Williams, O. W. (Oscar Waldo), 1853-1946

Lawyer, surveyor, historian, and county judge Oscar Waldo Williams (1853-1946), originally from Kentucky, grew up in Carthage, Illinois, and attended school at Christian University in Canton, Missouri, and Bethany College in West Virginia. He earned a law degree from Harvard University in 1876.

Due to his contraction of tuberculosis, Williams moved to Dallas, Texas, in 1877 for its dry climate. He initially worked as a surveyor of public lands, including counties and cities in West Texas as well as the land that became the city of Lubbock. Additionally, Williams unsuccessfully prospected for silver in New Mexico in 1880. He accepted the position of deputy county surveyor for Pecos County in 1884 and moved his family to Fort Stockton. Two years later, he became a surveyor and land agent for the University of Texas. In that same year, 1886, he won the election for Pecos County judge, holding the position until 1888, when he lost his seat due to his support of Prohibition. However, he regained his judgeship in 1892, serving for eight more years.

Following his time as county judge, Williams began a law practice in Fort Stockton and acquired large amounts of land in Pecos County. In 1901, he went on a survey trip to Big Bend with the Texas State Mineral Survey from the University of Texas. They conducted a field study of the animals, plant life, and minerals in the region; Williams himself discovered two new species of ants.

Williams, deeply interested in history, began to write historical narratives, publishing the article "Route of Cabeza de Vaca in Texas" in the Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association in 1899. Along with writing his reminiscences, Brief Story of My Life, he published several pamphlets, such as The Big Snow of 1878 in 1933 and Muddy Wilson and the Buffalo Stampede in 1938. Williams married Sallie Wheat in 1881; they had several children including Waldo, Clayton, and J. C. He died in 1946 and is buried near Fort Stockton.

Source: Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "Williams, Oscar Waldo," http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/WW/fwi32.html (accessed August 4, 2010).

From the description of Williams, Oscar Waldo Papers, 1894-1943 (University of Texas Libraries). WorldCat record id: 743070962