Joseph Williams

1837 - 1909  (72 years)

• Name	Joseph Williams  [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
  Birth	7 Jun 1837	Trigg County, Kentucky, USA   [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
  Gender	Male
  Census	1850	Trigg County, Kentucky, USA   [2]
  	Age: 13; Child of Elizabeth and Shadrach Williams
  Military Service	10 Nov 1861	Fort Donelson, Dover, Stewart, Tennessee, USA   [7, 8, 9]
  	Confederate Army - War Between the States; Company F, 50th Tennessee Infantry
  		War-Battle of Fort Donelson (Civil) The Storming of Fort Donelson - https://www.nps.gov/fodo/planyourvisit/thebattleforfortdonelson.htm
  Military POW	1862	Fort Donelson, Dover, Stewart, Tennessee, USA   [7]
  	Escaped Fort Donelson after surrender
  		Military-WILLIAMS Joseph (POW Escape) Brothers Joel and Joseph Williams enlisted in Company F, 50th Tennessee Infantry, CSA on 10 November 1861 at Fort Donelson in Tennessee. Following their surrender at the Battle of Fort Donelson, both brothers escaped.
  Census	1870	Canton, Trigg, Kentucky, USA   [5]
  	Occupation: Farmer; Mahala and Joseph Williams
  Death	25 Jun 1909	Trigg County, Kentucky, USA   [3, 4, 6]
  Burial	Alfred Herndon Cemetery, Canton, Trigg, Kentucky, USA   [6]
  Person ID	I22987	A Tree Called Smith
  Last Modified	21 Jul 2025

  
  

  Father	Shadrach 'Shade' Williams,   b. 1799, North Carolina, USA d. Aft 1880 (Age > 82 years)
  Relationship	natural
  Mother	Elizabeth 'Betsy' Sumner,   b. 1805, North Carolina, USA d. Bef 1880 (Age < 74 years)
  Relationship	natural
  Marriage	15 Apr 1825	Trigg County, Kentucky, USA   [1, 10]
  Family ID	F8485	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 1	Martha Emerson Herndon,   b. 29 Jan 1847, Trigg County, Kentucky, USA d. 4 Aug 1932, Trigg County, Kentucky, USA (Age 85 years)
  Marriage	15 Sep 1881	Cadiz, Trigg, Kentucky, USA   [4, 11]
  Family ID	F15621	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	21 Jul 2025

  
  

  Family 2	Mahala Ann Turner,   b. 11 Aug 1816, Kentucky, USA d. 11 May 2002 (Age 185 years)
  Marriage	11 Apr 1869	Trigg County, Kentucky, USA   [4, 11]
  Family ID	F15622	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	21 Jul 2025

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 7 Jun 1837 - Trigg County, Kentucky, USA Census - Age: 13; Child of Elizabeth and Shadrach Williams - 1850 - Trigg County, Kentucky, USA Marriage - 11 Apr 1869 - Trigg County, Kentucky, USA Census - Occupation: Farmer; Mahala and Joseph Williams - 1870 - Canton, Trigg, Kentucky, USA Marriage - 15 Sep 1881 - Cadiz, Trigg, Kentucky, USA Death - 25 Jun 1909 - Trigg County, Kentucky, USA  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Military Records

  Military-WILLIAMS Joseph (POW Escape) Brothers Joel and Joseph Williams enlisted in Company F, 50th Tennessee Infantry, CSA on 10 November 1861 at Fort Donelson in Tennessee. Following their surrender at the Battle of Fort Donelson, both brothers escaped.

  
  

• Sources

  [S78] World Family Tree, (Name: Family Tree Maker;), WFT - Vol 18, Ed 1, Tree #2096. [S9910] Ancestry.com, 1850 United States Federal Census, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Lehi, UT, USA; Date: 2009;), The National Archives in Washington, DC; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29; Series Number: M432; Residence Date: 1850; Home in 1850: District 2, Trigg, Kentucky; Roll: 219; Page: 354a. 1850 United States Federal Census [S9857] Ancestry.com, Kentucky, U.S., Death Records, 1852-1965, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations Inc; Location: Lehi, UT, USA; Date: 2007;), Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives; Frankfort, Kentucky. Kentucky, U.S., Death Records, 1852-1965 Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives; Frankfort, Kentucky [S12] Ancestry.com, Geneanet Community Trees Index, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Lehi, UT ; Date: 2022;). https://gw.geneanet.org/dalerideout?n=williams&oc=&p=joseph [S11805] Ancestry.com, 1870 United States Federal Census, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Lehi, UT, USA; Date: 2009;), Year: 1870; Census Place: Canton, Trigg, Kentucky; Roll: M593_501; Page: 64A. 1870 United States Federal Census [S10164] Find a Grave: WILLIAMS Joseph 1837-1909, Joseph Williams (Veteran). Son of Elizabeth Sumner and Shadrach Williams. Husband of: MARTHA E. HERNDON WILLIAMS, married on Sept. 15, 1881 in Cadiz, Kentucky. Brothers Joel and Joseph Williams enlisted in Company F, 50th Tennessee Infantry, CSA on 10 November 1861 at Fort Donelson in Tennessee. Following their surrender at the Battle of Fort Donelson, both brothers escaped. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/32449029/joseph-williams [S10163] US, Civil War Service Records (CMSR) - Confederate - Tennessee, 1861-1865, (Name: Fold3; Location: Tennessee, United States of America; Date: 1862;), Page 4 1862. https://www.fold3.com/image/78927869/williams-joel-page-4-us-civil-war-service-records-cmsr-confederate-tennessee-1861-1865?xid=1945 [S1610] USWars: Battle of Fort Donelson - My Civil War, (Name: USWars;), Battle of Fort Donelson. The Battle of Fort Donelson February 14-16, 1862 in Fort Donelson, Tennessee https://www.mycivilwar.com/battles/620214.html History-Battle of Fort Donelson (Civil War) The Battle of Fort Donelson February 14-16, 1862 in Fort Donelson, Tennessee Union Forces Commanded by Brig. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and Flag-Officer A.H. Foote Strength-27,000 est, Killed-446, Wounded-1,735, Missing/Captured-? Confederate Forces Commanded by Brig. Gen. John B. Floyd, Brig. Gen. Gideon Pillow, and Brig. Gen. Simon B.… [S1609] American Battlefields: Battle of Fort Donelson, (Name: American Battlefield Trust; Location: Washington DC;), CIVIL WAR - Battle of Fort Donelson. The decisive Union victory at Fort Donelson thrust Brig. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant into the national spotlight and enabled Union advances up the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers. How it ended Union victory. The capture of forts Henry and Donelson in Tennessee were major victories for Ulysses S. Grant. Grant received a promotion to major general for his success and attained stature in the Western Theater, earning the nom de guerre “Unconditional Surrender Grant.” In context Early in the war, Union commanders realized that control of the major rivers would be the key to success in the Western Theater. After capturing Fort Henry on the Tennessee River on February 6, 1862, Brig. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant advanced 12 miles to invest Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River. Operations against Donelson were part of an amphibious campaign launched in early 1862 to push the Confederates out of middle and western Tennessee, thereby opening a path into the Southern heartland. The Union victory at Fort Donelson forced the Confederacy to give up southern Kentucky and much of Middle and West Tennessee. The Tennessee and Cumberland rivers, as well as railroads in the area, became vital Federal supply lines, and Nashville became a huge supply depot for the Union army in the west. https://www.battlefields.org/learn/civil-war/battles/fort-donelson [S10079] Ancestry.com, Kentucky, U.S., Compiled Marriages, 1802-1850, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations Inc; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 1997;). [S12] Ancestry.com, Geneanet Community Trees Index, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Lehi, UT ; Date: 2022;).