William James Gallagher (May 13, 1875 – August 13, 1946) was a Representative to the U.S. Congress from Minnesota; born in Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota; attended the public schools, and was graduated from North High School in 1894; engaged as an editorial employee and proofreader in Minneapolis, MN, in 1895 and 1896; moved to Spokane, Washington, in 1897 and continued his former pursuits with a labor journal until 1899; returned to Minneapolis, and engaged as a trucker and clerk in freight houses until 1919; employed as a street sweeper for Hennepin County 1919–1927 and for the city of Minneapolis, from 1927 until his retirement in 1942; was elected as a Democrat to the 79th congress, and served from January 3, 1945, until his death; had been renominated to the 80th congress in 1946; died in a hospital at Rochester, Minnesota, August 13, 1946; interment in Crystal Lake Cemetery, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

• List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–49)

• United States Congress. "William Gallagher (id: G000019)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• United States Congress (1949). William James Gallagher, Late a Representative. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.