# William J. Donahower *Minnesota lawyer and politician; interim Minnesota Attorney General, 1904–1905* William James Donahower (c. 1865 – June 25, 1928), whose name also appears as W. J. Donahower, was a lawyer and politician from [[Minnesota]]. He was the eleventh [[Minnesota Attorney General]], holding the office on an interim basis from 1904 to 1905, and afterward sat on the [[Minnesota Supreme Court]].[^1] Donahower reached the office from the post of Assistant Attorney General after Attorney General [[Wallace B. Douglas]] resigned on April 5, 1904. Douglas's resignation followed the departure of Associate Justice [[Loren W. Collins]] from the Supreme Court.[^2] In 1926 Donahower sought the office again and lost the Republican primary to the incumbent, [[Clifford L. Hilton]].[^2] ## Early life Donahower was born in 1865 in [[St. Peter, Minnesota]], the son of Frederick Augustus Donahower and Helen M. Manger.[^3] He attended high school in St. Peter, then earned degrees at the [[University of Minnesota]] and at Cornell University.[^3] In the period just before his political career began, he worked in law enforcement with the United States Marshals Service during the presidency of William McKinley.[^3] ## Political career From 1901 to 1904 Donahower was Assistant Attorney General under Douglas.[^2] Douglas left the attorney general's office on April 5, 1904, after Associate Justice Collins resigned from the Minnesota Supreme Court, and Donahower took over as acting attorney general.[^2] He remained in the post until the [[1904 Minnesota Attorney General election]], in which [[Edward T. Young]] was elected.[^2] Donahower later served on the Minnesota Supreme Court; the cited source gives no dates for that service.[^1] In the 1926 Republican primary for attorney general, Donahower received 17.36 percent of the vote. Hilton, the incumbent, defeated him by a margin of 65.27 percent.[^2] ## Personal life Donahower and his wife, Grace Kendricks of Saint Paul, had three sons.[^3] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *William J. Donahower* (revision 1351582404, retrieved 25 October 2026) — lead section: life dates, interim service as eleventh Minnesota Attorney General, 1904–1905, and later Minnesota Supreme Court service. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_J._Donahower [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *William J. Donahower*, *Political career* section (revision 1351582404, retrieved 25 October 2026) — Assistant Attorney General service from 1901, Douglas resignation on April 5, 1904, acting service until the 1904 election, and the 1926 Republican primary result. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_J._Donahower [^3]: Wikipedia contributors, *William J. Donahower*, *Early life* and *Personal life* sections (revision 1351582404, retrieved 25 October 2026) — birth in St. Peter, parents, education, United States Marshals Service service, marriage and children. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_J._Donahower