Ina Phillips Williams

Ina Phillips Williams (February 24, 1876 - March 23, 1934) was an American politician who served as a member of the Washington House of Representatives from 1917 to 1919.[1] She represented Washington's 20th legislative district as a Republican.[2]

Ina Phillips Williams
Member of the Washington House of Representatives
from the 20th district
In office
January 8, 1917 – January 13, 1919
Serving with William P. Sawyer
Preceded byC. E. Lum
William P. Sawyer
Succeeded byWilliam P. Sawyer
Howard C. Lucas
Personal details
Born
Ina May Phillips

(1876-02-24)February 24, 1876
Tuscumbia, Missouri, U.S.
DiedMarch 23, 1934(1934-03-23) (aged 58)
Yakima, Washington, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseWallis B. Williams (orchardist)
EducationWashington State Normal School at Ellensburg, Washington (now Central Washington University) (graduated)
OccupationTeacher

Early life and education

Williams was born Ina May Phillips[3] in Tuscumbia, Missouri on February 24, 1876. When she was 10, she was orphaned and moved with her siblings to live with an uncle in Prosser, Washington. By the age of 15, she had begun teaching school.

In 1897, at the age of 20 or 21, she married Wallis B. Williams, a Yakima Valley orchardist.[3][2] The 1910 census recorded five children (daughters aged 11, 8, 6, and 4, and a one-year-old son), as well as a servant. Wallis is listed as a milling company manager.[4]

Political career

Williams won election to the state House of Representatives and represented the 20th District as a Republican for one term, from 1917 to 1919.[1]

Third party politics

Before and after finding electoral success as a Republican, Williams was engaged in liberal third party politics. She was a delegate for Theodore Roosevelt to the 1912 Progressive National Convention.[2] She also served on the national executive committee of the Committee of 48,[5] a liberal political association founded in 1919, with the ultimately unsuccessful hope of launching a third political party in opposition to increasingly conservative Republican and Democratic politics.

In August, 1920, she represented the Farmer-Labor Party in a "triangular political discussion" alongside congressional candidate E.K. Brown (representing the Republicans) and the honorable J.J. Miller representing the Democrats. The event in Wapato drew "an immense crowd from all parts of Yakima County."[6]

Personal life

Williams was an enthusiastic gardener, even helping found gardening clubs around the Yakima Valley. She also served as president of the Yakima Woman's Century Club,[2] an organization founded in 1894 as the Woman's Club that furthered women's civic, social, and literary engagement.[7]

The 1920 census lists Wallis as a fruit farmer.[8] Neither the 1910 nor 1920 census lists an occupation for Ina, and her death certificate says she was a housewife for 30 years.[9]

Death and legacy

Williams died of metastatic breast cancer on March 23, 1934, at the age of 58.[9] She is buried at Tahoma Cemetery in Yakima.[10]

See also

References
  1. "State of Washington: Members of the Legislature 1889-2019" (PDF). Washington Legislative Information Center. Brad Hendrickson, Secretary of the Senate; Bernard C. Dean, Chief Clerk House of Representatives. February 2019. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  2. "Ina Phillips Williams" (PDF). Women in the Legislature. Washington State Legislature. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  3. "Pierce County Auditor, Marriage Records, 1876-1947; 1984-Present - Wallis B Williams - Ina May Phillips". Pierce County Auditor, Marriage Records, 1876-1947; 1984-Present, Series: Marriage Records, ID: prcmc-vol-2_325-DA3. Washington State Digital Archives.
  4. "1910, U.S. Federal Census, Yakima County, U.S. Census Bureau - Ina P Williams". 1910, U.S. Federal Census, Yakima County, U.S. Census Bureau, Series: Census Records, ID: HRP1910YAK17794. Washington State Digital Archives.
  5. Haines, Lynn, ed. (February 1921). The Searchlight. Vol. V, no. 9. Searchlight Publishing Company. p. 24. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  6. "Brown Is Promised Excellent Support - Kittitas County Candidate Returns to City". The Evening Record. August 23, 1920. p. 1. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  7. Retka, Janelle (May 7, 2019). "Yakima Women's Century Club's long-serving members share history as they are honored". Yakima Herald-Republic. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  8. "1920, U.S. Federal Census, Yakima County, U.S. Census Bureau - Yak_1920_000322.Tif - Ina P Williams". 1920, U.S. Federal Census, Yakima County, U.S. Census Bureau, Series: Census Records, ID: hrp_1920_Yak_15062. Washington State Digital Archives.
  9. "Department of Health, Death Certificates, July 1, 1907-1996 - Ina P. - Phillips Williams - Clayton Phillips - Et Al.". Department of Health, Death Certificates, July 1, 1907-1996, Series: Death Records, ID: {5D6D3415-1424-496A-BF58-4F2A33AC3D88}. Washington State Digital Archives.
  10. "Tahoma Cemetery - Tahoma - P - Ina Williams". Tahoma Cemetery 186ONLINE 2009, Series: Cemetery Records, ID: HRPCEMYAKTAH031662. Washington State Digital Archives.
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