Son of James and Nancy Segar Sparkman of Hertford Co., NC.

Around the time of their marriage in Hertford County, NC, on December 3, 1789, William and his wife, Rosanna, relocated to Martin County, NC. In November, 1795, after selling certain of his lands in that county, William accompanied Joseph Witherington to the State’s Land Office in Raleigh, where Joseph obtained his Revolutionary War land warrant, which he indorsed on the spot to William. William subsequently sold his remaining lands in Martin Co. in September 1796 and headed with his family to Nashborough (presently Nashville), where events were related in an interview of William's son, Seth Sparkman, published in the Nashville Banner on December 8, 1884:

"On the last day of December, 1779 [sic, 1796] William Sparkman with his wife arrived at Nashville with a quarter and half section land warrant in his pocket, from North Carolina, coming to this country for hunting purposes. On his arrival in Nashville village or Nashborough, he tried all over the village to rent a room or a cabin. He was very anxious for it on Mrs. Sparkman's behalf. None could be found. Finally coming across the late Major Lewis, who was farming across the river, he applied to him. The Major told him he had no cabin, but finally told him there was a little shanty down in the field which had been used as a stable for the work stock, and if he could do not better, he could fix that up and go into it. That was his only chance and he accepted it, and went in and raked out the litter and moved his wife in, and they spread down their few bed clothes on the naked ground. That night Mrs. Sparkman gave birth to the Seth Sparkman of Williamson County who departed this life a few weeks ago in the Second District of Williamson County, after having lived a long useful and honorable life.

Major Lewis discovered that William Sparkman was a sensible, active fellow, and he engaged him to manage and run his farm for him, promising to locate him favorably on good hunting grounds when his term of service ended. He remained with Major Lewis three years, until young Seth was three years old, when he went to Major Lewis in December, 1799 and told him he was tired of farm life, and wanted to go to the hunting grounds the Major had promised him, that he might pursue the business he came to this country for. The Major took Mr. Sparkman's land warrant, and in lieu of it went out to the Duck River ridges, and located it for William Sparkman, who immediately moved his family upon his hunting grounds, which was then immediately on Indian boundary line, and where there was a considerable number of Indians settled - erecting his cabin there he had hunting to his soul's content, and the Indians for his companions...."

William was a corporal in the 1st Regiment of West Tennessee Volunteer Mounted Gunmen during the War of 1812, serving under Captains Samuel Crawford and James McMahon.

William and his daughter, Polly Walker, are listed as two of the 13 charter members of the Leipers Fork church of Christ, February 2, 1830, reportedly the oldest church of Christ south of Nashville. The historical marker outside this church building reflects that "David Lipscomb led a convention of Christians who met here in 1862, to adopt positions as noncombatants in the Civil War. Their petition to Military Governor Andrew Johnson was rejected." (Seth Sparkman participated in that convention.)