← All Arizona markers

Bill Williams Mountain

Coconino County · In or near the town of Williams, on the south side of U. S. Highway 66, or at a turnout that provides a good view of the mountains. · location approximate

Directions to the area ↗

BILL WILLIAMS MOUNTAIN Elevation 9,264 ft. This mountain was named for a colorful mountaineer, guide and trapper who is generally credited with being the first American to explore northern Arizona - 1830 or earlier. Williams lived at different times among the Osage and Ute Indians, and earlier had been a Baptist circuit rider in Missouri. He was killed by Indians in 1849.

Named in the Arizona Department of Transportation's 1997 list of markers standing in its right of way. That 1997 list covers only state highway right of way, so it does not reach markers on city streets, on tribal land, or in state and national parks.

1958 text, presented as a historical document. It uses the period's terms for Native people. The book proposed 100 markers for Arizona's highways and records 14 as cast when it went to press.

Arizona still marks its history under the same law: the State Historical Advisory Commission approves a marker, the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records certifies that its text is authentic and historically correct, and the Arizona Department of Transportation erects and maintains the markers on state highway right-of-way. Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records ↗

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Marker data: Historical Markers in Arizona, Vols. I-II (Arizona Development Board, 1958), text by Bert Fireman

More markers nearby

See your own family's places through time.

Start with your family tree