Samuel Laing Williams (January 10, 1857 – December 21, 1921) was the first

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

to graduate from the Law School of the

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

, then called Columbian University, in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Founded in 1821 as Columbian College, Columbian University briefly admitted African Americans to its law program some time between 1865 and about 1890. Williams may have been the first African American admitted to any GW program when he applied in 1882; he experienced discrimination from his white peers but was said to have eventually won their respect, along with that of the faculty, who awarded him a top law thesis prize. He earned his LL.B. from Columbian University in 1884 while also working at the United States Pension office. He was admitted to the District of Columbia Bar on June 18, 1885, then went on to earn his LL.M. from Columbian University's graduate law program in 1885. Out of a student body of just over 180 law students, only three other African Americans are known to have attended Columbian University Law School during this time: Robert Bruce Bagby from

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, Theodore H. Greene from

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, and George Langhorne Pryor from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, who were all enrolled as seniors in 1886. At least one other African American, William Henry Harrison Hart, is known to have been rejected admission in 1885. This window of admissions of African Americans soon closed, and

did not drop its racial exclusion policies until 1954, after

George Washington University Law School The George Washington University Law School (GW Law) is the law school of George Washington University, a Private university, private research university in Washington, D.C. Established in 1865, GW Law is the oldest law school in Washington, D. ...

merged with National University Law School, which had already desegregated.

Biography

Williams was born in

Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) biome and ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach th ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, between 1854 and 1859, the child of an African-American woman known only as Nancy, and an unknown white Englishman. One obituary gives his birth date as January 10, 1857. Little is known of his early life, but by 1870, he was living in Chicago with David and Ann Laing, both from England; listed on the census as "Samuel Williams" (he included the name "Laing" later), he moved with them to Columbiaville,

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, where David Laing opened an iron foundry. Williams enrolled in the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

in 1877 and graduated in 1881 with an A.B. degree. For a short time, he moved to

Greensboro, Alabama Greensboro is a city in Hale County, Alabama, Hale County, Alabama, United States. At the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census the population was 2,497, down from 2,731 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Hale County, Alabama, ...

, to teach in the

Tullibody Academy Tullibody Academy was a school for African Americans in Hale County, central western Alabama. It was established by William Burns Paterson in the early part of 1870. History Paterson began his school on or near the McFadden plantation in a brush ...

, a private school for African-American boys. He then moved to Washington, D.C., where he worked as an adjudicator in the United States Pension Office, and soon after, entered Columbian University Law School. While in law school, he met Frances "Fannie" Barrier (1855–1944), an African-American teacher then in Washington, D.C., who went on to work as a social activist, clubwoman, lecturer, and journalist working for social justice, civil liberties, education, and employment opportunities, especially for black women. Williams moved back to Chicago in 1885, but continued to visit Barrier in Washington. The two were married at her parents' home in

Brockport, New York Brockport is a village (New York), village in Monroe County, New York, United States. Most of the village is within the town of Sweden, New York, Sweden, with two small portions in the town of Clarkson, New York, Clarkson. The population was 7,1 ...

, on April 20, 1887, celebrated with receptions in Washington, and then moved to Chicago, where they became leaders in the African-American community. They were friends and associates of black activists representing a range of ideologies, including

Frederick Douglass Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, February 14, 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American social reformer, Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. He was the most impor ...

and

Booker T. Washington Booker Taliaferro Washington (April 5, 1856November 14, 1915) was an American educator, author, and orator. Between 1890 and 1915, Washington was the primary leader in the African-American community and of the contemporary Black elite#United S ...

, and with white reformers, including

Jane Addams Laura Jane Addams (September 6, 1860May 21, 1935) was an American Settlement movement, settlement activist, Social reform, reformer, social worker, sociologist, public administrator, philosopher, and author. She was a leader in the history of s ...

Mary McDowell Mary Eliza McDowell (November 30, 1854 – October 14, 1936) was an American social reformer and prominent figure in the Chicago Settlement movement. Early life Mary Eliza McDowell was born on November 30, 1854, to Malcolm and Jane Welch G ...

, and Philip D. Armour, whom they convinced to fund the founding of Provident Hospital, which had a biracial staff and clientele and a nursing school for African Americans. Williams worked as a lawyer for the Chicago

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is an American civil rights organization formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. B. Du&nbs ...

and served as its Vice President in 1914. He served as Assistant U.S. District Attorney in Chicago during the Roosevelt and Taft administrations, and was one of the best known African-American lawyers in the country and regarded by many as a brilliant orator. He died in Chicago on December 21, 1921.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Samuel 1857 births 1921 deaths Lawyers from Washington, D.C. African-American activists 20th-century American lawyers Lawyers from Chicago 19th-century American lawyers George Washington University alumni NAACP activists University of Michigan alumni 20th-century African-American lawyers