William Nelson, American politician, Colonial Governor of Virginia (born 1711)

William Nelson was an American merchant, planter and politician from Yorktown, Virginia. Having served more than two decades on the Virginia Council of State, he became the colony's acting governor between the death of royal governor Norborne Berkeley in mid-October 1770 and the arrival of Lord Dunmore, in October 1771. Arguably the most famous of the six men of the same name to serve in the Virginia General Assembly, he represented York County for about three years in the House of Burgesses before being advanced to the Council of State.

Some of those who held the lead role as governor of Virginia never visited the New World and governed through deputies resident in the colony. Others, such as Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, held the lead role for many years but were in Virginia for only a short portion of that time and usually delegated responsibilities to others. Probably for those reasons, in many historical documents and references, the deputies and lieutenant governors who had the primary responsibility in Virginia are also often titled simply "governor." Also, transportation from England routinely took several months and occasionally, much longer. Thus, dates may appear to overlap.