John Williams (Tennessee) - Family and Legacy

Family and Legacy

In 1816, Williams made plans to develop a subdivision, "Williamsburg," on what was then the outskirts of Knoxville (now part of the Downtown area). This subdivision was bounded by what is now Henley Street (which at the time was the city's western boundary), Main Street, the riverfront, and Second Creek. The area is now occupied by Maplehurst Park and the Church Street Methodist Church.

In 1826, while Williams was in Guatemala, his wife oversaw the construction of a new family home in East Knoxville, now known as the Colonel John Williams House. The house is still standing, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Williams' son, Joseph Lanier Williams, served three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives (1837 to 1843). Another son, John Williams II, was a prominent pro-Union leader during the Civil War, and served as vice president of the East Tennessee Convention of 1861, which sought to create a separate, Union-aligned state in East Tennessee. John Williams was the great-grandfather of Admiral Richmond P. Hobson, and the great-great-grandfather of noted playwright, Tennessee Williams.