| William Flynt Nichols | |
| Image Name: | Congressman William F. Nichols Official Portrait, 1986 (cropped).jpg |
| Birth Date: | October 16, 1918 |
| Birth Place: | Monroe County, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| State: | Alabama |
| District: | 3rd |
| Term Start: | January 3, 1973 |
| Term End: | December 13, 1988 |
| Preceded: | Elizabeth B. Andrews |
| Succeeded: | Glen Browder |
| State2: | Alabama |
| District2: | 4th |
| Term Start2: | January 3, 1967 |
| Term End2: | January 3, 1973 |
| Preceded2: | Glenn Andrews |
| Succeeded2: | Tom Bevill |
| Office3: | Member of the Alabama State Senate |
| Constituency3: | 8th district |
| Term Start3: | November 7, 1962 |
| Term End3: | November 9, 1966 [1] |
| Office4: | Member of the Alabama House of Representatives |
| Term Start4: | November 5, 1958 |
| Term End4: | November 7, 1962 [2] |
| Party: | Democratic |
| Spouse: | Maude Carolyn Funderburk |
| Alma Mater: | Auburn University |
| Children: | 3 |
William Flynt Nichols (October 16, 1918 – December 13, 1988) was a Democratic member of United States House of Representatives from Alabama, having served from 1967 until his death from a heart attack in Washington, D.C. in 1988.
Nichols was born on October 16, 1918. On January 30, 1942, Nichols married Maude Carolyn Funderburk. He was a Methodist, having served on the Board of Stewards of Sylacauga's First Methodist Church.
Nichols died of a heart attack on December 13, 1988.
Nichols received a bachelor's degree in Agriculture in 1939 from the Alabama Polytechnic Institute (now Auburn University) and a master's degree in Agronomy from the same institution in 1941.
Nichols enlisted in the United States Army in 1942 and served five years in the European Theatre. He was wounded at the Battle of Hürtgen Forest, losing a leg in a land mine explosion. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart, and retired with the rank of Captain in 1947.[3] Following his retirement, he lived in Sylacauga, Alabama, where he is also buried.
After military service, Nichols was employed by the Parker Fertilizer Company, and would later become president of the associated Parker Gin Company.[4]
Prior to his congressional service, he served over an eight-year period in both houses of the Alabama Legislature, having been elected to the Alabama House of Representatives in 1958 and the Alabama Senate in 1962.
In 1986, with retiring Republican U.S. Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona, Nichols co-authored the Goldwater–Nichols Act, the far-reaching reorganization of the United States Department of Defense command structure.