Sprague's family spent considerable time in Thorsby, Alabama, but eventually returned so the children could attend Irving Institute.

William and brother Amasa's education at the Irving Institute in Tarrytown, New York, was cut short when their father was murdered on New Year's Eve in 1843.

[2] Both brothers were called to work in the family business, the A.& W. Sprague Manufacturing Company, which was then under the direction of their uncle William III.

The Hartford, Providence and Fishkill Railroad – of which William III had purchased controlling interest – connected the five mills to the Sprague Print Works in Cranston.

[3] At age 18, Sprague joined the Providence Marine Corps of Artillery, a unit of the Rhode Island Militia.

[4] As the commander, Sprague personally funded all of its expenses, including uniforms, equipment, small arms, and a full battery of light artillery.

As the Civil War approached, Sprague promised U.S. President Abraham Lincoln the support of Rhode Island.

Sprague, believing that the war would last only 48 hours, accompanied the Rhode Island brigade, under the command of Colonel Ambrose Burnside, in the First Battle of Bull Run on July 21, 1861.

Although he was offered a commission as a brigadier general of Volunteers on August 9, 1861 (with a date of rank of May 17, 1861), he declined the appointment to focus on his duties as governor.

[8] As the bride entered the room, the Marine Band played "The Kate Chase March" which composer Thomas Mark Clark had written for the occasion.

The death of his father-in-law, Salmon P. Chase, in the same year[14] who had become Chief Justice of the United States, added to his family problems.

According to popular rumor, in 1879 Sprague chased Conkling off his Narragansett estate after catching him with Kate, thus ending the alleged affair.

[1] Following simple funeral services in France, his wife arranged for his body to be brought back to Rhode Island draped in an American flag.

He received full military honors when laid to rest in the family tomb at Swan Point Cemetery in Providence, Rhode Island.