William D. Mayfield served as the South Carolina State Superintendent of Education from 1890 to 1898.

Mayfield gave great attention to the establishment of a graded school system and uniform textbooks. Under his administration, enrollment of students increased by 75,000, sessions of schools lengthened, the teaching corps substantially improved and the number of schools built vastly increased.

Mayfield attended Furman University and practiced law in Greenville before holding the tittle of Greenville County Superintendent of education for four years.

He died in May 1931.