Guinn Terrell Williams (April 22, 1871 – January 9, 1948) was an American banker and politician. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, he served in the

Texas State Senate The Texas Senate ( es, Senado de Texas) is the upper house of the Texas State Legislature. There are 31 members of the Senate, representing single-member districts across the U.S. state of Texas, with populations of approximately 806,000 per cons ...

, and is most notable for his service in the

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from Texas. His son was the actor

Guinn "Big Boy" Williams Guinn Terrell Williams Jr. (April 26, 1899 – June 6, 1962) was an American actor who appeared in memorable westerns such as ''Dodge City'' (1939), ''Santa Fe Trail'' (1940), and '' The Comancheros'' (1961). He was nicknamed "Big Boy" ...

Early life

Born near

Beulah, Mississippi Beulah is a town in Bolivar County, Mississippi, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 242. Beulah is served by Mississippi Highway 1. Lake Beulah, an oxbow lake formerly connected to the Mississippi River, is west of the town ...

, Williams was the son of farmer and

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

veteran William Washington Williams and Minerva Jane (Thompson) Williams. He moved with his parents to

Nocona, Texas Nocona is a city along U.S. Highway 82 and State Highway 175 in Montague County, Texas, United States. The population was 3,033 at the 2010 census. The city, its lake, and its resurgence as a regional travel destination were featured in thJune ...

in 1876, and they soon relocated to Decatur in Wise County. He attended the public schools of Wise County, and then received his qualification as a school teacher. He taught for several terms, and attended

Transylvania College Transylvania University is a private university in Lexington, Kentucky. It was founded in 1780 and was the first university in Kentucky. It offers 46 major programs, as well as dual-degree engineering programs, and is accredited by the Southe ...

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

Start of career

After his 1890 graduation, Williams became active in ranching and farming, and also pursued a career in banking. After gaining his initial experience as cashier of the State National Bank in

Fort Worth Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According ...

, he was an incorporator of Decatur's City National Bank, and served as its vice president. His later ventures included establishing and serving as president of banks in cities and towns including Mineral Wells, Perrin,

Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnoc ...

, and

Paradise In religion, paradise is a place of exceptional happiness and delight. Paradisiacal notions are often laden with pastoral imagery, and may be cosmogonical or eschatological or both, often compared to the miseries of human civilization: in paradis ...

. A

, Williams served as Wise County Clerk from 1898 to 1902. In 1919, he was elected to the

, and he served from 1920 to 1922.

U.S. Congressman

In 1922, Williams was elected to the 67th Congress, filling the vacancy caused by the death of

United States Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

Lucian W. Parrish. He was reelected to the 68th Congress and to the four succeeding Congresses, and served from May 22, 1922 to March 3, 1933. During his U.S. House tenure, Williams served on the Insular Affairs, Expenditures in the Executive Departments, and

Territories A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...

committees. Williams was chairman of the Committee on Territories in the 72nd Congress. He was an advocate of independence for the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, and statehood for

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

Later career

Williams did not run for reelection in 1932. After leaving the House in March 1933, he was appointed to manage the Regional Agricultural Credit Corporation in

San Angelo, Texas San Angelo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Tom Green County, Texas, United States. Its location is in the Concho Valley, a region of West Texas between the Permian Basin to the northwest, Chihuahuan Desert to the southwest, Osage Plai ...

. In addition, he was active with the Texas Production Credit Corporation, Texas Goat Raisers Association, and Texas Wool and Mohair Company.

Civic involvement

Williams was active in the

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

churches of Decatur and San Angelo, and was an officer of the

Sons of Confederate Veterans The Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) is an American neo-Confederate nonprofit organization of male descendants of Confederate soldiers The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the militar ...

of Texas. He was also a 32nd degree Mason, and his Masonic activities included creating an educational fund that enabled six to ten male residents of the Masonic Orphanage in

to attend college each year.

Retirement and death

Williams died in

on January 9, 1948. He was interred in Decatur Cemetery in

Decatur, Texas Decatur is the county seat of Wise County, Texas, United States. Its population was 6,538 in 2020. History Wise County was established in 1856, and Taylorsville (in honor of Zachary Taylor) was made the county seat. Absalom Bishop, an early sett ...

Legacy

A street in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

is named for Williams in recognition of his work on the Committee on Territories.

Family

In 1893, Williams married Minnie Leatherwood (1873-1966). They were the parents of three daughters and one son, actor

References

Sources

Books

Internet

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Guinn 1871 births 1948 deaths Democratic Party Texas state senators Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas Methodists from Texas People from Bolivar County, Mississippi People from Decatur, Texas