Henry Howell Williams (1796 – December 17, 1873) was an American merchant.

Early life

Henry Howell Williams was born in 1796 to Howell Williams and Dorothy (Wheat) Williams in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...

. His older brother was

Samuel May Williams Samuel May Williams (October 4, 1795 – September 13, 1858) was an American businessman, politician, and close associate of Stephen F. Austin, who was an Anglo-American colonizer of Mexican Texas. As a teenager, Williams started working in t ...

Career

Williams started work as a sailor from a young age. He joined the Colombian Navy as a young man, serving for several years. After ending his tour with the Colombian Navy, he visited

San Felipe de Austin San Felipe ( ), also known as San Felipe de Austin, is a town in Austin County, Texas, United States. The town was the social, economic, and political center of the early Stephen F. Austin colony. The population was 691 at the 2020 census. Histo ...

, where his brother Samuel was a legal secretary for the colony. Williams applied for a

Mexican land grant In Alta California (now known as California) and Baja California, ranchos were concessions and land grants made by the Spanish and Mexican governments from 1775 to 1846. The Spanish concessions of land were made to retired soldiers as an indu ...

, but left before establishing his claim. He instead returned to the United States to work in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

for a merchant, his uncle, Nathaniel Felton Williams. Wreck of the Invincible

Williams was a financier of the

Texas Revolution The Texas Revolution (October 2, 1835 – April 21, 1836) was a rebellion of colonists from the United States and Tejanos (Hispanic Texans) against the Centralist Republic of Mexico, centralist government of Mexico in the Mexican state of ...

. He managed a family commission house in Baltimore, where he transferred his letters of credit to Samuel, who supplied the

Texas Navy The Texas Navy, officially the Navy of the Republic of Texas, also known as the Second Texas Navy, was the naval warfare branch of the Texas Military Forces during the Republic of Texas. It descended from the Texian Navy, which was established i ...

with the ammunition, guns, and the schooner ''Invincible''. After Texas gained independence, Williams assisted its Navy again while acting as Texas Consul to the United States. He was a liaison between the Texans and the shipbuilder Nicholas Dawson, who supplied six new ships. Williams dispatched the first direct shipment from Texas to England. He delivered cargoes of supplies to the McKinney and Williams wharf, guaranteed advances to Texas cotton planters, and loaded cotton onto the large English brig, ''Ambassador''. Williams was appointed to serve as president of the board of directors of the Galveston City Company. He was an investor in shares of the company, and invested in other Texas real estate. He operated his own eponymous commission house in Baltimore, H. H. Williams and Company. In 1842, he created a Galveston branch when he acquired McKinney and Williams from his brother Samuel, and Thomas F. McKinney. Threat of invasion by Mexico, however, dampened commerce between Galveston and the United States as firms in New Orleans avoided putting their ships as risk. A hurricane and a ruined cotton crop in 1842 were all factors when Williams filed for bankruptcy. In 1847, Williams raised capital in New York and New Orleans for Commercial & Agricultural Bank, a firm founded by Samuel.Henson (1976), pp. 139–140.

Death

Williams died on December 17, 1873, in Baltimore. His estate included substantial property in Galveston.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Henry Howell 1796 births 1873 deaths People from Providence, Rhode Island People from Baltimore People from the Republic of Texas 19th-century American businesspeople