William Shields Goodwin was a U.S. Representative

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 from Arkansas

Arkansas

Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...

.

Born in Warren, Arkansas

Warren, Arkansas

Warren is a city in and the county seat of Bradley County, Arkansas, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimated population in 2006 was 6,219....

, Goodwin attended the public schools, the Farmers' Academy near Duluth, Georgia

Duluth, Georgia

Duluth is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia and an increasingly more affluent and developed suburb of Atlanta. Unincorporated portions of Forsyth County also have Duluth as a mailing address, though this area is outside city limits...

, Cooledge's Preparatory School, Moore's College, Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...

, and the Universities of Arkansas

University of Arkansas

The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with very high research activity. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in...

 and Mississippi

University of Mississippi

The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...

.
He studied law

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

.
He was admitted to the bar

Admission to the bar in the United States

In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...

 in 1894 and commenced practice in Warren, Arkansas

Warren, Arkansas

Warren is a city in and the county seat of Bradley County, Arkansas, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimated population in 2006 was 6,219....

.
He served as member of the State house of representatives in 1895.
He served in the State senate 1905-1909.
He served as member of the board of trustees of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville 1907-1911.

Goodwin was elected as a Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 to the Sixty-second

62nd United States Congress

- House of Representatives :* Democratic : 230 * Republican : 162* Socialist : 1* Independent : 1TOTAL members: 394-Senate:* President: James S...

 and to the four succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1911-March 3, 1921).
He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1920.
Reengaged in the practice of law in Warren, Arkansas

Warren, Arkansas

Warren is a city in and the county seat of Bradley County, Arkansas, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimated population in 2006 was 6,219....

, until his death there August 9, 1937.
He was interred in Oak Lawn Cemetery.