Robert Williams (
ca. 1770January 25, 1836) was Governor of the
Mississippi Territory from 1805 to 1809.
Biography
Robert Williams was born in
Surry County, North Carolina. Sources vary on his birth year, with some listing 1768 or 1770 or 1773. He received a liberal private education, studied law, and became an attorney.
In 1796 Williams was elected as a
Democratic-Republican to the
United States House of Representatives
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 ...
, and he served three terms, 1797 to 1803.
In 1803 President
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...
appointed Williams to the federal commission empowered to determine the legitimacy of land claims in the recently acquired
Mississippi Territory. In May 1805 Jefferson appointed him
governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
, and he served until the end of Jefferson's term in March 1809. During his term as governor, Williams became unpopular as the result of a dispute with territorial secretary
Cowles Mead, with each accusing the other of having been sympathetic to
Aaron Burr's alleged conspiracy.
After leaving office, Williams lived in
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
and
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...
and operated
plantation
A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...
s, also serving during the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...
as
adjutant general
An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer.
France
In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...
of the North Carolina militia.
After the 1814 death of his wife in
Washington, Mississippi, Williams moved to a plantation near
Monroe, Louisiana, which he called Bon Aire. He operated Bon Aire until his death in
Ouachita Parish, Louisiana
Ouachita Parish (French: ''Paroisse d'Ouachita'') is located in the northern part of the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 160,368. The parish seat is Monroe. The parish was formed in 1807.
Ouachita Parish ...
, on January 25, 1836. He was buried at Bon Aire, but the exact location of the grave is not known. It is the present-day site of the Baptist Children's Home and Sellers Baptist Maternity Home in Monroe.
Robert Williams' brother
Lewis
Lewis may refer to:
Names
* Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name
* Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname
Music
* Lewis (musician), Canadian singer
* "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...
served as a Congressman from North Carolina, and his brother
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
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served in the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
from Tennessee. His cousin
Marmaduke Williams
Marmaduke Williams (April 6, 1774 – October 29, 1850) was a Democratic-Republican U.S. Congressman from North Carolina from 1803 to 1809.
Born in Caswell County, North Carolina, Williams studied law and was admitted to the North Carolina bar. ...
also represented North Carolina in the U.S. House.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Robert
18th-century births
1836 deaths
People from Surry County, North Carolina
People from Washington, Mississippi
People from Ouachita Parish, Louisiana
Mississippi Democratic-Republicans
Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from North Carolina
Governors of Mississippi Territory
American militiamen in the War of 1812
American militia generals
Burials in Louisiana
de:Robert Williams (Politiker)