Williams is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, suc ...

in Spice Valley Township, Lawrence County,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 286. Williams is situated on the East Fork of the White River. Williams is home to Williams Dam, a hydroelectric dam that once powered the electricity for stone industries across

southern Indiana Southern Indiana is a region consisting of the southern third of the state of Indiana. The region's history and geography has led to a blend of Northern and Southern culture distinct from the remainder of Indiana. It is often considered to be par ...

, especially in nearby

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst t ...

and Bloomington.

History

The Williams post office was established in 1876. Byrd E. Williams was an early postmaster. Williams was

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Surveys to show the distance and bea ...

ted in 1889. From 1910 to 1911, Williams Dam was being built on the East Fork of the White River. It was finally opened in 1913, giving electricity to stone industries in the region. The dam did this for almost four decades until being decommissioned in the 1950s. Almost 60 years later, Free Flow Power Corp., a startup company from

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, looked into recommissioning the dam, giving the area a renewable energy power. The corporation planned to spend over $12 million by installing turbines on the plant. That plan was abandoned in 2018.

Geography

Williams is located in western Lawrence County at , in the northern part of Spice Valley Township. The census-designated place contains the town center of Williams along Indiana State Road 450, just north of the East Fork of the White River, but includes rural land to the north, east, and west. The CDP extends east to Crooked Creek, west to Dillman Road, and north to a high-tension power line. According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the CDP has a total area of , of which , or 0.09%, are water. Via SR 450, Williams is southwest of

, the Lawrence

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

, and northeast of Loogootee.

Williams Bridge

The Williams Bridge, also known as the Lawrence County Bridge, was the longest double-span

covered bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

open to traffic in Indiana. It crosses the East Fork of the White River, in Section 7, Township 4 North, and Range 2 West, southwest of Williams. This double-span Howe truss structure has a length of , or including the overhang at each end, with a portal clearance wide by high. Built in 1884 by Joseph J. Daniels, the bridge receives its name from the nearby town, which was named in honor of early settler Isaac Williams. Though no historical marker is present, the Williams Bridge was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1981 and is listed as #14-47-02 in the 1989 World Guide. The Williams Bridge was totally refurbished in 2013 but has remained closed to vehicular traffic since around September 20, 2010. The Medora Bridge at , in Jackson County, remains the longest covered bridge in the state, but it was closed to all but pedestrian traffic in 1972.

Demographics

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Lawrence County, Indiana Census-designated places in Indiana