Bill Bessner and Unidentified Woman
Original Photo
The original photo used as reference for the mural was photographed by an unknown photographer circa 1920.
William H. “Bill” Bessner was born April 27, 1891, on the family farm at Edison. He was the child of Skagit pioneers Nicholas and Mary Hazer Bessner; and he had one brother, Alfred Hoffman.
William was educated at Edison and La Conner and graduated from Bellingham Business College. In 1912, he moved to Anacortes and worked on fishtrap-pile drivers for Fidalgo Island Packing Company at Ship Harbor.
He served in World War I as a chief petty officer in the U.S. Navy.
In 1920, he purchased the Guemes Island Ferry Co., which he operated until 1948. Later, he worked for Fisherman’s Packing Corporation as a skipper of the fish buyer COHO, retiring in 1976. In the late 1920s, he also operated a bus service in Anacortes.
On July 20, 1922, William married Anna M. Schwarz, in Seattle, and they had two children, Annette J. and Yvonne Marie. William and Anna were married until her death on May 14, 1977.
He was a life member of Anacortes Elks Lodge and a member of Eagles Aerie 249, American Legion Post 13, and Guemes Island Community Club.
Bill passed away on May 12, 1983 and is interred at Grand View Cemetery in Anacortes.
