Bill Lumsdon was born on March 25, 1918 to Tom and Jane Lumsdon, British immigrants from Alnwick, Northumberland, England in the Glenbogie district near St. Walburg. Perhaps it was divine intervention, but Bill was born because an overbooked Titanic required his mother to book passage on the next ship to Canada. His only sibling, Evelyn, was born on Dec. 22, 1913.
In 1910, Bill's parents immigrated to Canada and settled first in North Battleford. Bill's father and mother took up residence in the northeast part of town (referred to as Chisholm Town) where Tom was able to find work as a construction labourer on the IHC building project, the tallest building in North Battleford. In 1914 Bill's father and three uncles took homesteads in the Glenbogie area, seven miles west of St. Walburg. Home was a log shack with a sod roof, which leaked for days after a good rain. Bill was born here with the assistance of a midwife. He took his early education at the school at the Glenbogie district school. Well into his adult life, Bill was of the opinion that rural teachers provided the best education for children. This was because they taught academics, and more importantly, a way of life that showed respect to others.