In the spring of 1911, William Hill (born December 19, 1878); his wife Ruth (née Cowing; born March 26, 1878); and Ruth's two children from her previous marriage, Philip Rintoul (born October 14, 1902) and Dorothy Rintoul (born June 2, 1905); moved into a cottage in the rural community of Ardenwald, then located immediately south of Portland.