Williams

Charles Rodgers, the first white settler here, set up a cattle operation in 1878. The railroad and lumber town founded several years later took its name from Bill Williams Mountain, just to the south.

The mountain in turn commemorated Ol' Bill Williams, who roamed the West as a mountain man from 1825 until his death at the hands of Ute Indians in 1849. He earned a reputation as a skilled marksman, trapper, trader, and guide - a colorful and controversial figure to the end.

A more recent period of Western history came to an end at Williams in October of 1984 when I-40 bypassed the last section of old US Route 66. A sentimental ceremony, complete with songwriter Bobby Troup of "Route 66" fame, marked the transition.