DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Williams family of Fort Bend County. Now, there are roads that get their names by accident, and roads that earn them. Williams Way Boulevard — the southeastern road into Richmond — that one was earned.
Earned across generations, across acres, across more than a century of a family planting itself deep in Fort Bend County soil. Pull up a chair, because this story's got lawyers, lawmen, a railroad man, a famous prohibitionist's stepdaughter, and a schoolboard patriarch. Let's ride it from the beginning.
It starts with Joseph Crawley Williams, Sr. Born in 1838 in Louisiana, he made his way to Tennessee long enough to earn a law degree, and then in 1860 he came to Fort Bend County. One year later, the Civil War broke out, and Joseph went off to serve as a captain — through the whole of it, 1861 to 1865.
When he came home, he didn't exactly slow down. The county kept calling on him: Justice of the Peace from 1869 to 1878, County Judge from 1878 to 1880, and County Attorney from 1886 to 1888. The man knew how to keep busy in a courtroom and a courthouse both.
Along the way, Joseph Sr. married twice. His first wife was Annie L. Collins — born in 1841, gone by 1863 — and they had one son together.
He later married Anna Maria Calder, born in 1847, daughter of Robert Calder, a hero of the Battle of San Jacinto. That is not a small thing to bring into a family tree. Anna Maria lived until 1923, and she and Joseph had four daughters.
Meanwhile, Joseph Sr. was purchasing hundreds of acres of land near Richmond — land that would become the backbone of everything that followed. Joseph Sr. died in 1888. That's when his son stepped up.
Joseph Crawley Williams, Jr. — born in 1861 — took his father's land holdings and expanded them. He also carved out a career with the Southern Pacific Railroad, working as an agent and chief dispatcher. And his marriage?
Well, that brought its own splash of color into the story. He married Lola Nation, born in 1867, who happened to be the stepdaughter of Carrie Nation — yes, that Carrie Nation, the famous prohibitionist. Whether that made for lively family dinners, the marker doesn't say, but you have to wonder.
Joseph Jr. and Lola had three sons and one daughter. Joseph Jr. died in 1921, and Lola Nation Williams lived all the way to 1956. With Joseph Jr. gone, the family property passed to his son Manford Nation Williams, born in 1897.
Manford took up ranching and farming on the Williams land and held it steady. But maybe what defines Manford most is what he gave to the community around him. He served on the area school board for twenty-six years, starting in 1930 — twenty-six years of showing up, of pushing for development and expansion of the school system in an area that needed it.
In 1985, they named Manford Williams Elementary School after him. That's a legacy you can point to on a map. Manford married Margaret Steed — born in 1914 — in 1943.
They had one daughter, and that daughter, along with her own daughters, carries the Williams family interests forward today. Manford himself passed in 1982, Margaret in 2006. Members of the Williams family rest in Morton Cemetery in Richmond — not far from the land they shaped, and right beside the road that bears their name.
Williams Way Boulevard. From a Louisiana-born lawyer who rode into Fort Bend County in 1860, all the way down to the daughters managing the family interests today. Some roads, friend, are named for exactly the right people.
What the marker says
The southeastern road into Richmond is named Williams Way Boulevard after the Williams family who shaped the area’s history. Joseph Crawley Williams, Sr., born in 1838 in Louisiana, came to Fort Bend County in 1860 after earning a law degree in Tennessee. He was a captain in the Civil War 1861-1865. He served the county as Justice of the Peace (1869-1878), County Judge (1878-1880) and County Attorney (1886-1888). Williams married Annie L. Collins (1841-1863); they had one son. He later married Anna Maria Calder (1847-1923), daughter of Battle of San Jacinto hero Robert Calder. They had four daughters. Joseph, Sr. purchased hundreds of acres of land near Richmond, later passed down to his descendants. After his death in 1888, his son Joseph Crawley Williams, Jr. (1861-1921) expanded the land holdings, and worked as an agent and chief dispatcher for the Southern Pacific Railroad. He married Lola Nation (1867-1956), stepdaughter of the famous prohibitionist Carrie Nation. They had three sons and one daughter. After Joseph, Jr. died, his son Manford Nation Williams (1897-1982) took over the Williams family property to continue ranching and farming. He served on the area school board for 26 years from 1930 and saw to the development and expansion of the area school system. Manford Williams Elementary School was named for him in 1985. He married Margaret Steed (1914-2006) in 1943 and had one daughter, who with her daughters manages the Williams family interests. Members of the Williams family are buried in Morton cemetery in Richmond. (2015)