William S. Tudor (September 17, 1921 – January 5, 1986) was an American businessman who founded the food chain

Tudor's Biscuit World Tudor's Biscuit World is a restaurant chain and franchise based in Nitro, West Virginia, most commonly found in West Virginia. Many West Virginia locations share a building with Gino's Pizza and Spaghetti, although the chain is more extensive t ...

Charleston, West Virginia Charleston () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in West Virginia, most populous city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is the county seat of Kanawha County, West Virginia, Kanawha County and ...

, in 1980.

Personal life

William S. Tudor was born on September 17, 1921, in

McDowell County, North Carolina McDowell County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,578. Its county seat is Marion. McDowell County comprises the Marion, NC Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also incl ...

, to Mary Banks Tudor (born 1893) and Joseph Henry Tudor (born 1891) in 1921. His brother's name is Josiah (born 1919).

Career

Tudor worked at several fast food businesses in North Carolina. He bought a Country Kitchen in

Greensboro Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina, af ...

. He worked at a gas stop in

Bolt, West Virginia Bolt is a census-designated place (CDP) in Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States. Bolt is located on West Virginia Route 99, west of Beckley. Bolt has a post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides m ...

, until 1944. He then worked at a diner in

, until 1977. In 1961, he moved to Greensboro and worked for Andrew Jergens Company. He then worked at Pizzaville on Battleground Avenue. He then worked at

Arby's Arby's is an American fast-food restaurant, fast food sandwich restaurant chain with more than 3,300 restaurants. The flagship property of Inspire Brands, it ranked third in systemwide sales in the United States in the quick-service and fast-ca ...

. At Pizzaville and Arby's, he made biscuits. In 1979, he and his wife bought a building for . A year later they turned it into a restaurant. In November 1980, they named the restaurant Tudor's Biscuit World. Tudor moved to West Virginia and opened several Tudor's Biscuit World restaurants in four states. By March 1985, he owned or was a partner in seven of his Biscuit World restaurants and had franchised 12 more. In that year, he had expanded the business to Virginia and his son Lewis was joining the business.

Personal life

Tudor married Erma Mae. They had two sons and one daughter, John, Louis and Tona. He lived in Greensboro for a time. Tudor died on January 5, 1986, at his home on Reunion Road in

Elkview, West Virginia Elkview is a census-designated place (CDP) in Kanawha County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,116 at the 2020 census. It is named after the Elk River, which flows into the Kanawha River. Interstate 79, the "Jennings Randolph ...

. He was buried in Elk Hills Memorial Park in Big Chimney.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tudor, Bill 1921 births 1986 deaths Businesspeople from Charleston, West Virginia People from Clendenin, West Virginia People from Greensboro, North Carolina People from Kanawha County, West Virginia People from McDowell County, North Carolina People from Raleigh County, West Virginia