'Nat D. Williams Boulevard': Broadcasting pioneer honored with street naming

Bob Mehr, Memphis Commercial Appeal

Nat D. Williams, one of the pioneers of American broadcasting, was given the ultimate civic tribute Friday, as a section of a historic Memphis street was renamed in his honor.

The late Williams — hailed as the first Black radio personality in Memphis and “The Voice of Beale Street” — took to the airwaves in 1948 on local station WDIA. Williams helped define the identity of WDIA, one of the first and most influential all-Black formatted and operated stations in the United States.

Friday’s event honoring Williams took place at Booker T. Washington High School, where he also taught history for 43 years. Williams was key in adding African American and Native American history to the school’s curriculum.

Nathaniel Jones, grandson of Nat D. Williams, and Steve Turner, Williams’ great grandson, pose for a photo pointing to the sign during the Nat D. Williams street naming ceremony outside Booker T. Washington High School in Memphis, Tenn., on Friday, October 27, 2023. Williams, who was hailed as the first Black radio personality in Memphis and “The Voice of Beale Street,” was a history teacher at the school for 43 years. “It’s really a honor,” Turner said. “It goes to show that good work comes out of good things when people do the right thing. He was a great educator and a great grandfather. Miss him very much.”

Current WDIA radio personalities Stan Bell and Mark Stansbury appeared at the event in the Booker T. Washington auditorium, which was also attended by members of Williams family, including his daughter Naomi Williams Moody, grandson Nathaniel Jones and great-grandson Steve Turner.

Following a brief ceremony, friends, fans and family moved outside to witness the unveiling of the new "Nat D. Williams Boulevard" sign at Mississippi Boulevard between East Georgia Avenue and East E.H. Crump.

“This generation is going to Google that name, see his history and what he did,” Jones said of the sign going up next to the school. “Definitely an honor. We hope it inspires generations long after us.”

Michael Love raise his hands as he and other audience members raise their hands if they are alumni of Booker T. Washington High School during the Nat D. Williams street naming ceremony in the school’s auditorium in Memphis, Tenn., on Friday, October 27, 2023. Williams, who was hailed as the first Black radio personality in Memphis and “The Voice of Beale Street,” was a history teacher at the school for 43 years. Love was one of Williams’ students and lived in his neighborhood and at times would be driven to school by Williams. “It means that a great man is finally getting his due and his memory will live on,” Love said on the sign being put up.

The honorary street renaming recognizes Williams’ crucial contributions to Memphis. At WDIA, he hosted a pair of shows, the morning Coffee Club and the afternoon Tan Town Jamboree five days a week. In addition to his broadcasting and educational work, Williams was also a journalist and editor for various publications, famously writing the “Down on Beale” column for The Memphis World and Tri-State Defender. He was also a well-known emcee and public personality, who served as host for Amateur Night on Beale and was a co-founder of the Cotton Maker Jubilee.

Williams also mentored and helped launch the careers of several generations of Memphians who later achieved local and national prominence, including singer and entertainer Rufus Thomas, blues guitarist B.B. King, and NAACP leader Judge Benjamin Hooks.

The Nat D. Williams honorary street sign is seen during the street naming ceremony outside of Booker T. Washington High School in Memphis, Tenn., on Friday, October 27, 2023. Williams, who was hailed as the first Black radio personality in Memphis and “The Voice of Beale Street,” was a history teacher at the school for 43 years.
The Nat D. Williams honorary street sign is seen during the street naming ceremony outside of Booker T. Washington High School in Memphis, Tenn., on Friday, October 27, 2023. Williams, who was hailed as the first Black radio personality in Memphis and “The Voice of Beale Street,” was a history teacher at the school for 43 years.

The street naming is just the latest of many honors for Williams, who died in 1983 at the age of 76.

Williams has previously been inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame and the Tennessee Radio Hall of Fame. In 2017, he was inducted into the National Rhythm and Blues Hall of Fame. A marker, placed by the Tennessee Historical Commission outside the former site of the Palace Theatre on Beale Street, also honors Williams.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Broadcast pioneer Nat D. Williams honored with Memphis street naming

Advertisement