Biography:

A justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court from April 16, 1910, to October 1, 1911, William Dozier Anderson of Tupelo was born to Charles Wesley and Mary Rebecca Dozier Anderson at Cedar Grove, Pontotoc County, Mississippi, on July 23, 1862. Charles Anderson was a Confederate soldier, and his wife, Mary, was a daughter of Dr. J. M. Dozier of South Carolina and of Huguenot ancestry.

William Dozier Anderson received his early educational training in Lee County. He attended Central University in Richmond, Kentucky, studied law at the University of Mississippi in 1881 and 1882, and was later admitted to the bar in Tupelo. Anderson was appointed by Governor Longino as a special judge of the Mississippi Supreme Court to replace Judge Calhoun. Governor Vardaman appointed him as a special judge of the Prentiss County Circuit Court in Booneville in 1906. He was elected to the state senate in 1907 and was a candidate for the United States Senate in 1910.

Scope and Content:

This collection contains personal correspondence from John Sharp Williams to William D. Anderson (August 20, 1917 and November 6, 1917); letters patent for James R. Gray, who was related to Anderson by marriage, for new and useful improvements in horsepower and cotton gins (August 3, 1875 and February 22, 1881); one small volume containing a daily expense journal (1887–1895); an account ledger (1889–1890); a grocery account of W. D. Anderson for the month of June (July 1, 1904); payment receipts to Mrs. Goodlett (1884) and F. D. Armstrong from Mrs. Anderson concerning music lessons for her daughter; a certificate from the Society of the American Revolution to William Anderson (May 10, 1910).

There are also four Bibles: the Gray family Bible, published by Collins and Co., New York, 1816, which contains family records; the Mary Smith (sister of William Anderson) Bible, published by Gray and Bowen, 1831; the Charles Anderson (brother of William Anderson) Bible, published by Kimber and Sharpless, New York, which also contains family records; and the Dozier family Bible.