The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1880-11-24
OBITUARY..
GOVERNOR JAMES D. WILLIAMS.


James d. Williams, Governor of Indiana.
died at noon yesterday at his rooms in the
Washington Club building in this city. He
was taken sick on the evening of the day of
the Presidential election, and never left his
room after retiring that night. His disease
was inflammation of the bladder, and from
its very nature was fatal. He was attended
during his sickness by DR.. Robert \. Todd,
who called DR.. Parvin into consultation on
Thursday evening, before the Governor died
The following sketch of Governor Will
Jams, from the Lives of Eminent and Self
! Made Men," now in press, and soon to be
published by the Western Biographical
! Publishing Company, of Cincinnati, written
| by w. W. Wsollen, Esq, of this city, will
be read with melancholy interest by the
public:
James Douglas Williams Governor of Indiana
isa type OF The western pioneer now seldom seen
County. Ohio January l6 1S0S, he moved with
his fathers family TO Indiana in 1878. and settled
/ in Knox County, near the historic city of Vim
cennes. He grew to manhood there, and
there remained until January. 1877. when
he came to the Capital OF Indiana to
/ take the reins of the State Government, at
/ the command of over 200 600 American freemen
When Governor Williasns arrived in Indiana. and
for many years afterward, the State was sparsely
white men or women, and where there were
/ white settlements dwelling houses were far apart
and comm unicaton with the outside world diff
| cult AID unfrequent. Therefore. il was hard to
establish and maintain schools and churches, and
the newspaper was unusual visitor at the freside
rs these that Governor WiIliams grew 10 manhood
and entered upon the duties OF life The little
/ schooling he received was obtained in the log
se19 be- sPare a. times Se f sery Bs
If the advantages Of the schoolrOom were measure
| bly, denied him, he was somewhat compensated
/ for their loss by minging with the best people In
/ his settlement. and learning from them some
/ thing OF the out ide world. Therefore, when he
reached his mai r1ty ne was unusually WellYei Sed,
| for one ia his circumstances. in the news of that
/ he had a weiI-knit- hardy frame was supple and
agile in his movements, and taken all in all, was
| the most promising young man in the settlement.
He could make full hand at the pillow. in the
harvest field, at the iogrplling, and was known
/ throughout the neighb0rhOOd as a young
man uf industrious habits and OF more than
a w0rdy culture. When Governor Williams
was twenty years OF age his father died. Being
the Oldest OF six children, the care OF the family
devolved on bin. tie accepted this responsibility
and acquitted himself well, as he has always
done when charged with important duties. Three
| years afterward-at the age of twenty three-he
married Nancy Huffman, who lived until this
years. BY her he has had seven children. two OF
whom only are living. His wife, like the mis-
tress Of the Hermitage. was welded TO her coun-
try home. and throughout his long life most
/ of which has been spent in the pub
lie service, has remained on his farm and partic-
/ ipated in It's management Her death occurred
life in lSS9 as a Justice of the Peace. For four
years he held this office, and decided the contro-
vefsies and adjusted the difficulties nf his neigh.
bOrs with great Judicial fairness His decisions
were sometimes dissented from. but in no case
were corrupt motives imputed to him. His neigh
! bOrs knew his integrity and while they some
times criticised his conclusions they never i'm
pugned the means by which he reached them
In 1913 he resigned his office OF Justice Of the
Il and ff,n Il.
/ to the lower branch of the State Legislature
/ From that time until 1874. when be was elected
10 the National Congress he was almost continu-
\ ously IN the legislative service of the State
Sometimes In the House of Representatives and
then in the Senate history of his legislative
work would be a history of the legislation Of
/ Indiana from 1913 10 1874. No man in the State
has been long in public life as he. and no one
has more faithfully served the people. He is
| Identified with most OF the importaR! measures
OF legislation during this time, aud Is the
author of many of them 1t * to him that the
SLOWS them tn hold. without administration. the
estates of their deceased husbands, when they do
moi exceed three hundred dollars in value. He is
the author of tlse law which distributed the sink
\ ing fund among the Counties of the State: and u
/ him more than tn any other man, with probably
the exception n the late Governor Wright. are
/ the people indebted for the establishments of the
State Board of Agriculture an Institution that
has done so much 4, foster and develop the. aeri
cultural l.eTssss q iSdia9s He was E sixteen
them was its President. During his m engagement
OF us affairs 1t was self-suppOrting institution
aud, besides, IL accumulated an extensive and
valuable property during the time he WAS at its
head. IL has BEEN since he erased % control its
direction, that It's finances have become dislr
dered that to preserveits existence the Legislature
OF the State has been compelled to take frrm the
public treasury large sums Of money AND beStow
them upon the Society. IL fs safe 70 say that had
Ne continued at It's head no such necessity would
have arisen. In is72 Governor Williams was the
n0mfpee of u,e Democratic members of the Legis-
latore for United States Senator but his party
being IN the minority, ne was defeated for the Of