Charles K. Williams

Charles K. Williams
20th Governor of Vermont
In office October 11, 1850 – October 1, 1852
Lieutenant	Robert Pierpoint
Preceded by	Carlos Coolidge
Succeeded by	Erastus Fairbanks
Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court
In office 1833–1845
Preceded by	Titus Hutchinson
Succeeded by	Stephen Royce
United States Collector of Customs for the District of Vermont
In office 1826–1829
Preceded by	James Fisk
Succeeded by	Archibald W. Hyde
Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court
In office 1822–1824
Preceded by	William Brayton
Succeeded by	Asa Aikens
State's Attorney of Rutland County, Vermont
In office 1814–1815
Preceded by	Rollin Carolas Mallary
Succeeded by	Rollin Carolas Mallary
Member of the Vermont House of Representatives from Rutland Town, Vermont
In office 1820–1822
Preceded by	Robert Pierpoint
Succeeded by	Edmund Douglass
In office 1814–1816
Preceded by	James D. Butler
Succeeded by	William Denison
In office 1811–1812
Preceded by	Chauncey Thrall
Succeeded by	James D. Butler
In office 1809–1810
Preceded by	Ezekiel Porter
Succeeded by	Chauncey Thrall
Personal details
Born	(1782-01-24)January 24, 1782 Cambridge, Massachusetts
Died	March 9, 1853(1853-03-09) (aged 71) Rutland, Vermont
Political party	Whig
Other political affiliations	Liberty
Spouse	Lucy Langdon
Children	9
Education	Williams College
Profession	Lawyer
Signature

Charles Kilbourne Williams (January 24, 1782 – March 9, 1853) was an American lawyer and politician. He served as Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1834 to 1846 and as 20th governor of Vermont from 1850 to 1852.

Williams was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Middlesex County to Samuel Williams and Jane Kilbourne Williams. He moved with his family to Rutland, Vermont in 1790. He graduated from Williams College in 1800. In 1834, he received the honorary degree of LL.D. from Middlebury.^[1]

Williams was elected to the Vermont House of Representatives and served from 1809 to 1810, 1811 to 1812, 1814 to 1816, and 1820 to 1822. He served in the Vermont Militia as a major during the War of 1812. He was promoted to the rank of brigadier general and became commander of a division. He was again elected to the Vermont House of Representatives and served from 1814 to 1815, 1820 to 1821 and in 1849.^[2]

He served as Rutland County State's Attorney from 1814 to 1815,^[3] and as a justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1822 to 1823, succeeding William Brayton.^[4] He was Vermont's US Collector of Customs from 1826 to 1829. In 1827 he was State Commissioner for common schools. He served as chief justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1834 to 1845.^[5] Williams was the author of a precedent setting opinion on the unconstitutionality of legislative acts passed to nullify judicial decisions.

Williams ran unsuccessfully for Governor of Vermont in 1842 as an abolitionist candidate. He served as President of the Council of Censors in 1848. Elected as a Whig, Williams served as Governor of Vermont from 1850 to 1852.^[6] While in office, the Habeas Corpus Act was passed, showing the strong anti-slavery sentiments in Vermont. He was reelected in 1851 and did not seek reelection to a third one-year term in 1853.

He served as a Trustee of Middlebury College^[7] and as President of the Williams College Alumni Association.

Williams married Lucy Green Langdon, and they had nine children together.

Williams was the son in law of Congressman Chauncey Langdon.^[8]

Williams died in Rutland on March 9, 1853, and is interred at Evergreen Cemetery in Rutland, Vermont.^[9]

• Charles K. Williams at Find a Grave
• The Political Graveyard
• National Governors Association
• The Official State Website of Vermont
• Ancestry.com: The History of Rutland County