William Sinnot Rath was born in County Wexford (Ireland) on May 3, 1832. His brother George Rath was born January 26, 1833. The Rath family were farmers, and had a 999 year lease on their property, paying a tax twice a year. They were strong farmers or major tenants which would have made them more educated then most people were. William Rath was quite the adventurer and made several trips to North America from Ireland. His brother George and himself traveled to the California Gold Rush, fought in a war, and joined the Klondike Gold Rush. In 1878 they were some of the first gold rushers to cross the Chilkoot Trail with Ed Bean. William and George Rath were part of the first miners to join the Cassiar Gold Rush in Northen British Columbia. Captain William Moore proposed appointing Rath as the recorder for the gold claims there to prevent disputes, which proved very handy to Moore. After George Rath died about 1884, William, at age 52 returned to Ireland and married a 20-year old woman. They returned to beautiful British Columbia and settled near the coast at a place they named Rathtrevor Beach which is now a Provincial Park. The Biographical Sketch of William Moore; rathtrevorbeach.ca;
