Thank you to John Callcut for letting us reproduce the following information, taken from his book: A Village at War. Newdigate in World War One.
William was the son of William and Fanny Wyatt and was born in 1867. He grew up with his parents and sister, Annie Harriett, at the Abinger Arms where his father combined two occupations, that of the innkeeper and also as a bricklayer.
William married Ann Selina Smith in 1887 and like his father worked as a bricklayer. They moved to Brendon Cottage, Kingsland and had fourteen children. The parents, children and William senior slept head to toe in a tiny cottage.
One day William shook his head when he saw young men in the village who had not joined up, so – determined to set an example – he duly enlisted. He was killed on the 14th July 1916 and us buried at the Basra War Cemetery. His wife was left to look after all the surviving children but she must have been a very strong woman as she lived to be 101 and died in 1975.
| Born | Holmwood | |
| Lived | Abinger Hammer, Abinger, Surrey | |
| Son of | William and Fanny Wyatt of the Abinger Arms, Abinger Hammer, Surrey | |
| Husband of | Ann Selina Smith | |
| Regiment | Royal Engineers | |
| Number | 139570 | |
| Date of Death | 14th July 1916 | |
| Place of Death | Mesopotamia | |
| Cause of Death | Killed in Action | |
| Age | 49 | |
| Cemetery | Basra War Cemetery, Iraq |
