William Rainey Marshall

William Rainey Marshall ( born October 17, 1825 Columbia, Missouri; † January 8, 1896 in Pasadena, California ) was an American politician and 1866-1870 Governor of the State of Minnesota.

Early years and political rise

William Marshall was born in Missouri, but grew up in Illinois and Wisconsin. He attended local schools in Illinois. He then worked as a surveyor and in the lead mines in the area. In 1849 he moved to the Minnesota Territory, where he settled in Saint Paul. There he ran a hardware store. Marshall was so successful that he soon was able to expand to other areas such as banking, the newspaper business and the dairy trade his business activities.

Marshall's political career began still in Wisconsin. There he was a deputy in the 1848 House of Representatives of the State in the year. Between 1849 and 1850 he was then a member of the Territorial House of Representatives from Minnesota. He was chairman of the founding congress of the Republicans in Minnesota. During the Civil War he entered the Union Army up to brigadier general.

Governor of Minnesota

On November 7, 1865 William Marshall was elected as the new governor of his state. After a re-election in 1867 he was able to hold that office between 8 January 1866 and January 9, 1870. During this time, a state hospital for nervous patient was, among other things set up and expanded the railway network. In Mankato a new primary school was built. At the same time the population of the State of Minnesota grew steadily and reached the 350,000 -inhabitant brand.

After his governorship, he was between 1874 to 1882 lecturer for the railway system. In Saint Paul, he was a partner in a law firm. In 1894 he moved to California for health reasons. He is also passed two years later. Governor Marshall was married to Abbey Langford.