Born in 1830 to Willam Borst and Nancy Ann Bookout. Borst was raised in Tioga County, New York. In 1850, Borst traveled to California during the California Gold Rush. He used the proceeds to rent a farm near Sacramento. He moved to Seattle around 1858. His brother Joseph Borst had previously moved to Oregon Territory in 1846 Oregon Biographical Index Card File and his sister Diana Borst Collins to Nisqually in 1847.
