W.J. Williams went off to the Civil War like his neighbors. He was cited for bravery at Cold Harbor and received a battlefield commission. He advanced to the rank of Lt. Col. and became a regimental officer. He was married to two of the Willcox sisters who are buried at Old Concord Cemetery. His third wife was Mollie Mizell. He was very successful in business at Eastman after the War and was buried there at Woodlawn Cemetery in 1915. His father was killed in a steamboat explosion.