Edith Roosevelt Derby Williams (June 17, 1917 – June 8, 2008) was an American

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

, conservationist, and granddaughter of the

26th President of the United States Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

Biography

Williams was born as Edith Roosevelt Derby in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

to Dr. Richard Derby and Ethel Carow Roosevelt. She was the second child of Dr. and Mrs. Derby and the eldest daughter.

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

was her grandfather. She was named for her grandmother

Edith Roosevelt Edith Kermit Roosevelt (née Carow; August 6, 1861 – September 30, 1948) was the second wife of President Theodore Roosevelt and the First Lady of the United States from 1901 to 1909. She also was the Second Lady of the United States in 1901. ...

. She was actively involved in Republican politics and addressed the 1960 Republican National Convention, seconding the nomination of

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was t ...

. Later she founded the Vashon Island Health Center. For forty years, she was the Republican Committeewoman for the state of

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. In 1975 Williams was named to the

board of trustees A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organ ...

for the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seat ...

, where she served until 1981. Mrs. Williams served on the board of trustees for the

Theodore Roosevelt Association The Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) is a historical and cultural organization dedicated to honoring the life and work of Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), the 26th President of the United States. The group is based in Oyster Bay, New York, whe ...

where she received the Rose Award in 2004 for her many years of service and dedication to the organization. Williams was also recognised for her work in behalf of

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

and promoting a healthier environment by reducing

pollution Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...

. In 1941, she married Andrew "Mike" Murray Williams (1916–1998). After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

in 1946, the family moved to

and settled in the

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

area. They lived on Federal Ave in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle in a home designed and built by the legendary architect, Carl Gould. The home contained several important historical artifacts including china from the Roosevelt White House, pieces of which are in the Smithsonian. The family had three children, Andrew Murray Jr. (1942–2004), Richard Derby (born 1944), and Sarah Gilmore (born 1947). Bruce K. Chapman is her son-in-law and husband to Sarah. Williams died on June 8, 2008http://www.antonnews.com/oysterbayenterprisepilot/2008/06/20/obituaries/ Oyster Bay Enterprise Pilot obituary after breaking her hip at her

Vashon Island Vashon is a census-designated place (CDP) in King County, Washington, United States. It covers an island alternately called Vashon Island or Vashon–Maury Island, the largest island in Puget Sound south of Admiralty Inlet. The population was 10,6 ...

home. She was 90.

References

External links

Theodore Roosevelt Association

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Edith Derby 1917 births 2008 deaths 20th-century American historians 21st-century American historians 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers Writers from New York City American people of Dutch descent

Edith Williams Edith Williams (24 June 1899 – 24 November 1979) was a Canadian veterinarian, the second woman from the country to complete her training at the Ontario Veterinary College and life partner of Dr Frieda Fraser. Initially entering university in 1 ...

Schuyler family Bulloch family People from Long Island Washington (state) Republicans American women historians People from Vashon, Washington Historians from New York (state) Historians from Washington (state)