Obadiah Hutchinson Williams was the founder of the Illiterates Office, which was the forerunner of the Nigerian modern judiciary. He was born in Oyo in 1860 and was educated at the in Abeokuta. Obadiah, a descendant of the Alaafin of Oyo leant carpentry but was appointed a Registrar of the court by commission and worn in at the Government House. The Illiterates Office which he founded in 1897 operated from his residence at 69, Victoria Street, Lagos. There, he did yeoman services to many of his clientele who had implicit confidence in him. Obadiah was a member of several African institutions including the Masonic craft. He died 19th December, 1922. Ayodele Williams, solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in 1924 was his son.
