Born in Thaiernbach, in the Grand Duchy of Baden, William Thalhimer was the oldest of Malke Simon and Goetz Lazarus Thalheimer’s seven children. Having received a rigorous education in German and Hebrew, he set sail for the United States, settling first in New Orleans and then, in 1840, in Richmond, the city that would be his home for the remainder of his life.

William found success as a merchant, while his extensive religious learning and knowledge of Hebrew meant that he was in demand at both of the city’s congregations—the Sephardi Beth Shalome and the Ashkenazi Beth Ahabah.

In 1845, he married Mary Millhiser, like himself an immigrant from Germany, and they had seven children.