98-year old N.S. woman defends her 1936 spelling bee title

Adell Williams-Keays was 11 years old when she was asked to participate in a spelling bee competition at her school in Barney’s River Station, N.S., back in 1936.

It was then that she received her first trophy, a giant honeycomb made of wicker with a painted wooden bee sticking out of it.

Adell Williams-Keays is pictured with her spelling bee trophy. (Hafsa Arif/CTV Atlantic)

“I wasn’t nervous or anything, it was just one of those things I did,” said Williams-Keays nonchalantly.

Since then, it has become one of the many stories Williams-Keays has repeatedly told her family.

“I’ve been hearing about her 1936 spelling bee since forever, and a little bit of a brag to it,” said her niece, Joan Williams-Mann.

This summer, the family once again heard about William-Keays triumphant win 87 years ago, which led to Williams-Mann challenging her aunt to defend her title as a spelling bee champion at the same school she attended when she was a young girl.

The Barney’s River Station Schoolhouse museum is located in Barneys River Station, N.S. (Hafsa Arif/CTV Atlantic)

“In order to compete, you had to either go to this school or be a descendant of someone that went to this school,” explained Williams-Mann.

Each person had two tries to spell the word correctly -- and Williams-Keays only needed one, she had no misspellings.

“It was not much different I guess. I learned a little bit from the first time. A little more confidence,” she said.

The event was not just organized for the spelling bee; it also acted as a fundraiser for the old school, which is now a museum.

The Barney’s River Station Schoolhouse museum is a step back in time, which houses memorabilia and a wall of honour, which remembers past students and community members who served in the Boer War, the First World War and Second World War.

The Barney’s River Station Schoolhouse museum. (Hafsa Arif/CTV Atlantic)

“It’s related to every person [in this community] and that’s what makes a museum, the people,” said Nova Bannerman, who was a teacher at the school for 13 years and is the museum’s curator.

Williams-Keays said the museum brings back many memories for her, especially of her classmates, friends and her time in the school growing up.

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