Marshall, William I. (William Isaac), 1840-1906

William Isaac Marshall was born on June 25, 1840 in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. He moved to Montana Territory in 1866 and lived there until 1875. During his time in Montana, he became interested in Yellowstone and sold photographs of and conducted tours of the park. In 1875 he moved back to Fitchburg, Massachusetts. Marshall moved to Chicago in 1887 and became the principal of Gladstone School. He was an amateur historian, and, later, lecturer, who took a particular interest in debunking the "Whitman Myth." He researched and wrote heavily on this topic, including numerous newspaper articles on "The Whitman Question," as well as at least three books: The Acquisition of Oregon: and the long suppressed evidence about Marcus Whitman (1905), The Hudson's Bay Company's Archives Furnish No Support To The Whitman Saved Oregon Story (1905), and History Vs. the Whitman Saved Oregon Story: Three Essays Towards a True History of the Acquisition of the Old Oregon Territory (1904). Marshall argued against the "Whitman Myth," believing that Whitman had nothing to do with Oregon becoming a state. Prior to his interest in Whitman, Marshall also wrote books about Yellowstone and the public education system. Marshall died on October 30, 1906 in Chicago, Illinois.

William Isaac Marshall, born in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, taught throughout the United States and Canada, eventually returning east to lecture on the west. He spent most of his life researching and writing on the acquisition of Oregon Territory.