Laddie J. Williams

(Redirected from Draft:L. J. Williams)

Lazarus "Laddie" J. Williams, sometimes spelled "Latty", (1844 – June 1874) was a registrar in 1866 and served in the Alabama House of Representatives during the Reconstruction era in Alabama. He was also a Montgomery city council member for three terms from 1869 to 1874.[1] He and Jeremiah Haralson were both African Americans who represented Montgomery County, Alabama. Williams pushed for civil rights legislation.[2] He headed a special committee that was able to arrange for a conference of conservatives to proceed peacefully.[3] He served in 1873 along with Noah B. Cloud representing Montgomery.[4]

Laddie J. Williams
Alabama House of Representatives
In office
1873–1874
Personal details
Born1844
DiedJune 1874

He was a Union League organizer, an officer in the Alabama Labor Union, and belonged to the first Baptist Church in Montgomery serving an African American congregation.[1]

In 1873 Williams and Lewis E. Parsons were arrested and charged with conspiracy to prevent members of the legislature from voting for United States Senator.[5][6] The United States district court dismissed the charges in July 1874 due to no evidence, a month after Williams' death.[7]

He died of Bright's disease in June 1874.[1][8]

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c Freedom's Lawmakers by Eric Foner, Louisiana State University Press (1996) page 232
  2. ^ Diouf, Sylviane A. (February 18, 2009). Dreams of Africa in Alabama: The Slave Ship Clotilda and the Story of the Last Africans Brought to America. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-972398-0 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ Herbert, Hilary Abner (February 5, 1890). "Why the Solid South? Or, Reconstruction and Its Results". R. H. Woodward – via Google Books.
  4. ^ Representatives, Alabama Legislature House of (February 5, 1873). "Journal of the House of Representatives, State of Alabama" – via Google Books.
  5. ^ "The Arrest of Parsons Under Enforcement Acts". The Montgomery Advertiser. February 20, 1873. p. 2. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  6. ^ Court, Alabama Supreme (1878). Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of Alabama. West Publishing Company. pp. 393–400.
  7. ^ "Parsons and Williams Discharged". Greenville Advocate. February 27, 1873. p. 2. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  8. ^ "Lazarus J. Williams". The Montgomery Advertiser. June 16, 1874. p. 3. Retrieved December 19, 2023.