William MacWilliams

William MacWilliams was born in Newtownards, County Down, province of Ulster, in what is now Northern Ireland, on January 13, 1840.He was the fourth child, and only son, of William McWilliams and Elizabeth Russell.His older sisters were Elizabeth (1831), Agnes (1834), and Margaret (about 1837).The family was Presbyterian, and William was baptized at the Regent Street Presbyterian Church on February 19,1840.He was descended from the Ulster Scots, a group of Scottish settlers who immigrated to Northern Ireland in the mid-1600s.His family had strong Irish pro-nationalist political leanings.They believed in a united, independent, non-sectarian Ireland, free from the influence of the British.They supported the "United Irishmen," a movement in the 1790s, which fostered unity and cooperation between the Catholics and Protestants in a common cause to overthrow British rule.His grandfather fought with the "Rebels" at Ballynahinch and Antrim during the failed 1798 uprising.

The town of Newtownards is located 9 miles east of Belfast.It had a population of about 7,500 when William was born.The population had nearly doubled in the previous decade as the town developed a strong commercial base.It was a center for the weaving of cotton muslin, with over 600 looms employing a large number of the male population.A thousand women were employed in embroidering muslin for Glasgow merchants.About half the income of families in the area was derived from the weaving industry and its associated trades.A quarry and a valuable lead mine nearby provided work for many additional workers.

William’s family moved to Newtownards just before he was born.His father ran a grocery store in town.He also had a license to sell spirits in his store.The family lived upstairs over the store.

As a child, William survived the terrible potato famine of 1846-9.He was fortunate that the famine was less severe in County Down.The potato was important, but local farmers also grew wheat, oats and barley, avoiding the total dependence on potatoes that proved so disastrous in the west of Ireland.Newtownards did suffer the additional distress of a recession in the weaving industry that coincided with the famine years.

William’s father was sensitive to the difficult circumstances of his customers during the famine.He would often take partly finished embroidery work in trade for credit on groceries.People would redeem their work later when they had the money to pay.He also rented two small plots of land outside town where he raised flax and potatoes.

William’s father was able to afford his son a good education.The boy was bright and full of energy.He was a quick and eager student.As a teenager, William became involved with the Nationalist movement in Ireland, following in his grandfather’s footsteps.His enthusiasm for the cause made him so dangerously prominent that, after the arrests in Belfast and Down, in 1859, his father sent him to America.

Early Years in America

William stayed briefly in New York, then moved to Philadelphia, where he learned the trade of a coach-painter.In Philadelphia William met Elizabeth Jane Dawson.Elizabeth was born March 13, 1839 of a wealthy family in Edinburgh, Scotland.She emigrated to Philadelphia about 1856, along with her mother, brothers, and sisters after her father died.William and Elizabeth married about 1860.They lived initially in Camden, New Jersey.Two children were born while they were living in Camden: Mary Elizabeth ("Mae"), born April 21, 1861, and William Arthur ("Willie") born January 9, 1863.

William did not fight in the Civil War, although he later claimed, or allowed people to think, that he fought in the Union army.

In August, 1863, William, with Elizabeth and the two small children, sailed back to Ireland to visit his parents and to show off his new family.They stayed for a year, returning in the summer of 1864.Steamships were just beginning to make regular and reasonably safe trips between America and Europe.Third class fare was £6 ($30) per adult which provided separate berths for each passenger, three cooked meals a day, a separate compartment for women, towels and soap for washing, an on-board doctor, and transit time half that of sailing ships.The trip took about 12 days.^,While in Ireland, William first became active in the Fenian movement that was to consume him upon his return to America.

After their return, William and Elizabeth moved to Renovo, Clinton County, in north-central Pennsylvania.Renovo was an isolated hamlet on the Susquehanna River.The principal industry in Renovo was logging and lumber until about 1866.In 1862, the Philadelphia and Erie Railroad laid its track through Renovo on its way to Erie.Because of its central location, the P&E, in 1863, selected Renovo to be the location of its primary engine and car works.During 1864, a large railyard was constructed, including a roundhouse with a capacity for 22 locomotives, a blacksmith shop, a machine shop, a foundry, as well as shops for building and repairing freight and passenger cars.A railroad station was built in 1865.The buildings were unusual in that they were all built of brick, many of which were made on the grounds.The P&E would eventually become, for a time, the largest employer in the county.

But the P&E needed workers.In 1864, the P&E Land Company laid out the town and its land agent began selling lots on such easy terms that they sold readily, and the town was built up rapidly.The P&E advertised in Philadelphia for skilled laborers, offering free transportation and hundreds of good jobs.Many immigrant Irish families moved into the area.By 1870, the population of Renovo was over 2,000.William and Elizabeth may have been lured by the promise of jobs, affordable housing and the beauty of the Susquehanna valley.William likely learned the business of brickmaking at the brick works of the P&E at Renovo, which might explain his involvement in that occupation later in Florida.A Presbyterian minister gave Sunday afternoon services in the roundhouse, and a public school was started in 1864.William and Elizabeth’s third child, Robert Emmet, was born in Renovo July 15, 1865.

William organized and was elected Center (President) of a Fenian Circle in Renovo, in February, 1866.He was very active in this Irish Nationalist movement, and spent the next four years of his life working for the Fenians.William spoke at a number of Fenian meetings in western Pennsylvania during the Spring of 1866.He spoke eloquently of Irish patriotism and independence and British oppression of Ireland and was very well received.

In order to appreciate and understand the person and character of William, it is necessary to understand a little of the history of the Irish nationalist movement to which he devoted his life, and the unusual nature of William’s involvement.

Irish Nationalism

The seeds of Irish nationalism, and the roots of the "troubles" in Northern Ireland today, go back 400 years.During that time, there have been uprisings nearly every 50 years – enough time for the wounds of one to heal and the frustration and anger build to the point of inciting the next.Always the ingredients were the same: conflict between some pair, or sometimes all three, of the Irish Catholics, the Irish Protestants, and the British government.And always the outcome was the same: the uprising was crushed by the British army.But each time, some progress was made toward addressing the core issues of self-government, and civil and human rights.

The problems began in the early 1600s when the British conquered the area of what is now Northern Ireland.They drove the leaders of the local clans out of the province and forced the local Catholic inhabitants into the south and west of Ireland.The vacated province of Ulster was settled mostly by Presbyterians from Scotland.Catholics, although a majority, had absolutely no status or rights in Ireland after the British took over the country.They were treated as aborigines, much like the Blacks in South Africa during apartheid.This oppression was the major source of the continuing resistance.

In the 1790s yet another nationalist movement began in Ulster.It was unusual in that it espoused an egalitarian, non-sectarian, self-governing vision of Ireland.This movement, known as the United Irishmen, was even more unusual because it was founded by Ulster Presbyterians, primarily in Belfast and County Down.They were caught up in the idealism and excitement of the success of the American revolution, and more recently, the French revolution.The United Irish movement led to the rebellion of 1798 in which many Ulster Presbyterians fought as rebels, including William MacWilliams’ grandfather.Of course, the rebellion was a failure.

After the failed 1798 rebellion, the Presbyterians lost their idealism and seemed to realize a practicality of Irish politics – they would be the minority in an egalitarian, non-sectarian, self-governing Ireland.So they completely changed their position on home-rule, and voted for the Act of Union between Great Britain and Ireland in 1803.This opposition to home-rule continued throughout the nineteenth century, thwarting both the "Young Ireland" movement in 1848, and the Fenian movement in the 1860s.The Easter uprising of 1916 finally led to the partitioning of Ireland and the creation of the state of Northern Ireland, part of Great Britain and mostly Protestant, and the Republic of Ireland, an independent state and mostly Catholic.

Though the United Irish uprising failed, and the Presbyterians abandoned the ideals of the movement and became Unionists, William MacWilliams had the courage or bull-headedness or idealism to go against the prevailing politics of his time and the position of his religion.He and his family continued to believe in the ideal of a free, non-sectarian Ireland.

The Fenians

William arrived in America not long after the founding of the Fenian movement.The Fenian Brotherhood (F. B.) was a pro-Republic Irish revolutionary organization, founded in New York in 1858, committed to the overthrow of British rule in Ireland by force.The leaders of the Fenians were veterans of the failed 1848 Young Ireland uprising.Like the Young Irelanders, the Fenians were primarily a Catholic-based organization, and they viewed the British as the source of their oppression.They hoped to organize men, money, and arms with which to launch an invasion of Ireland.The Fenians organized hundreds of "circles" of men in cities around the country, with a military-style chain of command connecting the various units.They were affiliated with a parallel organization formed in Ireland at the same time – the Irish Republican Brotherhood (later to become the Irish Republican Army of today).

William was a surprising candidate for membership in the Fenians.It was very unusual for a Protestant to support the Fenians.He was not involved as an oppressed Catholic, or as a liberal Protestant championing the cause of oppressed Catholics.He was truly moved by his belief in the United Irish ideals, even 60 years later.These beliefs guided him for his entire life.He was also an admirer of Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa, an early Fenian leader in Ireland.In 1863 Rossa became publisher of The Irish People, a weekly newspaper which was the political voice of the Republican movement in Dublin.Rossa was arrested in 1865, along with other key Fenian leaders, essentially ending the best chance the Fenians had for a successful uprising.He was imprisoned for six years by the British for his activities, but even from jail he inspired Irish patriots on both sides of the Atlantic.

The American Civil War interrupted the Fenians’ U.S. organizing efforts.Although the Irish immigrants were solidly Democratic in their political affiliation, they supported Lincoln in his effort to preserve the Union.In part this was because it was believed that the British were supporting the South, and the Irish were, above all, anti-British.Many Irish immigrants fought in the Civil War, on both sides.They had a reputation for being the fiercest fighters of any group in the war.They used the war as an opportunity to gain military experience which could be used in the planned invasion of Ireland.The famous Irish Brigade had a high percentage of members who were Fenians, and the Fenian circles met monthly all during the war.

Unfortunately, the Fenian organization suffered from lack of strong leadership, as well as changing political climates in England, Ireland and the United States.Constant "leaks" by informants allowed the British to thwart each attempt of the Fenians to set the stage for an invasion of Ireland.By 1865, the Fenian leadership in America was hopelessly mired in political in-fighting and had no consensus on operational objectives or plans to achieve them.

After the Civil War, many Fenian army veterans were having trouble adjusting to civilian life and were eager to launch the long-expected invasion of Ireland.The Fenians were split on the feasibility of such action.The activists were frustrated by the conservative leadership and the military-style organization structure that prevented them from influencing policy.In January 1866, they seceded from the organization and started a separate Fenian Brotherhood.It had an American-style governing body with a President, a cabinet appointed by the president, and an elected Senate.While it was more democratic, it made no sense as an organizational structure for a revolutionary movement which would need secrecy and strong leadership to be successful.

William sided with the activists, in part because it was his nature, and in part because some of its leaders were from Philadelphia.He came to the attention of James Gibbons and Captain P. F. Walsh, key figures in the Fenian Brotherhood and residents of Philadelphia.They admired his energy, outstanding public speaking skills, and his history of involvement in Ireland.

Invading Ireland was well beyond the capabilities of even the activist wing of the Fenians.But they needed an invasion of something.The nearest British presence was Canada. They decided to invade Canada and, having captured it, use it as a bargaining chip with the British to free Ireland.The first attempt was made in June 1866.Several thousand Fenian soldiers crossed the Niagara River near Buffalo, captured Fort Erie, destroyed some railroad and telegraph lines, and defeated the British "Queen’s Own" regiment at the Battle of Ridgeway.Because of lack of sufficient planning and resources, the invasion was repelled after these initial successes.The U.S. government was not pleased with the invasion of Canada.Those Fenians who were not captured and imprisoned by the British in Canada were arrested and imprisoned by the U.S. Army when they crossed back into the States.Eventually they were all released.

William’s first few Fenian speeches were so successful that he was offered the paid job of Central Organizer for the State of Pennsylvania.In this capacity he traveled around the state, speaking to meetings of Irish immigrants.He spread the word of the coming Irish invasion, organized new Circles, and urged men to enlist in the Fenian movement and contribute money for the cause.His pay as Organizer was $75 per month, plus expenses.

The new job required relocation to a more developed city, with access to better transportation and communication systems.Elizabeth and the children would need the easier lifestyle support of an urban setting.In June, 1866, the family moved back to Philadelphia.

Philadelphia (1866 – 1872)

They had their own residence but, because of William’s extensive travel, Elizabeth moved in with her mother.Elizabeth’s mother, Mary Ann Dawson, was living in Philadelphia at 1222 Catherine Street.Three of Mary Ann’s daughters, Janet (age 29), Sarah (22), and Emma (18), were living with her.William’s occupation was given as ‘lecturer’ in city directories.

William was very energetic in his work as an organizer for the Fenian Brotherhood.He traveled extensively, sometimes being away for a month or more at a time.His success in building the Fenian membership in Pennsylvania was rewarded with the responsibility of Chief Organizer for Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia.He later covered Ohio and northern Kentucky, Wisconsin, as well as parts of Connecticut and Rhode Island.He earned quite a reputation as a speaker and organizer.He also participated in several national conventions of the activist wing of the F.B.In April, 1867, he was awarded the rank of "Major" by the F. B. to recognize his achievements."MacWilliams was, with the exception of General P. F. Walsh, the most efficient organizer of the Fenian Brotherhood."

During the Fenian convention held in Cleveland, Ohio in September of 1867, William was elected Clerk (Secretary) of the convention.The Irish-American published brief biographical sketches of the prominent participants.About William, they said the following:

Two children were born while William and Elizabeth lived in Philadelphia: Richard Gibbons on September 24, 1868, and Erina on April 30, 1871.Robert Emmet died September 16, 1870.

The job of paid organizer was abolished in 1869.William continued to be active as a lecturer on Irish nationalism and related subjects.He traveled to many of the same places he had previously visited and no doubt received an honorarium for his services.Later in 1869, William and Elizabeth moved into their own residence at 1017 Federal Street.They lived there until early 1871, when they moved to 1014 Frederick Street, a less expensive neighborhood.William founded and was elected Center of a new Fenian Circle in Philadelphia in 1870.The annual city directories continued to show his occupation as lecturer, although the 1870 census listed his occupation as Secretary for the F. B.

The Fenian activists made a second feeble attempt at a Canadian invasion across the Vermont frontier in May 1870, but the British had been alerted by an informer and easily repelled it.

The two Fenian wings reunited in the Fall of 1870, but the membership was too tired from the bickering and frustrated by the continual empty promises of imminent action.The F. B. had lost its momentum and its military focus, and became mostly an Irish social society.In July 1871, William was elected president of an Irish Union Club in Philadelphia.The organized Irish nationalism movement faded into obscurity by 1872.William, disappointed at having lost his cause, his status, and his income, must have suffered a major letdown.For reasons not currently known, in 1872 he decided to move to Baltimore.

Baltimore (1872 – 1880)

William moved to 96 S. Caroline Street in what was then known as East Baltimore (today it is only a half-mile from the "Inner Harbor").He started a small bakery nearby on Dallas Street.Why he chose this occupation is a mystery, but William had grand plans.He threw himself to work with his usual energy.

In early 1873 he purchased property a few blocks away at 41 and 43 S. Eden Street, between Lombard and Pratt Streets.He named his business the "New York Home-made Bread Bakery."He moved his residence to 52 Spring Row (south ofLombard between Spring and Caroline Streets), only a block from his new bakery.He would walk to and from work through the Eastern Spring park which separated Eden from Spring streets.

In the Summer of 1873, William opened his first branch bakery in Washington, D.C.The bakery was located at 315 13^th St., NW.William persuaded John Pieffer, a man he had met in Baltimore, to move to Washington with his family and become a partner in the business.The business had barely begun operations when a tragedy occurred.A bread wagon driver, named George Garner, returned to the shop and began an altercation with Mr. Pieffer.When he was physically ejected from the bakery, Garner drew a pistol and emptied it into the shop from the street, wounding Mr. Pieffer in the arm and hitting his son in the neck.The son, Henry Pieffer, died later that day.He was returned to Baltimore for burial.Despite the tragic incident, William owned and Henry operated this bakery until the Spring of 1879.In 1877 and 1878, William maintained a room in Washington at the Greason House.

In addition to developing his bakery business, William was very active in his new community.Across the street from his bakery was a small park, known as the Eastern Fountain, occupying the entire block bounded by Lombard and Pratt on the north and south, and Eden and Spring on the west and east.The park was slightly over an acre in size, surrounded by an iron railing.It was the site of the Eastern City Spring in the early years of the city, supplying fresh drinking water to residents of the area.The park had fallen into decay after the large reservoirs north of the city were built to supply the increasing demand for water.

In 1871 a board of commissioners, composed of local businessmen, was appointed to oversee the restoration and management of the park.A large number of new trees were planted.The few old lamps were removed and twelve new ones were erected.A magnificent ornamental fountain was installed in the center of the park.The drinking fountain, from which the park derived its name was located in the southwest corner, and was enclosed by a spring house covered with a rectangular dome-shaped roof, supported by Ionic pillars.William was appointed to the board of commissioners and made a number of improvements during his tenure.

William was also very active in improving the moral character of the neighborhood where he lived and worked.He was appointed to a committee in 1873 to try to rid the area near the Eastern City Spring of houses of ill repute.William used his considerable powers of persuasion and eloquence to rouse the good people of the area, and to prevail upon the city police to arrest and remove the offending landlords.

He continued to be full of ardor for and prominent in Irish movements.He joined the "Emerald Socials," a local Irish organization with rooms on E. Baltimore St. not far from his bakery.He later was elected President of that organization.

On April 8, 1874 William attended the first grand ball of the sixth regiment of the Maryland National Guard.The Irish connection was very prominent since, in addition to the large United States flag and Maryland flag suspended from the ceiling, at the back of the stage was a large harp of Erin on a green background.Among the many dignitaries present was the Governor of Maryland, James Black Groome.William was introduced to the Governor and made quite an impression.Several weeks later, the Governor appointed William to his staff, with the rank of Colonel, to assist in the oversight of the Maryland National Guard.It is not known what political "capital" William had as a newcomer to Baltimore to garner this appointment.

The fact that there were so many Irish associations and organizations was always a concern of William’s.On April 24, 1874 William called the first of several meetings for the purpose of forming an Irish National Association.The Baltimore Sun reported that

A few weeks later, William chaired a meeting at which a constitution and bylaws for the new association were adopted.Officers were elected.William was not elected at that time, but later became President of the Association.

In July 1874 William had a memorable experience in the service of Governor Groome.The Sixth Regiment of the Maryland National Guard was conducting training maneuvers at Camp Groome on Point Lookout, about 60 miles south of Baltimore where the Potomac River enters the Chesapeake Bay.The Governor, along with his staff (including William) and invited dignitaries and guests, sailed from Baltimore about 8PM Saturday evening July 4^th on the steamer Charlotte Vanderbilt to inspect the troops the next day.

As it happened, a hurricane passed up the Bay during the night.The troop encampment at Point Lookout was hard hit, but the steamer and its passengers had their own adventure.About 12:30 AM, during the height of the storm, as the ship rocked in the heavy waves, an oil lamp slid off a vanity table in the Governor’s stateroom and set fire to the lace and damask hangings and draperies.The bed was soon ablaze.The fire was noticed by a passenger in an adjoining stateroom and the alarm was sounded.Other men ran into the room, grabbed the burning materials and threw them overboard.A fire extinguisher quickly put out the fire.Fortunately, no one was injured.

When the ship arrived at Point Lookout the next morning, the troops had recovered from their ordeal on land and were ready for the inspection.The Governor in civilian clothes, and William and the other military officers in the Governor’s party in full uniform, observed the assembled troops on the parade ground.Another dress parade of the troops was held at 7PM.

William involved himself in some unusual causes.In January 1875, at a regular meeting of the Pi Conclave, No. 16, Heptasophs, or Seven Wise Men, the "Dobson Medal" was presented to Crusader William MacWilliams.The medal was presented by Past Supreme Archon John A. Dobson to the Heptasoph in the jurisdiction of Maryland who was most zealous in increasing the growth of the order between the 1^st of August and the 31^st of December, 1874.

He was a ready and popular public speaker, and often took the stump for the democratic cause, receiving calls to speak in Ohio, Pennsylvania and other states.

Somehow, he found time to continue to develop his bakery business.His bakery products won First Prize in 1874 and 1875 in competitions sponsored by the Maryland Institute in Baltimore.In 1875 he also added a partner in his Baltimore operation and opened a branch in Philadelphia.

He had become a good friends with a salesman living in the neighborhood named John W. Cruett and offered him a partnership in the bakery.John Cruett moved his residence to 47 S. Eden Street, next door to the bakery, and took over the day-to-day management of the business.This freed William to continue to develop the business and participate in his many other activities.As the business in Baltimore grew, they extended the bakery to 45 S. Eden.

Elizabeth and William had five children while living in Baltimore:Nora (July 1, 1873), Joseph Sheehan (March 31, 1875), Eilleen Cruett (March 4, 1877), and twins Maud and Wallace (August 16, 1879).Maud died when she was only three weeks old.Erina died March 22, 1875, a week before her fourth birthday.

The Philadelphia branch was located at 1436-38 Mervine street, on property that extended from Mervine street through to Twelfth street.The bakery was in a three story brick building on Mervine street.The first floor of the building housed the ovens, the second story contained the actual bake house, the biscuit machinery, the rising boxes, and work areas for the bakers, and the third story contained the flour, corn, etc.Behind it was a stable for the horses and a yard for the bread wagons.At the other end of the property, at 1439 N. Twelfth street, was the building housing the business offices.William’s brother-in-law, Richard Dawson, was working at the bakery at the end of 1875.William maintained an apartment a block away at 1553 N. Twelfth for a few years, but abandoned it in 1877 to save money.

The United States celebrated the 100^th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1876.One of the key events was the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition.President Ulysses S. Grant opened the Centennial Exposition, which was 450 acres in area, in May.During the six months it was open, it attracted 10 million visitors to view the 30,000 exhibits.William exhibited his bakery products at the Exposition and won First Prize.

William continued to expand his business, establishing connections with flour-mills in Minnesota and Illinois, and later opening a branch in New York.His businesses and other activities kept him away from home for extended periods, and the travel added to his expenses.

Unfortunately, the timing of his business expansion turned out to be very bad.The Panic of 1873 led to the longest economic contraction in American history, lasting 65 months (until 1878) and resulted in a 27% drop in the Gross Domestic Product.The crash in the flour trade in 1878 swept him off his feet, and his bakery in Philadelphia (which was not insured) was destroyed by fire (thought to be arson) on December 15, 1877.William was reported to be in Europe (Ireland?) at the time of fire.

William’s energy and eloquence were not enough to save his business.In a brief period he lost all that he had worked so hard to build up.He had incurred a heavy debt load to finance the growth of the business.The business losses and economic hard times resulted in the Metropolitan Savings Bank of Baltimore filing to foreclose against William and Elizabeth on June 11, 1879 for both their business and residence properties.

William sold his interest in the business to John Cruett in the summer of 1879.After the birth of the twins in August, William and Elizabeth separated.The strain on their marriage was too much.William moved into a room at Reilly’s Hotel.Elizabeth and the children moved to 246 E. Biddle Street.Charles Webb, the Baltimore City Tax Collector and a friend of William, offered him a job as a clerk in the Tax Collectors Office.William appreciated the opportunity for work, but he couldn’t stand the clerk’s job.It was too confining and boring.He was also in poor health from the effects of his years of high intensity workload and lifestyle.He quit the job after a few months, left Elizabeth and the children, and set out for Florida.

On November 24, 1879 Elizabeth filed for divorce.Elizabeth’s mother, Mary Dawson, moved from Philadelphia to live with Elizabeth and help her with the children.The divorce process was lengthy, partly because William was in Florida, and partly because Elizabeth was seeking alimony which William contested.The divorce was not final until August 1, 1881.Elizabeth was granted custody of the minor children and $5/week alimony.

Florida (1880 – 1887)

William moved to Florida to escape his troubles in Baltimore and to search for adventure and a new beginning.Florida was an adventurous destination at the time.The state was the last American wilderness, sparsely populated by a few families in the north and a scattering of settlements of fishermen and ship scavengers in the south.The interior of sawgrass, swamp, Spanish bayonet and desert-like plains was largely unexplored.Lake Okeechobee, the nation’s sixth largest fresh water lake, wasn’t even mapped.

Even getting to Florida wasn’t easy.Savannah was the last outpost of civilization before jumping off into Florida.One contemporary traveler expressed it in these words: "There are two ways of getting to Jacksonville [from Savannah], and whichever you choose, you will be sorry you had not taken the other.There is the night train by railroad which, without sleeping cars -- meaning you will pass the night sitting straight up on benches -- will bring you to Jacksonville in about 16 hours; and there is the steamboat line, more picturesque and far more comfortable because sleeping compartments can be arranged.It goes inland nearly all the way, behind the barrier islands.The problem with it is that it may land you in a day, or you may run aground and remain on board for a week."

Florida had a total population of less than 250,000, mostly in the northern tier of counties bordering on Georgia.It was the most backward of the then 38 American states.Key West was the largest city, with a population of about 10,000.Jacksonville, the chief city on the mainland, had 7,000; Tampa, less than 1,000.The principal towns on the east coast, between Jacksonville and Key West, were St. Augustine, with 2,300 inhabitants, and Daytona, with 321 inhabitants.

Florida was, however, on the brink of a period of great development.Henry Morrison Flagler, in his early fifties and bored with building Standard Oil into the largest and most profitable company in the world, ended his partnership with John D. Rockefeller.With plenty of money and a new wife, he decided to invest his energy and money in developing Florida as a southern "Newport" for the wealthy.It was the right time and he was the right man for the job.

William passed through Jacksonville, taking the steamer up the St. Johns River to the town of Palatka, Putnam County, at the end of navigable water, about one hundred miles from the ocean.He was deep in the Florida wilderness, almost as if he wanted to disappear.He got a job as a land agent for the new Florida Southern Railway, which had just begun service from Palatka to Gainesville and Ocala.More right-of-way was being acquired which would extend the service to Macon, GA in the north and Charlotte Harbor in the south.The railroads would be the key to opening up Florida.During 1881-82, more miles of track were laid than during the entire previous history of the state.

William’s father died in Newtownards on January 16, 1880.In his Will, William’s father left him all his freehold and household properties.Since William was involved in a divorce proceeding with Elizabeth, his attorney was able to forward the news of his father’s death and the communication from his executors.William had no interest in living in Newtownards, or in managing properties there, so he replied that he wished the executors to sell the properties and send him the proceeds.The properties were auctioned on July 6, 1880.

We don’t know what the proceeds were, but shortly after the auction, William quit the railroad and started a brick manufacturing business in Palatka.Palatka was located in the heart of the citrus farming region of Florida, and the town would benefit from the new railroad terminal connection to the steamship lines to bring the fruit to east coast markets.Palatka was also a popular destination for winter tourists, and several large hotels were built to serve them.

In 1881 William sold his brick business.He acquired land from the railroad and founded a town he named ‘MacWilliams,’ twelve miles west of Palatka on the Florida Southern Railway line to Gainesville.A Post Office was established in ‘MacWilliams’ on January 7, 1882.A station was built and the train made twice-daily scheduled stops on its run to Gainesville.William married a daughter of Dr. D. C. Simmons in 1881.After his marriage, William sold his business and moved to a new location.(The town ‘MacWilliams’ was renamed ‘Hollister’ on November 24, 1885, and it still exists today.)

William and his wife moved to a spot on the Florida Transit Railroad, in Nassau County, about 18 miles west of Fernandina and 15 miles north of Jacksonville.He purchased 40 acres of public land and founded a new settlement he called Italia.He built a steam brickyard there and operated the settlement’s only general store.A child, Lillian, was born there in May, 1882.Postal services were begun on July 28, 1882 with William as the Postmaster.The post office was most likely in one corner of his general store.Not long after the brick factory began operation, a depot was constructed next to the store.Italia became a flag stop on the Fernandina to Cedar Key rail line.By 1885, the town had about 100 inhabitants.There was also a saw and shingle mill. The settlers were from Georgia, South Carolina, Maryland and Pennsylvania.

William established a second brick manufacturing facility in 1882 in Starke, Bradford County, with a Mr. Brown as a business partner.The (Starke) Florida Weekly Telegraph of March 3, 1883 included the following news item:

The same paper carried a classified-type advertisement for the brick factory:

BRICKS!BRICKS!

William’s wife died early in 1883.He soon married Elizabeth Isabelle Blocker, born March, 1861, the daughter of a farmer from Starke.A child, Annie Elizabeth, was born April 9, 1884 while they were living in Italia.

William could not stay out of politics in Florida.He was an accomplished public speaker and he enjoyed it immensely.Even though he had been in Florida only six months, he spoke in many parts of the state during the presidential campaign of Winfield Scott Hancock in 1880, and was perhaps the best stump speaker in Florida.During the campaign of 1884, he canvassed the state with and for Mr. Charles Dougherty, the Democratic congressional nominee from the Second District, and proved himself an effective campaigner.He was remembered in Pensacola for the excellent speech he made in that city during the campaign of 1884, where he was described as the "Wild Irishman who warmed things up on Public Square."He was described as "a human cyclone in his irresistible vim of words and action, unflagging zeal and tireless energy, quick conception and rapid execution."His speeches were very well received.

His commitment, enthusiasm, and eloquent oratory earned him a nomination as a Presidential Elector by the Florida State Democratic Committee in 1884.Once again, fate, in the form of bad timing, dealt him a setback.He was preparing to attend the Democratic National Convention in Chicago as one of the four Florida delegates, but an untimely bureaucratic delay in the Post Office Department ruined his opportunity.Congress had enacted a law prohibiting Federal office-holders from serving as electors.He was Postmaster of Italia at the time of his nomination, so he notified the Postal Service in July of his resignation.The new Postmaster was appointed on September 8, 1884 but, unfortunately, William did not receive the notification in time.Ballots had to be printed, so on September 27^th William reluctantly wrote a resignation letter to the State Democratic Executive Committee.He did continue to stump for Charles Dougherty, and had the satisfaction of seeing the Democratic ticket sweep the 1884 election.

William was rewarded for his service to the party by being nominated to serve as Secretary of the Florida Senate in 1885.The Senate session commenced at the state capital in Tallahassee on Tuesday, January 6, 1885.On Wednesday, January 7^th, William was elected as Secretary and served full-time until the Senate adjourned on February 12^th.

Shortly after the end of the Senate session, William made a visit to Washington with a party of Florida democrats to urge more promptness in filling political offices in Florida with democrats.During that trip he also visited Baltimore and met with many of his old friends.

William’s son, Willie, studied law in Baltimore reading borrowed law books.William was keenly aware of the possibilities in politics in the growing development of Florida.It is likely that William encouraged his son to consider living in Florida.In any case, Willie moved from Baltimore to Jacksonville on February 18, 1885, right after the close of the Senate session.He continued to study law in the office of Mr. O. T. H. Summers and was admitted to the Bar in Fernandina that year.Willie moved to St. Augustine August 15, 1885.He set up a law practice, and in 1886 he became Municipal Judge and City Attorney in St. Augustine, and went on to have an illustrious career in Florida politics.Willie’s career would become involved with the activities of Henry Flagler on several occasions.

Henry Flagler honeymooned in Jacksonville in the winter of 1883 - 84 and returned again in February, 1885.While there, he visited St. Augustine and decided that St. Augustine would be the place where he would begin building his vision for Florida.He bought some land in the middle of town and began to plan what would be the grandest hotel in the country.News of Flagler’s interest in St. Augustine hit Florida, and the nation’s financial circles, like an explosion.Flagler was a celebrity of high finance, and any interest of his was reported and speculated upon.People began to speculate in land throughout northeastern Florida.

Construction of Flagler’s new hotel, the Ponce de Leon, began on December 1, 1885.In order to build it, Henry had to buy a few railroads, and change the gauges to standard.In 1888 he decided to build the first (railroad) bridge over the St. John’s River in Jacksonville (the center caisson was set in 90 feet of water) to create a direct connection to St. Augustine to bring in materials and the eventual wealthy guests.The scale of his project, and the investment in infrastructure required to complete it, astounded the local population.

William’s brickyard businesses and store in Italia proved unsuccessful.His political activities kept him away from his businesses far too often, and another economic recession in 1882-1885 limited his opportunities for growth.He abandoned his businesses in 1885, and moved to Callahan, the county seat of Nassau county, about 9 miles west of Italia.He established a newspaper, the Callahan Record, which he edited for about a year, espousing democratic causes.Unfortunately, Callahan was a small rural community and did not have the audience or national exposure which William needed.In late 1885 he closed the paper and moved his family to Jacksonville.

By 1886, Jacksonville had become a thriving city.It had churches and a synagogue, a high school, a theater, and a library association.There were banks and shops, railroads and wharves, hotels and two courthouses.The city had its first paved streets, electric lights, a telephone system, and street railways which connected the city with the outlying suburbs.The number of winter tourists had grown from 14,000 in 1870 to nearly 100,000 in 1885.

William established another bakery for the production of "New York home made bread, Maryland biscuit and Florida steam crackers."The bakery was located on Riverside Road in the southwest Jacksonville suburb of Brooklyn, and he lived a few blocks away at the corner of Date and Lemon Streets in the suburb of Riverside.His son Heber was born there on January 22, 1886.He had a close relationship with his son Willie, and attended Willie’s wedding to Gertrude deMedicis in St. Augustine Dec. 1, 1886.On September 12, 1887, William wrote a warm and loving letter to Gertrude the day after the birth of her first child, his grandson, William Arthur, Jr.

William was a colorful and indefatigable character.He was an accomplished political activist.He was a strong partisan of any friend whose cause he espoused.He was also a bit of a rogue and a swashbuckler.He was well-known, involved in many activities, started at least 7 businesses, founded 2 towns, but he didn’t seem to have the temperament to stick with any activity very long.He seemed to be driven by the motto "too many things to do, too little time."He was a handsome man and he had an easy way with words.He enjoyed writing poetry and used it in his speeches as well as his personal life.He could and did charm the ladies.Yet his feisty personality, hot temper and sharp tongue often got him into trouble.He was rumored to have killed a man in Baltimore and in Italia.

According to the Florida (Jacksonville) Times-Union, "William had the mercurial temperament of the Celt, impulsive and erratic but warm-hearted."On the evening of October 17, 1887, he was in the offices of the Times-Union chatting with the publisher, Mr. Charles H. Jones, and congratulating him on his address at Denver on the Labor Problem.He was in a particularly cheerful spirit when he left and started home.He told Mr. Jones that he had to get up at 3 a.m. to drive his bread wagon on the delivery rounds.He made only $12 the previous week and wanted to save the cost of hiring a driver.

On his walk home he happened to pass by Houston’s Saloon on Bay Street where he was accosted by a Mr. George Bangs at about 20 minutes past 11 p.m.It is not clear to this day exactly what happened, but shots were fired and William died of two gunshots to the chest.There had been bad feelings between the two men over a pool game played several weeks before.A coroner’s inquest was held and it appeared that Mr. Bangs would go free.On October 20^th, William’s son, Judge William Arthur MacWilliams came up from St. Augustine and made an affidavit before Justice Magill accusing George Bangs and several of his cohorts of planning and carrying out the murder of William.Justice Magill issued an arrest warrant for George Bangs and the others.Such was the state of law enforcement that the Sheriff was so corrupt that he fabricated a document to grant bail and release the defendants on their own recognizance.

There were no eyewitnesses who could testify for the prosecution, but several who testified for the defense.Among the witnesses for the prosecution was one Henry Blocker, a fifteen year-old nephew of Elizabeth, who claimed that he had fired one shot from William’s revolver at a stray dog the week before.(This apparently was supposed to explain the one fired cartridge in his gun, and support the theory that William had not even fired a shot.)

The jury found that George Bangs had acted in self-defense, that William had fired first.Many in the community felt that the jury was composed of Mr. Bangs’ friends, and there was considerable evidence which did not support the finding of the jury.The killing, and the way the subsequent inquiries were handled, caused some embarrassment for Jacksonville because of the negative press around the country.

"Colonel MacWilliams, one of the most widely known citizens of the state, was the victim, and his eloquent tongue and gallant form are now cold in death, and George Bangs, a well-known sporting character, was the slayer."

"His death will be lamented by thousands who knew and loved him, for he had the rare faculty of making friends wherever he went.And he was always, and under all circumstances, a true and devoted Irish patriot."

His funeral was held October 19, 1887 at the Presbyterian Church.The Rev. Dr. Dodge read the burial service.He was buried at the Evergreen Cemetery in Jacksonville.

William was only 47 years old when he died, but he had packed several lifetimes into those years, more than most men could even dream about.Still, he was not satisfied with his circumstances.He was at his best when he had a "cause."In those times in his life when he did not have a "cause," he was unhappy and restless.Being a family man and tending the day-to-day details of running his own business was not satisfying to him.He needed to be in the public eye, speaking to and exhorting the crowds.By 1887 he had lost his Irish nationalist connection and his U.S. political connection.He was frustrated in Jacksonville.His confrontations with local people were symptoms of that frustration.If it were not for Willie, William might have pulled up stakes again and moved to that new center of growth – California.In the late 1880s, there was an economic boom in Southern California, and many new Irish immigrants were finding their way there.We will never know what new "causes" William might have espoused if he only had the patience to keep out of trouble long enough to discover them.

Elizabeth was pregnant at the time with her third child, William Sam, born three months later on January 26, 1888.She was unable to maintain the bakery business and eventually closed it.She supported herself and her family with a series of home-based businesses and boarding houses.She did not remarry and died in Jacksonville of cancer in 1912 at the age of 51.

Elizabeth Dawson MacWilliams and her children learned of William’s murder, along with the rest of the people of Baltimore, from the story on the front page of the Baltimore Sun.She was probably not surprised by the circumstances of his death, but it still must have come as quite a shock.She lived in Baltimore until her death on June 3, 1932 at the age of 93.Except for William Arthur, all of her children stayed in the Baltimore area and raised their families there.