religious Coalition for Marriage Equality in Rhode Island and the LGBT Religious Archives Network. Throughout his pastoral career, Taylor has also contributed substantially to the historical research and documentation of the United Church of Christ. His work regarding church statistics is particularly significant. His research and papers cover topics such as genealogy, ethnicity and statistical transformations in the church. Much of this work has required extensive surveys and the collection of bibliographies and primary sources now held in this collection.