Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials. Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction . Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open to research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Samuel W. Williams Papers, Ms1986-012, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The Samuel W. Williams Papers were donated to the Special Collections in 1986.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement and description of the Samuel W. Williams Papers commenced in May 2005 and was completed in May 2005.

Biographical Note

While this collection contains no biographical information on its subject, biographical information has been found elsewhere for a Samuel Walker Williams, who is presumed to be the Samuel W. Williams to whom these papers belonged.

Samuel Walker Williams was born around 1848 on the "Leatherwood" Plantation in Pittsylvania County, Virginia. He was one of eleven children. At the age of 15, Williams joined the Fifth Virginia Calvary, C.S.A. as a private. He moved to Bland County, Virginia around 1872 and married Bland County resident Maggie Grayson. The Williamses raised many children at their home, located just south of the old Bland Courthouse. Williams later married a daughter of Major R. R. Henry of Tazewell, Virginia. He practiced law in Tazewell County, was the commonwealth attorney for Bland County for many years and served a term in the Virginia Senate. He was also a judge of the circuit court of Tazewell, the attorney-general of Virginia for four years, and a Democratic nominee for Congress in 1896. At the time of his death, Williams owned more than 4,000 acres of land and mineral interests in Bland County, most of which were situated near the Bland Courthouse. He died in 1921.

Scope and Contents

This collection contains the papers of Samuel W. Williams, a lawyer in Bland County, Virginia during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Included within the collection are three notebooks containing Williams' notes from law classes at the University of Virginia; the notebooks also contain other miscellaneous notes, as well as accounting ledger entries for 1871-1873. The collection also contains a receipt book, together with various letters, notes and miscellaneous items which had been inserted within it. Completing the collection is a set of four ledgers containing details on the credits and debits of Williams' law practice and numerous other notes concerning the practice. The records have value to those interested in local history and genealogy in Bland County at the turn of the 20th century.

Arrangement

The records are divided into nine folders and are arranged in a roughly chronological order as follows: University of Virginia law class notes, receipt book, loose letters and notes and four ledgers.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Local/Regional History and Appalachian South

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the Samuel W. Williams Papers by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).