One of my favorite love stories from our Buchanan family history

I wrote this for another purpose and then decided to include it in my blog.

In 1903 William Andrew Buchanan was 29 years old, single, and owned a blacksmith shop in Neepawa, Manitoba. 

The family of George Watson stopped for a few months to visit relatives in the area, while George went on west looking for opportunities in the Northwest Territories in the vicinity of Edmonton. Bill Buchanan was totally smitten by the 22-year old daughter Elizabeth Jane Watson. 

Bill sold his business, and when the George Watson family moved west to Leduc, he followed them and on 3 May 1905, Bill and; Lizzie were married in Edmonton. They had 4 children, my father was the oldest.

Lizzie suffered from asthma, and in 1920 they moved to Tacoma, Washington, perhaps in the hope that she would benefit from a change in climate. Unfortunately, she died there of kidney failure in 1923, and Bill brought the family back to Alberta. 

Bill was only 49 years old and in good health and owned his own business. His youngest child was only 11 years old. Most men in his circumstances would have remarried but he never did.

Apparently no woman could replace Lizzie, who was the love of his life.