William E. Minshall Jr. was born in
East Cleveland, Ohio, to William E. Minshall and Mabel Rice. Minshall came from a family of lawyers with his father being a trial lawyer. His grandfather,
Thaddeus A. Minshall, who prior to becoming an
Ohio Supreme Court judge, had a private practice in law. Minshall attended the public schools of East Cleveland, the University School in
Shaker Heights, Ohio, and the
University of Virginia at
Charlottesville, Virginia, where he was a member of
Chi Phi fraternity. He graduated from the
Cleveland Law School in 1940, was admitted to the bar the same year, and commenced the practice of law in
Cleveland, Ohio. He was a member of the
Ohio House of Representatives in 1939 and 1940. ==World War II ==