Henry Williams was born around 1847 in North Carolina. Williams worked as a laborer and resided in Wake County, North Carolina. Williams was charged with larceny on April 17, 1874, and sentenced to ten years in the North Carolina State Penitentiary. Williams was recorded in the North Carolina State Penitentiary's Descriptive Register for the Years 1869-1884 as prisoner number 840. In his sentencing records, Williams' race is noted as "colored.” Williams was twenty-seven years old when he was arrested. Williams was noted as being able to both read and write. During his incarceration, Williams was leased to the Western North Carolina Railroad Company to work on railroad construction. Williams escaped and was recaptured at least four times from the railroad, and his fifth escape is noted as occurring on May 17, 1882, with no date of recapture.