Zachary Taylor Wood

Zachary Taylor Wood
Born	1860 Annapolis Naval Academy
Died	1915 (aged 54–55) Asheville, North Carolina
Buried	Caturaquil Cemetery, Kingston, Ontario
Allegiance	Canadian
Rank	Commissioner
Commands held	acting Commissioner of the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) and Commissioner of the Yukon Territory of Canada.
Awards	CMG

Zachary Taylor Wood, CMG (1860–1915) was acting Commissioner of the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) and Commissioner of the Yukon Territory of Canada.

Early life

Born in Annapolis Naval Academy in 1860, where his father John Taylor Wood was stationed. Wood's great-grandfather was President of the United States Zachary Taylor.

Wood's family moved first to Halifax and later to Ontario. Taylor graduated from Royal Military College of Canada at Kingston, Ontario in 1882.

Career

North-West Mounted Police (now RCMP) officers, Yukon, 1900, wearing the famous scarlet uniform that includes a flat brimmed Stetson hat.

Royal Military College memorial

Zachary Taylor Wood served with the 90th Infantry Regiment at the Battle of Batoche during the Northwest Rebellion in 1885. He joined the North-West Mounted Police in 1885 as Inspector under the command of Superintendent Sam Steele. He retired from the force due to poor health and died in Asheville, North Carolina in 1915 and buried at Cataraqui Cemetery in Kingston, Ontario.

Family

His younger brother Lieutenant Charles Carroll Wood, graduated from the Royal Military College of Canada 1896 student # 352; served for Canada in the Boer War and died in 1899. He is memorialized on the Royal Military College Memorial Arch.

Inspector Zachary Taylor Wood married Frances Augusta Daly in 1888 at St. Mary Magdalene Church, in Napanee, Ontario.

Their son Stuart Taylor Wood was born in Napanee and later served as Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. He rose to the rank of Major in the RNWMP and served as Assistant and Acting Commissioner.

Stuart Taylor Wood was born in Napanee on October 17, 1889, son of Z.T. and Frances Wood. S.T. Wood was the Commissioner of the RCMP for thirteen years. He was a CMG (Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. George).

Honour

Mount Wood in the Yukon was named in honour of Zachary Taylor Wood in 1998, in honour of the 125th Anniversary of the RCMP.

References

Books

• 4237 Dr. Adrian Preston & Peter Dennis (Edited) "Swords and Covenants" Rowman And Littlefield, London. Croom Helm. 1976.
• H16511 Dr. Richard Arthur Preston "To Serve Canada: A History of the Royal Military College of Canada" 1997 Toronto, University of Toronto Press, 1969.
• H16511 Dr. Richard Arthur Preston "Canada's RMC - A History of Royal Military College" Second Edition 1982
• H16511 Dr. Richard Preston "R.M.C. and Kingston: The effect of imperial and military influences on a Canadian community" 1968 Kingston, Ontario.
• H1877 R. Guy C. Smith (editor) "As You Were! Ex-Cadets Remember". In 2 Volumes. Volume I: 1876-1918. Volume II: 1919-1984. RMC. Kingston, Ontario. The R.M.C. Club of Canada. 1984