Nicholas William "Nick" Taylor (November 17, 1927 – October 3, 2020) was a geologist, businessman and politician from Alberta, Canada. Early life Nicholas William Taylor was born November 17, 1927, in Bow Island, Alberta to Marie Louise Ancion and Frederick David Taylor, and was the eldest of five children. Taylor traveled to Medicine Hat for High School, and attended the University of Alberta completing his studies in geology and mining engineering in 1949. Later that year Taylor married Margaret Davies on October 1 and together had nine children. Taylor worked as a geologist in the petroleum industry in Alberta during the 1950s and later started his own company Lochiel Exploration Ltd. in 1960. Lochiel Exploration would prove to be successful, branching out to several countries until it entered receivership in 1986 following the downturn in oil markets. Political career Taylor started his political career by running in the 1968 and 1972 federal elections in Calgary Centre as a member of the Liberal Party of Canada. He was defeated both times. Taylor served as leader of the Alberta Liberal Party from 1974 to 1988. Taylor defeated his opponent for Liberal leadership John Borger, a former Center for the Calgary Stampeders and PhD in biochemistry. At the beginning of his leadership, the party was at its lowest point in history, where the last Liberal to serve in the Alberta Legislative Assembly, Bill Dickie of Calgary Glenmore, had crossed the floor to the Progressive Conservatives in 1969. During his time as Liberal leader, Taylor who was independently wealthy from the success of his oil exploration company Lochiel, donated significant sums to the party to keep it viable, with the Globe and Mail estimating the total above $100,000. Taylor was defeated at the 1988 Liberal Convention by Edmonton Mayor Laurence Decore, garnering only 18 percent support. Under Taylor's leadership the Alberta Liberal Party would split from the Liberal Party of Canada in 1976, after the Alberta Liberals received no funding from the federal party for the 1975 Alberta general election, with the federal wing instead supporting the Social Credit Party of Alberta in exchange for support in Parliament. Taylor slowly rebuilt the party in the face of the federal Liberal government's unpopularity in Alberta and its implementation of such programs as the National Energy Program. In the 1986 Alberta general election, the Liberals made a breakthrough by winning four seats. Taylor himself was elected