The direct ancestral origins of the McDonald Family were not well recorded. The oldest known McDonald ancestor was James McDonald who was born somewhere in the Scottish highland during the early 1850's. Around the time of James' birth, the Scottish highlands were facing a great famine. Caused by rampant potato blight, the highland famine left many families destitute and starving. Desperate for food, many families were forced to leave Scotland.

Unable to afford basic necessities and threatened with starvation, James McDonald, his siblings, and his parents were forced to leave their homeland. The family traveled by ship to the United States and entered via New York City along with thousands of others seeking refuge. The McDonald family continued moving westward until they settled in Cincinnati, Ohio. Here, the fate of James's parents remains unknown, however, it is suspected that they both died prior to 1864. 

In 1864, when he was only fourteen years old, James became a father to his eldest daughter, Isabelle. Isabelle's mother, Elizabeth Dinser, was twenty years old at the time. Four years later, James and Elizabeth would finally marry after James turned eighteen years old. Together, they would have several more children, three of which would survive to adulthood. The eldest son, Edward was born in March of 1871, William was born in January of 1874 and the youngest son, Charles was born in February of 1876. James McDonald passed away in June 1875, leaving Elizabeth and the young children to fend for themselves.

Within a year of her husband's death, Elizabeth had met Charles Stevens, a German immigrant from Berlin who was a skilled carpenter and cabinet maker. Charles married Elizabeth sometime in 1878 and together had one son, Albert, who was born in 1879. Charles Stevens provided fatherly support for the McDonald children who in census records were listed with the surname "Stevens" in 1880 and 1890. It is assumed that Charles died sometime before 1900, as he is not listed on the census with Elizabeth and the children.

Making a livelihood for themselves, the three McDonald sons started a small shoe shop in Cincinnati's West End. Edward focused on making new shoes using the recently patented shoe lasting machine, while William spent the majority of his time working to repair customers' old and worn shoes. Charles, the most personable of the bunch, worked in the front of the store, keeping the shelves stocked and helping customers with their selections.

Of the four McDonald children, only William has been confirmed to have been married and have had children. Isabelle disappeared from census records after 1880 (possibly married with new surname). After 1900, Edward also disappeared from records. Charles lived alone his entire life according to census records through 1940, passing away sometime after that.

William Robert McDonald married Irene Ella Meyer on May 22, 1902. At the time, William was living at 1512 John St. Cincinnati, Ohio and Irene was living at 1304 Fourteenth St. Cincinnati, Ohio. Together, William and Irene had three children, Elmer (b.1902), Charles (b.1909), and Irene Marie (b. 1911). In 1914, William and Irene were legally divorced. Irene would remarry to Albert Berting in 1914 and William would remarry to Belle Merschon in 1919.

According to the local city directory, William continued working with his brother, Charles, at their shoe shop until 1920 (there was no Wm. R McDonald recorded in 1921). According to family stories, William died sometime in the late winter of 1920 after contracting the Spanish flu. However, there are no records that confirm his death.