Morin, William Albert, 1864-1912

William Morin was born in 1827 in Maryborough, Ireland. Around the age of twenty he immigrated to America. Trained as a civil engineer, he found work with several New York railroad companies, including the Niagara Gorge Railroad, the Canadaigua and Niagara Falls Railroad, and the Lewiston Railroad.

In 1856 he moved to Minnesota, settling in Freeborn County. He quickly became one of the more influential citizens of Albert Lea. Morin served on the first city council and for a time was the County Auditor, the County Registrar of Deeds, and a County Commissioner. During the Civil War he was a United States Assessor and the United States Marshall.

In 1857, Morin established a real estate business and later acquired, along with George Mason, a 1600 acre farm near Alden, Minnesota. Morin sold farm produce, locally and nationally, as well as ran a sawmill and managed several warehouses.

In 1860, William Morin married Margaret Wedge and they had two children, William Albert and Margaret Belle, who later married Judge Milton D. Purdy. In his later years, Morin acquired a home in Los Angeles and at the time of his death in 1887 he was the largest landowner in Freeborn County.

William Albert Morin was born in Albert Lea on July 29, 1864. He attended Pillsbury Academy in Owatonna, graduating with the class of 1844. At the age of 22, after his father's death, he took over his father's real estate business and the running of the estate. Like his father, Morin held several county positions including County Commissioner and County Surveyor. He succeeded his father on the Albert Lea City Council.

The construction of the Illinois Central Railway into Albert Lea was due primarily to the efforts of William A. Morin. This in turn led to railway connections between Albert Lea and the Twin Cities. The construction and management of the Hotel Albert in southern Minnesota was done by William A. Morin. In addition to these concerns he was involved in many other local businesses including the Albert Lea Publishing Company, Consolidated Fire and Marine Insurance Company, his own Morin Brick and Tile Works, and several mining companies in Wisconsin and elsewhere. Morin belonged to the Republican Party and the Masonic Lodge. On August 6, 1893 he married Katherine Trusdell of Waverly, Iowa. They had two sons, William T., 1894-1967, and Richard W.

When William A. Morin died in May 1912 due to a heart condition Nate J. Whitney assumed management of the estate. Morin's widow, Katherine, married John F. Meighen in 1917.

Richard Morin was born in 1902 and served four years as American vice consul in Paris, practiced law in Albert Lea, ran for Congress in 1936, and eventually became librarian at Dartmouth College.

From the guide to the William Morin and family papers., 1852-1946., (Minnesota Historical Society)