Williams, William “Bill”

Bill was born in North Wales in 1882.  Married Catherine Evans, born in Llanrus, Carnarvon, North Wales in 1884, on February 23, 1904 in North Wales.  They immigrated to Canada with their young daughter, Elizabeth (Betty Knighton) when the coal mines and quarries were closed due to a strike.  They settled in Phoenix, BC, where Bill worked in the mine. Soon, Catherine started a small Cafe for the miners. Their second daughter, Millie (Thomson) was born in Phoenix, BC in 1909. Catherine went back to visit her family in 1911 and her third daughter, Alice (Howarth) was born. Catherine returned to Phoenix, where two more daughters were born:  Katie (Brooker) in 1913 and Dilys (Cassidy) in 1916. Bill moved his family to Allenby, BC and he worked at Copper Mountain as a Shift Boss. While in Allenby, their sixth daughter, Emily (Miller), was born in 1918. She was the first baby to be born in Allenby.  The family moved to Princeton and while they waited for the building of a house and barn to be completed at 400 Old Hedley Road, they rented a large home at the end of Kenley Street. That home still stands today, on the left-hand side of Kenley. Bill and his long-time friend from Wales, Cad Williams (no relation) worked and did all of the building. After the family was settled in their new home, they started the first dairy in Princeton in 1921, called Williams’ Dairy.   He passed away in 1959.  He and Catherine are buried in Ocean View Burial Park.