George Williams (YMCA) place was the YMCA, which he founded on 6 June 1844. It promoted Muscular Christianity. One of the earliest converts and contributors to the new association was George's employer, George Hitchcock. It also provided a safe place for young men and women. Williams was knighted by Queen Victoria in her 1894 Birthday Honours. After his death in 1905, he was commemorated by a stained-glass window in the nave of Westminster Abbey. Sir George Williams is buried in St Paul's Cathedral. Sir George Williams University in Montreal, which was founded by the YMCA, was named in commemoration of Williams; it was
George Henry Williams age his family moved to Onondaga County, where was educated in public and private schools, including "Pompey Academy"; he did not attend college. Williams studied law under Honorable Daniel Scott having passed the bar in 1844 at the age of 21. In the same year Williams moved west, and practiced law in the Iowa Territory. After Iowa was admitted to statehood, Williams was elected district judge in 1847, serving until 1852. In 1853, Williams was appointed Chief Justice of the Oregon Territory by President Franklin Pierce. In 1857, at the Oregon Constitutional Convention, Williams urged that slavery be made illegal