Willian Raine Marshall (October 17, 1825 – January 8, 1896) was an American politician. He was the 5th Governor of Minnesota from January 8, 1866 to January 9, 1870. He was a Republican. He served as a general in the 7th Minnesota Regiment during the American Civil War (1861–65).

Energy and ambition characterized the life of Minnesota's fifth—and only "southern-born" governor. He was born in Columbia, Missouri and in the Civil War that state was in The Confederacy (or was at least claimed to be by the Confederates and by one of the state's two rival governments, the other being Unionist). During William Marshall's administration, his adoptive state experienced a post-Civil-War surge of growth and development: its population doubled to 350,000, its railroad mileage quadrupled, and its commercial endeavors flourished.

The first stops on young Marshall's trek north were Illinois and Wisconsin, where he mined for lead and surveyed land. In 1849 he crossed the St. Croix River to settle in St. Paul, soon home of his fledgling hardware business. His political career began with a term in the first territorial legislature, and his reputation was enhanced when he served as chairman of the convention that founded the state's Republican Party. The one-time banker, dairy farmer, stock-raiser, and newspaper publisher volunteered in to fight in both the Civil War and the Dakota War of 1862.

A battle-scarred hero, an experienced entrepreneur, and a force in

After leaving office, Marshall remained active in both the private and public sectors as a banker and as a railroad and land commissioner. Subsequent commercial ventures faltered, as did his health. He moved to California in 1894 and died there two years later in 1896 in Pasadena, California.

Marshall County, Minnesota was named after him. Listed as one of the few politicians to be an adherent of Swedenborgianism.

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