E. A. Williams papers

The materials in this collection are arranged by series.

Captain E. A. Williams Papers

Letters (1842-1873) of Captain Edwin A. Williams (1828-1873) concern the building of a house and two-story brick tobacco factory; affairs of the Roanoke Valley Railroad, including an 1864 decision to invest in Confederate certificates, and the re-election of Henry Wood as president; servants wages; the return of some negroes hired from him by G. Wilkinson because the latter was leaving to serve in the war and could no longer be responsible for them (1861); property and insurance; a circular to citizens along the route of march from Major General Howard, the Maryland Guards of the Army of Tennessee about provisions procurement procedures of his unit; and Captain Williams' resignation from the Confederate Army (1865) because of his age and family responsibilities.

Other papers of Captain Williams include copies of legal agreements and property indentures (1828-1870) concerning land transactions, legal decisions in law suits, sale of railroad bonds, contracts for house and factory construction, a petition to the state legislature (Virginia) about navigation of the Roanoke River, and settlement of a personal dispute between him and another official of the Roanoke Valley Railroad.

Also, Mecklenburg County Tax Account lists (1841-1848) of insolvent and nonresident levies, and financial papers (1830's-1870) including account statements, promissory notes, bills and receipts for a variety of household and personal items as well as itemized bills for labor and materials for house and factory building construction.

Williams Family Papers

Letters (1874-1889) of Lucy Page Kennon Williams (Mrs. Edwin A. Williams) are to her step-son Henry and daughters-in-law Sallie and Sue, and concern the death of her child, and a flood in Clarksville (1871) in which Thomas Williams lost three barns of tobacco.

Letters of Henry S. Williams (1864-1865) are to his future wife, Sue Dabney Withers and concern visits. Sue's letters (1861, n.d.) are from her father, Colonel R. E. Withers from Camp Dickens urging his family to write, reporting that General Beauregard has taken command and remarking on his reputation, and saying that General Bonham was ordered to advance into Fairfax County (1861); and her mother, Mary Virginia Withers, wrting from Hong Kong, commenting on the building of Sue's church, the celebration of Christmas in Hong Kong, the servants, on Chinese feelingsfor their female children, and that her husband is out of debt.

Letters of Carter N. Williams (1864, 1865) are to his father, Captain Edwin Anderson Williams, and his brother, Edwin Anderson Williams, Jr. Writing from the camp of the 14th Virginia Regiment, he asks his father to pay a debt and for some equipment. In 1881, Carter wrote to his children, Hallie, Page, and Edwin, describing Richmond and telling them how city boys and girls amused themselves.

Rosa Haskins (Mrs. Carter Williams) letters (1910,1912) are to her son, Edwin Anderson Williams, III and daughter-in-law, Mary Thornhill Williams (Mrs. Edwin, III) and Sue Williams. They concern family visits and grand-children.

Letters of Alice Kennon Williams include courtship letters and poems from numerous suitors (1865-1878).

Letters to Thomas Nelson Williams (1899) from Addie Sinclair Feild discuss financial matters and relatives.

Edwin A. Williams III Papers

The papers of Edwin A. Williams, III (son of Carter N. and Rosa Haskins Williams, and grandson of Captain Edwin Anderson Williams) include two volumes of Plain Facts About Some Virginians, with an index. The volumes are letters, photographs and documents gathered for genealogical information. Also, includes letters (1908-1923) to his uncle Thomas Nelson Williams, from his aunt, Sarah Hamilton Williams (wife of Edwin A. Williams, Jr.), from a distant cousin, and a Texas cousin, all concerning family history. Among the letters are abstracts of legal documents concerning Captain Williams, Jeremiah Williams, and Christopher Haskins.

Miscellaneous Materials

Also in the collection is a folder of unidentified handwritten sermons and poetry (1836 and undated); family documents (1872-1921), including marriage certificates for Carter N. and Rosa Williams and Edwin A. Williams and Mary Thornhill, diploma and Mason membership certificates of Edwin Anderson Williams, III, and a commission for Thomas N. Williams as director of Virginia Normal and Collegiate Institute of Petersburg, Virginia.

Bound volumes of material include the diary of William Chancellor (1750-1751) describing a slaving expedition from New York to the coast of West Africa; an expense account book (1847-1855) and a book of Collections for Roanoke Valley Railroad Extension (both belonged to Captain Edwin Anderson Williams), and a book describing the marriage ceremony of Edwin and Mary Thornhill Williams, 1904.