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ORAL HISTORY

Rev. Barry taylor

Bully's Restaurant

Reverend Barry Taylor is one of 18 children. His parents worked on a plantation in Belzoni, Mississippi, before moving to Jackson when he was 5 years old. He grew up in the neighborhood where Bully’s Restaurant stands today, and where the now-closed Bully family convenience store served the community years before. Rev. Taylor is a sheriff’s deputy with the Hinds County Sheriff’s Department, a chaplain for the Jackson Police Department, and a pastor at his own church. He is also a loyal customer at Bully’s Restaurant. He eats there at least 3 times a month, he states, and he knows all the employees by name. Rev. Taylor values Bully’s not only because of its good food, but also because he sees the restaurant as a gathering spot, a place where diverse communities can meet and talk while enjoying some of the best soul food in Jackson.