Parents were Silas Mercer Williams and his first wife, Sally Crutchfield. Samuel's mother passed away in 1820. His father re-married to Frances Shaw. Judge Samuel came back from Illinois with them (Basil Manley & Dicy Williams Taylor) in 1838 when they married. He lived with them in Madison Co., TN and worked on the farm. He studied law and became a Judge. He was married to Katrina Matilda Walker. She was a sister to Mary Frances Camp Walker, Mother of Frances Enochs Taylor. (Catherine Edwards) Samuel was the oldest son. He grew up on a small farm near Medon in Madison Co., TN. In 1835, his father moved the family to Illinois. When Samuel's sister, Dicy, married Basil Manley Taylor in 1837 and the couple went back to Madison Co., TN to live, Samuel went to live with them. At the time, Samuel had a very limited education and was often heard to say that he began life by grubbing at $10 per month. During the time he lived with his sister and brother-in-law, he had a lawsuit with a man about a horse trade. He became interested in the law and borrowed some law books to investigate the question in the case. He became so fascinated with legal questions that he decided to make a lawyer himself. He obtained a few law books from Judge John Reed of Jackson, TN and read them at night, and whenever he could spare the time from his work on the farm. He continued in this manner for several years, after which he obtained a license to practice law. He began his law practice in Troy, Obion Co., TN in 1840 and remained there for five years. He opened an office in Trenton, Gibson Co., TN in 1845. He was elected Judge of the Circuit court in the District in which he lived. He remained on the Bench until the courts were suspended by the War in 1862. Owning a large tract of land in Illinois, and with the War raging in Tennessee, Samuel moved to Carbondale, IL in 1863. He was a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church.