Frank W. Williams Home

“circa 1886”

This Queen Anne Victorian-style home was built in 1886 by Frank W. Williams, and originally was located at 3128 Eighth Street in Meridian, Mississippi. Mr. Williams presented the home to his bride, Mamie, as a wedding present. They lived in this home throughout their entire married life. It was one of the stately homes among other beautiful dwellings that lined the then fashionable Eighth Street in Meridian.

The two-story home remained in the Williams family, and through the generosity of his granddaughter, Mrs. Hazel Williams Wright, it was donated to the Meridian Restorations Foundation. It was moved to its present site in November 1979. 

Prior to moving the house to its current location, preparations were made, trees were removed, and the path graded. The sleeping porch and chimneys were removed. Bricks from the chimneys were used to build the foundation for its new site. It had a cedar shake roof – very much the style in the Victorian period – most of which was eventually replaced by asphalt shingles. The house has an elevator, or “lift” as they were called in those days. The bathrooms are original to the house. The fireplaces were coal-burning; steam radiators were added later.

Born in 1861, Frank Williams founded the F. W. Williams Insurance Agency and the U.S.F.&G. Insurance Company. He was a pioneer in the insurance industry and served on the U.S.F.&G. Insurance Company Board until his death in 1949. Mamie Williams’ sister, “Miss Daisy,” came from Virginia to live with the Williams family. She was an integral part of the insurance business and has the distinctions of being the first woman in the state of Mississippi to receive an insurance license and the first woman in the state to be a partner in an insurance company.

Mr. Williams deeded the house to his wife, but she preceded him in death. After her death, he moved from the home and gave it to his sister-in-law, Daisy, as it was considered improper for an unmarried man and woman to live together during those times. Daisy lived in the home until her death and bequeathed it to her niece, Hazel. It was Daisy’s wish for the home to be given to The Meridian Restorations Foundation, Inc., since she and her sister Mamie had been members of the Fortnightly Club, one of the Federated Women’s Clubs that founded The Meridian Restorations Foundation.

The F.W. Williams Home is not open for tours at this time. It has suffered storm damage, particularly from Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and subsequent storms and age. The house has had some repairs, and the Meridian Restorations Foundation is working to stabilize it. The interior is still beautiful and reminiscent of days gone by. It is the hope of the Foundation to raise funds to apply to its restoration. Concentration is currently on repairing Merrehope.