Minahan's Tomb

Dr. William Edward Minahan, a native of Chilton, Wisconsin, graduated from high school there, briefly pursued teaching, then attended medical school in Chicago and graduated with high honors. One of five brothers who were doctors, he also had an oldest brother, Robert, who was a lawyer and served as mayor of Green Bay from 1904 through 1907. Minahan married Mary Digman in 1893, and they had a daughter, Maude Olive, before divorcing. He moved to Fond du Lac in 1899 and established a very well-known and highly respected medical practice, then married his second wife, Lillian, in 1903. On April 14, 1912, Dr. Minahan, accompanied by his wife Lillian and sister Daisy, set sail on the maiden voyage of the Titanic as they returned from an extensive tour of pleasure and study in Europe, Asia and North Africa. At age 45, he was among the approximately 1,500 people who perished when the ship, thought to be unsinkable, hit an iceberg and sank, while Lillian and Daisy were among the 704 survivors out of about 2,200 total passengers. His body was brought to Green Bay and entombed in the Minahan crypt in Woodlawn Cemetery.

Allouez, Wisconsin · United States