Born on 15th July 1884 at Woodford, son of Charles (Customs Officer) and Janet Nunneley. 1891: With his family at 2 Cecil Villas, Cowslip Road, South Woodford. 1901: The family home was at 3 The Crescent, Maybank Road, however William was not present. It is known he served 15 months with the Army during the Boer War, gaining three clasps to the Queens South Africa Medal for that conflict. This could explain his absence. He was still missing in 1911 when his parents were at Clinton Villa Maybank Road, but it would seem he had developed a taste for adventure.
After his Army service he remained in South Africa, becoming a Constable with the South African Constabulary for 5 years. His 6ft 2 inch frame would stand him in good stead. He then moved to Canada where he spent 14 months with the Duke of Connaught’s Own Rifles in British Columbia, before joining the British Columbia Provincial Police. He was still serving on 15th July 1915 when he volunteered at Vernon for the 62nd Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force. His next of kin was his mother at 2 Woodford Hall Villas, Chelmsford Road.
He was allocated to 3 Pioneer Battalion in France which was involved in construction and maintenance work in the trenches. On the night of 18th September 1916 while going with 149 others to undertake work digging a communications trench between Courcelette and Mouquet Farm, he was severely wounded in the abdomen by shellfire. First Aid was given and he was taken to 49 Casualty Clearing Station where he died next day. Shelling became sufficiently heavy for 80 of the working party to be withdrawn, and the night saw 8 men wounded.
Research by Adrian Lee, Local Historian
Sources:
Ancestry.com