Biography of Richard Williams

	This biography is from "Memorial and biographical record; an illustrated
 	compendium of biography, containing a compendium of local biography,
	including biographical sketches of prominent old settlers and 
	representative citizens of South Dakota..." Published by G. A. Ogle & 
	Co., Chicago, 1898. Pages 241-242.

	Scan and OCR by Joy Fisher, 1997. This file may be copied for non-profit 
	purposes. All other rights reserved.



HON. RICHARD WILLIAMS, ex-state senator, and one of the most prominent 
citizens of Marshal1 county, now lives in the village of Langford, 
where he is engaged in the farm implement business. He was born in the 
village of Cambria, Wisconsin, May 6, 1857.

Our subject is the son of William Williams, who was born in Wales, 
where he spent the early part of his life stone quarrying. He came to 
America when yet a young man and settled on a farm near Utica, New 
York. A few years later he moved to Cambria, Wisconsin, and engaged in 
farming near that village, and later moved to Cambria and opened a pump 
and wind-mill business. In 1881 he moved to Brown county, South Dakota, 
and filed a claim to land near Bath, where he lived until 1885. He then 
sold out and went to Marshall county, which was then a part of Day 
county. He now owns seven hundred and five acres of land in Marshall 
county, which he rents, while he is spending the evening of his life in 
the village of Langford, retired from active business. Mr. Williams was 
twice married. His first wife died when our subject was but a child.

Richard Williams, the subject of this sketch, is the eighth child in 
order of birth by his father's first marriage. He grew to manhood in 
the Badger state, and there worked on a farm and in the village of 
Cambria. In 1881 he went to South Dakota and located in Brown county, 
taking a homestead and a tree claim. He proved up the homestead, but 
later disposed of it and moved to Marshall county, and now has one 
hundred and sixty acres in Lowell township, in that county, and also one 
hundred and sixty acres in Farmington township, Day county. During the 
years 1885 and 1886 he was engaged in selling farm machinery in Columbia, 
Brown county. In 1887 he moved to Langford and opened a hardware business, 
and later added to that a line of farm machinery, conducting the two lines 
of business for five years, and then sold the hardware interest to his brother, 
and they have since jointly conducted the business under the firm name of 
Williams & Roberts, and carry the most complete stock in the county.

Mr. Williams was married in Columbia, South Dakota, January 27, 1887, 
to Miss Ida Reynolds. Mrs. Williams was born in Chicago, April 8, 1861, 
a daughter of E. G. and Ruth A. Reynolds. Her father is dead, but her 
mother is living with them in their Langford home. To this union have 
been born three children, Arthur, Glen and Gladys, all of whom were 
born in Marshall county. Politically our subject is a stanch 
Republican, and on that ticket was elected the first state senator from 
Marshall county in 1890. He has been a member of the Hickman township 
board and has been president of the village board for a number of 
years. He has been a delegate to nearly every state convention held in 
South Dakota. In 1892 he was nominated for the office of county 
treasurer, but owing to the death of his brother he withdrew. He has 
been one of the political leaders in the county and has been successful 
in his business career. He is a man of excellent education and tact, 
careful and methodical in all of his transactions and of the strictest 
integrity; he has always performed the duties of the various offices 
entrusted to his care with the utmost fidelity, and has thus gained an 
enviable reputation and a host of warm friends. Mr. Williams is a 
charter member of the Langford lodge, A. O. U. W., and was master 
workman of the local lodge for many years. He is now chairman of the 
board of trustees of the grand lodge of South Dakota.