Aubrey Willis Williams

Aubrey Willis Williams (August 23, 1890 – March 5, 1965) was an American social and civil rights activist who headed the National Youth Administration during the New Deal.

Aubrey Williams was born in Springville, Alabama, on August 23, 1890. He grew up in impoverished circumstances. His grandfather had been born relatively poor in North Carolina and migrated to Alabama, where he quickly accrued wealth and eventually became the owner of a successful plantation and a large number of slaves. He was, however, deeply troubled by the morality of slavery, and in 1855 voluntarily freed his workers. The rest of his property was nonetheless seized in the American Civil War, leaving the family destitute. Trained only for leisure, Aubrey Williams' father turned to manual labor, becoming a notably unsuccessful blacksmith. At the very young age of six, Aubrey went to work as a cash-boy in a Birmingham, Alabama department store. At times his whole family of four had to live on his $3.50 weekly wage.

As he grew older, Aubrey took on other jobs, while studying nights in a Y.M.C.A. He earned his way at Maryville College in Tennessee by painting signs, and at the University of Cincinnati by managing a Chautauqua, an early form of adult education. A post-War stay in France saw him earn a Doctorate from the University of Bordeaux. Not until he reached 30 was he ready to begin the career of social work in Ohio and Wisconsin which would eventually lead to his appointment by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to Assistant Federal Relief Administrator, the second highest ranking U.S. relief official.

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