Lt. General Robert Boyd Williams

Robert Boyd Williams, a native of Albany, became the highest-ranking serviceman from Shackelford County during World War II. After attending local schools, he graduated from Texas A&M in 1923 with a degree in Civil Engineering and a commission as a Second Lieutenant, then entered the Air Corps when it was still part of the Army. He played an important role in developing heavy bombers, especially the four-engined Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, and joined goodwill flights of six B-17s to Brazil in 1938 and Argentina in 1939 to demonstrate the bomber’s long-range capability. In 1940 he went to London as an American military observer of heavy air bombardment and lost an eye when a German bomb struck his apartment during the Blitz. After the United States entered the war, the U.S. 8th Air Force was organized in England into three divisions, and Major General Robert Williams commanded the 1st Bombardment Division while Major General Curtis LeMay led the 3rd Division, both equipped with B-17s. Under their direction, the 8th Air Force rapidly expanded and soon launched thousand-plane raids against Germany. Williams personally led the Schweinfurt ball bearing plant raid on August 17, 1943, flying in a B-17 named “Lady Luck,” and received the Distinguished Service Cross for that mission. He later flew raids to Hamburg, Gelsenkirchen, and Watten, Germany, where his plane suffered major battle damage on the last mission. After World War II, he returned to the U.S., served in senior Air Force positions, retired in the mid-1950s to San Antonio, and died in 1977. Along with Curtis LeMay, he was a leader in developing the heavy bombardment power of the U.S. Air Force that helped defeat Germany and Japan in World War II.

Albany, Texas · United States