Reginald Murray Williams was born in South Australia. His family was considered a pioneer family and they trained horses. School wasn’t his forte so he left school at a young age and took a job as a camel driver which allowed him to trek over the desert of Australia.

After the Great Depression, there wasn’t much work available so he went back to Adelaide where he met and married Thelma Mitchell. They survived off of the land living in South Australia’s mountainous area. They had six children. His first marriage would eventually fall apart. He later married again in 1955 and had an additional three children.

R.M. Williams didn’t have life easy. When his son became ill, he knew he was going to have to make more money. With a history in making bridles and boots, Williams took his leather-making skills to the next level. He used his father’s shed to sell his leather products and began mining at Nobles Nob, which was a successful gold mine.

Today, the single stitch boot that made R.M. Williams famous is still the trademark of the company that he left behind. Using seventy hand processes, the single stitch used on the single piece of leather is the foundation that the R.M. Williams Company used as its claim to fame. Today, the company still stands on that concept.

Reginald Murray Williams was a member of Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame. He founded the Australian Roughriders Association and was a founding member of the Equestrian Federation of Australia.

When R.M. Williams died, he was a millionaire several times over and a true rags to riches story in his own right. R.M. Williams had lived life hard and knew what needs needed to be met with outerwear which made his product all the more appealing.