From NKAA, Notable Kentucky African Americans Database (main entry)

Williams, George Thomas

(born: 1924  -  died: 2018) 

George T. Williams, born in Taylor County, KY, the son of Mary E. Thompson and John E. Williams. George would become a trailblazer in Campbellsville, KY, where he was the first African American to own a business during modern times. He had worked at a gas station, and when the owner died in 1957, he became the new owner.

In the 1960s, Williams became the first African American owner/operator of a Greyhound Bus station; the station was located in Campbellsville.

Williams was also the first African American to serve as a police officer in the 1970s. In 1985, he was elected the county jailer, making him the first African American to hold office in Taylor County [source: "Kentucky's only black sheriff in Christian County," in the 1988 Kentucky Directory of Black Elected Officials, Seventh Report, by the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights, p. 17].

Williams was also the delivery driver for the News-Journal newspaper (now the Central Kentucky News-Journal) for 32 years.

Williams' biography is included with his death notice: Josh Claywell, "Trailblazing African American Williams passes away at 94," News-Journal, 3/28/2018.

Kentucky County & Region

Read about Taylor County, Kentucky in Wikipedia.

Kentucky Place (Town or City)

Read about Campbellsville, Kentucky in Wikipedia.

Item Relations

Cited in this Entry

NKAA Source: Kentucky directory of black elected officials

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Cite This NKAA Entry:

“Williams, George Thomas,” Notable Kentucky African Americans Database, accessed October 14, 2024, https://nkaa.uky.edu/nkaa/items/show/1178.

Last modified: 2023-08-19 13:04:40