He married Annie Griffiths at Gwernaffield on 23rd December 1899.

The 1901 census places the couple at Vownog (Sychdyn). He was 29 and a coal miner – below ground. Annie was 30. There were no children.

By the 1911 census the pair had moved to Gosmore Terrace, New Brighton, Mold. He was a hewer of coal. The couple had no children. They were both bilingual

UK Soldiers Who Died in The Great War 1914-19 accessible on www.ancestry.co.uk confirms the military details at the top of this page and it adds that he enlisted in Mold. His Medal Index card also on Ancestry lists his two medals.

This soldier was born in 1871 so he was much older than most serving men. He had served as a volunteer previously in ‘The Buckley Engineers’. William’s Service Records exist and are on ancestry. They tell us that he enlisted and signed his Attestation papers on 1st March 1915. His address was No 14 New Brighton near Mold. He was 40 years old, 5 feet 11 inches tall, had a chest that measured 37 1/2 inches (which expanded by 2 inches). His vision was normal and his physical development was ‘good’. He was declared fit to serve in the Territorial Force. He signed a form agreeing that if required he would serve in any place outside the UK.

The records tell us that he embarked from Devonport on the 10th September 1916  and arrived in Basrah on the 10th October 1916. He joined his Unit in Amara on the 21st October 1916. He was ‘killed in the Field’ on the 21st January 1917 in Mesopotamia which we now call Iraq. He had served for 1 year and 327 days. He has no known grave and is listed on the memorial in Basra.

His records contain correspondence within the army and with William’s wife Annie concerning the receipt of a commemorative plaque and scroll and his medals.

The register of Soldier’s Effects in which the army calculated what monies were owed to deceased soldiers, lists William and allocated a total of £11 .. 4sh .. 2d to the widow Annie. The Service Records also tell us that she was awarded a weekly pension of 15 shillings a week payable from the 6th August 1917.