James McLean (Jim) Williams, 1950 - 2020
James Williams, a resident of Schooner Estates and Lewiston, ME, died Friday February 7, 2020 of sudden cardiac arrest.
He was born in Washington, DC on February 13, 1950 to Frances (McLean) and Elwood Williams III, and graduated from St. Stephens School. He then got his B.A. in History from Brown University, where he joined Alpha Delta Phi. He later received certificates in German from the Goethe Institute and in Enology from the University of Bordeaux. He spent most of his career in the wine business, first in Traben-Trarbach, Germany and later in New York City and New Jersey. He also worked in the book retail business, and his final job before retiring in 2007, was at the Princeton University Library as Technical Services Specialist for special orders and acquisitions.
He was a wine connoisseur, a super taster who could tell the difference between identical wines aged in two different barrels. He took up birding in 1979 after his first trip to Hawk Mountain in Pennsylvania, and became an avid birder and talented bird photographer. He was a 40-year member of the New Jersey Audubon Society, and joined the Stanton Bird Club on moving to Lewiston in 2007. He traveled extensively in his birding adventures, from New Jersey to Texas, Alaska, and New Zealand. He had a great sense of humor, and enjoyed bowling and Scrabble.
He was predeceased by his parents, and sister Elizabeth Williams Barton. He is survived by his sister Anne D. Williams of Lewiston and by several cousins.
