On Tuesday, April 15, 2025, the City of West Monroe paused to honor a living treasure. Mrs. Hattie Mae Williams, a beloved resident, turned 107 years old this month, and in celebration of her remarkable life, Mayor Staci Albritton Mitchell and the West Monroe Board of Aldermen gathered to recognize her legacy and longevity.
Surrounded by children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, Mrs. Williams was presented with a key to the city during a special ceremony. Her face lit with joy as Mayor Albritton expressed the city’s appreciation, stating, “Congratulations to Ms. Williams on reaching this significant milestone!”
Born in 1918, the same year World War I ended and the Spanish Flu pandemic swept across the globe, Hattie Mae Williams has lived through some of the most pivotal moments in American history. She has witnessed the Great Depression, the civil rights movement, the election of the nation’s first Black president, and the rise of modern technology—from rotary phones to smartphones.
Closer to home, she has watched West Monroe evolve in ways once thought impossible. She lived to see history made again in 2018, a hundred years after her birth, when Staci Albritton Mitchell became the city’s first female mayor.
Even more recently, in 2022, Mrs. Williams witnessed the election of Rodney Welch, the city’s first Black member of the Board of Aldermen, a moment that embodied significant progress in the city she has called home for over a century.
Family members shared stories of her sharp memory, sweet spirit, and enduring wisdom. “She’s the glue that holds us together,” one granddaughter said. “She’s seen it all, and through it all, she kept praying, kept cooking, and kept loving.”
Hattie Mae Williams’s life reflects the resilience and strength that has carried generations forward.
The mayor said West Monroe was proud to honor her not just as a centenarian, but as a symbol of how far the city, and the nation, have come.
