With the help of Renee Owens of Mold – we believe that the name Wigley on the war memorial is a mistake and is a result of a local pronunciation of the name Whitley. We believe that Edward Wigley was in fact Edward Whitley.

Edward Whitley was born about 1895 the son of Thomas and Jane Whitley.

The 1901 census places this family in 74, Maes y Dre Mold.  Head of the household was Thomas, 44, a Tin plate worker. His wife Jane was 41. Their listed children were Robert 14, Fred 11, John 9 and Edward 6.

This family was still in 74  Maes y Dre in 1911. Head of the household was Jane, by then a widow aged 51. (We can see on the form, although it had been crossed out, that she had given birth to 9 children, 4 of whom had died). Listed in the household with her were three sons who all worked in the Tin plate works Fred 21 and John 19 were both ‘Catchers’  and Edward 16 was a ‘Cold Roller’.

Some time between 1911 and 1915  at least some members of the family moved to 8, Marsland Street, Sutton Oak, St Helens Lancs.

UK Soldiers who died in the Great War 1914 to 19 accessible on www.ancestry.co.uk confirms the regimental details at the top of this page and adds that he enlisted in St Helens. This source tells us he ‘died of  wounds’. His medal card  also on Ancestry lists his 3 medals and says he had a previous regimental number (4249). It says his first theatre of war was France and he entered it on 28th October 1915.

The Register of soldier’s effects in which monies owed to deceased soldiers was calculated, lists Edward’s mother Jane as his sole legatee. She received £11..12..7d

His brother John also died in the war and is also named Wigley istead of Whitley on the Mold memorial. He  has his own page on this website. Follow the link