William John Tregillus

William John Tregillus
William John Tregillus (1914)
Born	(1858-05-02)2 May 1858 Plymouth, England
Died	12 November 1914(1914-11-12) (aged 56) Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Nationality	British, Canadian
Occupation	Farmer, businessman

William John Tregillus (2 May 1858 – 12 November 1914) was a British–Canadian businessman. The son of a miller, he became a well-to-do flour trader in England before emigrating to Calgary, Alberta. There he bred horses and then dairy cattle, became president of the United Farmers of Alberta and the Alberta Farmers' Co-operative Elevator Company, founded a brick factory and a business directory and was active in local politics. He became a millionaire, but lost most of his fortune in the Calgary depression of 1913–14. Worn out, he died of typhoid fever at the age of 56.

William John Tregillus was born on 2 May 1858, eldest son of John Tregillus and Emma Daw. He was baptized in Plymouth, England. He attended school in Plympton and Plymouth, and went on to Taunton College School. He learned the miller's trade from his father. His father's business at Laughton Mills, Plympton failed on 19 July 1878. By the age of 22 William Tregillus was operating a mill that he had leased for himself. He married Lillian Chapman in 1880, and they had two boys and two girls. The family moved to Southampton around 1890 and Tregillus obtained a position in the sales department of Spillers, a major flour milling company.

Tregillus later started up his own flour milling and brokerage business, operating from his home in Freemantle, a suburb to the west of Southampton. He was one of the first to have a telephone installed in his home. He loved horses, and more than once visited horse fairs in Ireland to buy hunters on which he rode with the Chilworth and Stoneham harriers. Tregillus had nine siblings. In May 1882 two of his brothers sailed for Canada. At first they worked as laborers for the Canadian Pacific Railway, then started to prospect for gold. They were successful, and after a world tour returned to England in 1900 for a family reunion. His brothers' stories of Canada seem to have inspired William Tregillus to move there.

Tregillus emigrated to Canada with his wife and their two youngest children, arriving in Calgary in August 1902. They were accompanied by his wife's companion and helper and their groom. Tregillus leased a quarter section of land along the south shore of the Bow River just west of Calgary, and then expanded his holdings by buying three adjacent quarter sections from the Canadian Pacific Railway. He built a large two-story brick house with outbuildings that he called "Roscarrock", the name of the place in Cornwall where his family had originated. He continued to buy land until he owned over 1,000 acres, and leased another 2,500 acres.