San
Joaquin County
Biographies
CLIFTON C. WILLIAMS
The house of Williams & Co.,
Stockton, leading employment agency was founded more than a quarter of a
century ago by David D. Williams, the father of the subject of this review,
Clifton C. Williams, the genial owner and proprietor of the business, for which
he was thoroughly trained, and he fills his father’s position in an able and
intelligent manner, following out the founder’s principles of steadfast
reliability.
A native son, he was born in Biggs,
Butte County, California, October 20, 1887, a son of David D. and Lulu E.
(Brown) Williams. The former was a
native of Sonora, Tuolumne County and the latter a native of Hollister, San
Benito County. His father was reared and
educated in Tuolumne County and when he grew to manhood he removed to Biggs and
was engaged in farming pursuits. In 1894
he removed to Stockton and opened an employment agency and was a pioneer in
that line, and followed same to the time of his death, which occurred at
Stockton, April 23, 1902. He started in
a small way by furnishing farmers with help on the ranches and the business
grew to great proportions and he became well known for his reliability
throughout the San Joaquin Valley. At
one time he sent between three and four thousand men to Blue Lake, Lake County,
to work on the project of the Standard Electric Company. In order to transport this large body of men,
he established a stage line from Stockton to the Blue Lakes, running three
stages; this he kept up until the work was completed; later he branched out and
conducted a real estate and insurance business as well as the employment
agency. His acquaintance among the
farmers of the valley was very extensive, and he was an honored member of Truth
Lodge, I. O. O. F., in Stockton. Mrs.
Williams, whose maiden name was Brown, is the daughter of a large land owner
and stockraiser of San Benito County, and the owner of Brown’s Valley, which
was named after him. Mr. and Mrs.
Williams were the parents of two children, Birdie, now Mrs. T. Gillis, and
Clifton C. of this sketch.
Clifton was a small child when his
parents removed to Stockton, where he was reared and educated in the public
schools. During the year of 1907 he took
full charge of the business his father had so successfully carried on and he is
making good. A specialty is made of
supplying help to the farm on short notice, and many ranches are in constant
touch with this old-time and reliable agency, because of the highly
satisfactory service rendered and good class of help furnished. Williams & Company constantly endeavor to
keep their calls filled promptly, studying labor problems and conditions for
the benefit of their hundreds of patrons, and it is this prompt attention to
business that has won for them an enviable record during the past twenty-five
years. Help is furnished for factories,
industrial plants and besides this, expert and professional help, such as
engineers for traction engines and harvester outfits. In the month of April, 1921, Mr. Williams
removed to No. 6 West Market Street, where it is now located and meeting
merited success. Clifton C. Williams
established quite a reputation because of his splendid work before the
Legislature during the session of 1921, where in a clear and comprehensive
manner he demonstrated to that important body the real necessity of private
employment agencies, when properly conducted by people who know the
business. He showed in figures and
statistics the great value of the independent agencies to the farmer and
rancher, and to employers of labor in all lines of endeavor, and his good work
had much to do with the defeat of legislation aimed to injure the private
employment agencies of California.
Fraternally Mr. Williams is a member of the Elks and Loyal Order of
Moose.
Transcribed by V. Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Pages
1255-1256. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2011 V. Gerald Iaquinta.
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