Here's the way they say it went... you can almost hear a song in the making!
The town of Williams was first settled by sheepherders in 1874. Railroad workers followed in 1880 with the construction of the transcontinental railroad, later called the Santa Fe line.
With the line complete in 1882, Williams grew as hub of ranching and lumber. Other profitable industries included saloons, brothels, opium dens and gambling parlors. All catered to a growing population of cowboys, Chinese labor, lumberjacks and copper miners. A general atmosphere of lawlessness helped secure considerable notoriety for Williams and its role in the Wild West. [source]