Les Taylor

Leslie “Les” Taylor was born 15 September 1913 at Penshurst, New South Wales.

Les was an opal buyer, coming to Lightning Ridge in the 1950s after operating an opal shop in Sydney.

Taylor’s book Struck By Lightning was published in August of 1985. The book is a collection of anecdotes and stories, photographs and recollections of Taylor’s time on the opal fields and as an opal buyer.

Les owned “The Corner House” behind the Wallangulla Motel, bought from Errol Sinclair and later sold to Sherman Opals in 1983 along with the 1959 Holden FC Special which would be used for advertising.

Les Taylor passed away in 14 July 2014 at the age of 100. He is interred in the Camelot Wall at Allambe Memorial Park at Nerang on the Gold Coast.

• Les Taylor @ Find a Grave.

Article: Research by Leisa Carney, edited by Russell Gawthorpe. LRHS research compiled by Len Cram and Barbara Moritz. Sources: Struck By Lightning, Les Taylor, 1983; Lightning Flash Newspaper, 2 April 1980, 10 November 1983, 1 March 1984, 18 July 1985, 5 May 1988, 18 May 1988, 2 November 1989; A Journey With Colour: A History of Lightning Ridge Opal 1873-2003, Len Cram, 2003, pp. 235, 289.