William Best, one of nine children, was born in Liverpool, England. He learned bookkeeping and shorthand and later became a travelling salesman for a flour mill company.
He had decided to become a farmer in Canada and proceeded to learn farming in the Lake District of Cumberland. While there he met Rebecca Dowling, one of thirteen children, and became engaged to be married before he left England for Calgary. Later Rebecca came to Canada with Mr. and Mrs. Coupland and was married to William. They built a home in Calgary and William taught in Mr. Coupland's Business College.
Later, William Best decided to move to Edmonton, where he built a home and worked for Cushing Brothers.
Farming finally became a reality when William filed on a homestead, SW24-53-3-W5, about nine miles east of Wabamun Lake in 1905. Gradually the land was cleared and plowed, first with oxen and walking plow and later by horses and sometimes mules. William did some auditing work to help augment his income in those pioneer days. The winters in this part of Canada were very different from England. In 1909, a daughter, Norah was born when the temperature was fifty-three degrees below Fahrenheit. William got title to his homestead in 1910.
When the Smithfield School was moved from Butcher Smith's field to Arthur Hopkins field, Norah was six years old. The school was three miles from the homestead. A few of Norah's classmates were Connie and Jean Clements, Allan and Jim Francey, Louella and Zetta Hedge, Harvey and Gertie, also Clara Hadley, Jennie and Roy Lent, Eva and George, also Willie Kells, the Root boys, Sonnie Smith and his sister. The teacher was Mrs. Richards.
The Hopkins Methodist Church was just a little way from the school. School concerts were held here and during the First War, other concerts were also held in the church. Our family also went to Manly by horses and sleigh to attend concerts. Around July first, an annual picnic was enjoyed at the Kapasiwin Methodist "Tin House". The train brought people from Edmonton in those days.
Mr. Best tried to enlist in the First War in 1918, but he was told that he was over the age for recruits. William enjoyed working with the United Farmers of Alberta. On one occasion, he was hospitalized, after being in an accident with a trainload of cattle on the way to Edmonton. He caught influenza while in an Edmonton hospital. At the same time, Mrs Best was very sick at home and Mrs. William Smith, a near neighbour, nursed her and caught the "flu" too.
Another experience the William Best family had while on their farm, was the time one horse drowned in a creek on the way to Duffield. The roads were cleared of snow in winter by Lester Hadley and he graded them in summer, but quite often it was difficult to travel. Another time some of their cattle died from poison weed or water hemlock.
Mr. and Mrs. Best sold their farm, livestock and equipment in about the year 1930 and moved to Edmonton to live. William Best died in May, 1946, and Mrs. Best passed awy in November, 1956.
Their daughter, Norah, and her cousin Florrie, went to Liverpool to see relatives of the Bests in 1970. Norah also saw her mother's birthplace in Frizington. Norah Best is living in Edmonton at this time.