William Nichol (1800–1878) was an American banker, Whig politician and planter. He served as the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, from 1835 to 1837.

Early life

He was born on February 12, 1800, in

Abingdon, Virginia Abingdon is a town in and the county seat of Washington County, Virginia, United States, southwest of Roanoke. The population was 8,376 at the 2020 census. The town encompasses several historically significant sites and features a fine arts a ...

.Friends of Metropolitan Archives of Nashville and Davidson County, TN
/ref>William S. Speer, ''Sketches of Prominent Tennesseans: Biographies and Records of Many of the Families Who Have Attained Prominence in Tennessee'', Genealogical Publishing Com, 2010, pp. 277-27

/ref>James A. Hoobler, ''A Guide to Historic Nashville, Tennessee'', The History Press, 2008, p. 2

/ref> His father was Josiah Nichol, an immigrant from

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, and his mother, Eleanor (Ryburn) Nichol. They moved to Nashville when he was still a young boy.

Career

He served as the first President of the Bank of Tennessee. From 1835 to 1837, he served as Mayor of Nashville.Nashville Library
/ref> Later, he was a planter in

Davidson County, Tennessee Davidson County is a county in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is located in the heart of Middle Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 715,884, making it the 2nd most populous county in Tennessee. Its county seat is Nashville, ...

and

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

Personal life

He married Julia Margaret Lytle on 6 October 1825. His father-in-law, William Lytle, was a wealthy landowner who had served as captain in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. They had four sons, Josiah II, William Lytle, Charles Alexander James Edgar and Harry D., and six daughters, Eleanor Ryburn, Margaret, Ann Lytle, Julia, Jane F. and Lizzie B. Nichol. They resided at Belair, a historic mansion in Nashville from 1835 to his death.

Death

He died on November 23, 1878, and he is buried in the Mount Olivet Cemetery. His wife died in 1890.

Legacy

His granddaughter (Harry's daughter), Julia Nichol Sharpe (1875–1931), was married to William Percy Sharpe, who served as Mayor of Nashville from 1922 to 1924.Mrs. Percy Sharpe's Funeral Held Today
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nichol, William 1800 births 1878 deaths 19th-century mayors of places in Tennessee American people of Irish descent Politicians from Abingdon, Virginia Tennessee Whigs Mayors of Nashville, Tennessee American bankers 19th-century American planters Burials at Mount Olivet Cemetery (Nashville)