Archie Franklin Williams (May 1, 1915 – June 24, 1993) was an American

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

officer,

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-de ...

, and teacher. He was the winner of the 400 meter run at the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-s ...

. As recorded on his birth certificate, his name is Archie and not Archibald.

Biography

Williams attended University High School in

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay ...

, then San Mateo Junior College (now College of San Mateo). His coach, Dr. Oliver Byrd, was instrumental in preparing him for future achievements. Soon Williams transferred to the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant un ...

, to become a mechanical engineer and he continued to run track. Until 1936, Williams had never broken 49 seconds for the 440 yd (402 m). During 1936, however, Williams kept lowering his times and reached his peak at the

NCAA championships The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...

, setting a

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

400m The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is on ...

of 46.1. His time was set in the preliminaries, and he also prevailed in the final for a 47.0 victory. He followed that up with a first in the

Olympic Trials Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

, then went to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

and won the

Olympic gold medal Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece be ...

in the 400m. When asked about the infamous incident in which

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...

reportedly refused to shake the hand of black fellow gold medalist

Jesse Owens James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens (September 12, 1913March 31, 1980) was an American track and field athlete who won four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games. Owens specialized in the sprints and the long jump and was recognized in his lif ...

, Williams replied, "Hitler wouldn't shake my hand either." In 2016, the 1936 Olympic journey of the eighteen Black American athletes, including Williams, was documented in the film ''

Olympic Pride, American Prejudice ''Olympic Pride, American Prejudice'' is a 2016 American documentary film written and directed by Deborah Riley Draper. Dr. Amy Tiemann, Michael A. Draper, and Blair Underwood (who also narrated the film) were executive producers. The film premier ...

''. After graduating from UC Berkeley with a degree in mechanical engineering, Williams was in the first Civilian Pilot Training class in 1939 at Oakland, California. After earning his private pilot's license, he earned his instructor rating and was later a civilian instructor at Tuskegee. Entering the service in late 1942, he was one of only 14 African-Americans who were commissioned during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

in the aviation meteorological cadet program; he graduated from the UCLA program on 6 September 1943. By September 1944, he was in the first Service Pilot training class at Tuskegee and, after graduation, instructed flight cadets in instrument flying as well as teaching meteorology. After the war, he earned qualification as a line pilot and then attended the

Air Force Institute of Technology The Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) is a graduate school and provider of professional and continuing education for the United States Armed Forces and is part of the United States Air Force. It is in Ohio at Wright-Patterson Air For ...

in 1948–1950 earning a B.S. in engineering sciences; he and fellow Tuskegee meteorologist Milton Hopkins were the 3rd and 4th black AF officers to attend this prestigious program. Williams remained a weather officer and rated pilot his entire career, earning his command pilot rating and commanding several weather detachments before retirement from the air force in 1964. A serious leg injury at a meet in Sweden in 1936 ended his running career, but he became a commercial pilot. During World War II, which Williams once whimsically referred to as his "return to the Olympics—in the Pacific," Williams was a pilot in the

and retired from the military 22 years later as a lieutenant colonel. A flight instructor while in the air force, Williams remained in education following his military retirement and taught mathematics and computers in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

high schools. Archie Williams was a teacher for 21 years until his retirement at age 72 in

Sir Francis Drake High School Archie Williams High School is a public secondary school located in San Anselmo, California. It is named after a former math and computing teacher Archie Williams, who was also a gold medalist in the 1936 Summer Olympics, a flight instructor with ...

San Anselmo San Anselmo () is an incorporated town in Marin County, California, United States. San Anselmo is located west of San Rafael, at an elevation of 46 feet (14 m). It is located about north of San Francisco. The town is bordered by San Rafae ...

. He was noted for his love for teaching and helping students, including future author Konrad Dryden. Sir Francis Drake High School was renamed

Archie Williams High School Archie Williams High School is a public secondary school located in San Anselmo, California. It is named after a former math and computing teacher Archie Williams, who was also a gold medalist in the 1936 Summer Olympics, a flight instructor with ...

in 2021, after the

George Floyd protests The George Floyd protests were a series of protests and civil unrest against police brutality and racism that began in Minneapolis on May 26, 2020, and largely took place during 2020. The civil unrest and protests began as part of internat ...

spurred a worldwide reexamination of

place names Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...

and monuments connected to racism. Williams was a member of the

Alpha Phi Alpha Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. () is the oldest intercollegiate historically African American fraternity. It was initially a literary and social studies club organized in the 1905–1906 school year at Cornell University but later evolved in ...

fraternity. He died in

Fairfax, California Fairfax is an incorporated town in Marin County, California, United States. Fairfax is located west-northwest of San Rafael, at an elevation of . The population was 7,605 at the 2020 census. History The Coast Miwok Native Americans occupie ...

aged 78. ''Quotation'': "When I came home, somebody asked me, 'How did those dirty Nazis treat you?' I replied that I didn't see any dirty Nazis, just a lot of nice German people. And I didn't have to ride in the back of the bus over there.""Hitler's Games A High Time for Gold Medalist", ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. The pa ...

'', (12 June 1984)

References

External links

The Joy of Flying: Olympic Gold, Air Force Colonel, and Teacher – Archie F. Williams
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Archie 1915 births 1993 deaths American male sprinters California Golden Bears men's track and field athletes World record setters in athletics (track and field) Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 1936 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1936 Summer Olympics Track and field athletes from Oakland, California Tuskegee Airmen African-American schoolteachers Schoolteachers from California Air Force Institute of Technology alumni Commercial aviators 20th-century American educators United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II United States Air Force colonels