Following his departure from the House of Representatives, he was appointed Postmaster General of the United States by President Grover Cleveland, and remained in that cabinet-level position until 1897.

After leaving government service, he was named President of Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia.

[1] After leaving Congress, Wilson was appointed Postmaster General in the cabinet of President Grover Cleveland and served from 1895 to 1897.

[1] Wilson died in Lexington, Virginia, on October 17, 1900, and was interred in Edgehill Cemetery in Charles Town.

[1] A portion of U.S. Route 340 between Harpers Ferry and Charles Town, West Virginia, is designated the William L. Wilson Freeway in his honor.