Born in 1911 to farmer parents, Madrid Loyd Williams lived in Aragon, Georgia for several years before her father took a job as a traveling carpenter, and the family moved to Menlo, Georgia. After three younger siblings and several job changes from her father, the family settled in Macon. At the time Madrid was 12 years old. At this time, her father was working on the Bibb County Courthouse and Auditorium, her mother took in sewing, and the family was renting out rooms in the house, but money was still a problem for the family.
Madrid excelled as a student, but as the oldest of four, she felt it was her responsibility to drop out and work to help with family expenses at age 15. She eventually trained as a secretary and worked at the law firm of Harris, Harris, Russell and Weaver, where she learned many skills.
In 1934, she married her husband, Grant Williams, and eight years after, she became head of the Georgia Bar Office, the predecessor of the State Bar. At that time there were 1389 members of the bar, and one of her jobs was to plan and manage their meetings. Over her many years with The Bar, the size of the State Bar expanded, and so did Williams’ responsibilities. Her incredible leadership and organizational skills led The Bar “from one file folder, to a file cabinet,” and eventually to many offices. Some of her duties were serving as Administrative Editor of the State Bar Journal, book editing, and supervising a staff that continued to grow.
In 1970, Mrs. Williams became one of the first three women to serve as President of the National Association of Bar Executives, after serving as secretary and program chairman for the organization. She handled the relocation of The Bar offices from Macon to Atlanta in 1972, where the organization continued to grow. By 1976, the year she retired, the number of Bar members were approximately 9,600. W. Stell Huie, Bar President, at the time, described the impact Mrs. Williams had had: “No one has contributed more to the strength of the State Bar of Georgia than Madrid Williams. Her retirement will leave a void which will be impossible to fill.”
Mrs. Williams kept busy in the community during her retirement. She was president of her local Soroptimist Club, lieutenant governor and governor of the Southern Region. She was a founding member of St. Andres Presbyterian Church, and was the first female Clerk of the Session and president of the Women of the Church. Later, she was elected the first woman deacon at Vineville Presbyterian Church in Macon. In 1994 St. Andrews Presbyterian Church dedicated its new building a Montessori preschool, to Madrid Williams. They named it the Madrid Williams Educational Building.
At an induction ceremony at Wesleyan College in Macon in 2010, Mrs. Williams was among 3 women to join the prestigious list, and be honored as a Georgia Woman of Achievement.
Resources
Georgia Women of Achievement, Inc. (n.d.). Madrid Williams: Georgia Women of Achievement. georgiawomen. Retrieved March 6, 2023, from https://www.georgiawomen.org/madrid-williams
Georgia women of achievement award honoring madrid loyd williams. (2011). The Journal of Southern Legal History, 19, 319-323. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/georgia-women-achievement-award-honoring-madrid/docview/1284698805/se-2
Pousner, H. (2010, Mar 11). Georgia women honored for work: Three new inductees to join prestigious list. ‘you walk away feeling very inspired,’ says organization’s director. The Atlanta Journal – Constitution Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/georgia-women-honored-work-three-new-inductees/docview/337598979/se-2
White, L. L. (2011). Introduction: Georgia women of achievement & madrid loyd williams. The Journal of Southern Legal History, 19, 313-314. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/introduction-georgia-women-achievement-madrid/docview/1284698792/se-2