Henry Sylvester Williams
(1867-1911)

Died aged c. 44

Henry Sylvester-Williams (24 March 1867 or 15 February 1869 – 26 March 1911) was a Trinidadian lawyer, activist, councillor and writer who was among the founders of the Pan-African movement. As a young man, Williams travelled to the United States and Canada to further his education before subsequently moving to England where he founded the African Association in 1897 to "promote and protect the interests of all subjects claiming African descent, wholly or in part, in British colonies and other place, especially Africa, by circulating accurate information on all subjects affecting their rights and privileges as subjects of the British Empire, by direct appeals to the Imperial and local Governments." In 1900, Williams organised the First Pan-African Conference, held at Westminster Town Hall in London. In 1903 he went to practise as a barrister in Southern Africa, becoming the first black man to be called to the bar in the Cape Colony.

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