William Henry Moore was born in 1887 at Northwich, Cheshire. It is believed he had a twin brother, Herbert. His father, Thomas, was an Accountant and Builders’ Merchant. His father’s first wife had died in 1874: there had been 5 children from that marriage. His father remarried in 1885, to Mary Jane Whittle, they would have 4 children; William and Herbert were the second youngest. The family lived at ‘Riversdale’, Leftwich at Northwich with a cook, housemaid and nurse. His father died in 1898 and his widowed mother moved to Holy Bank in Northwich. In 1901 William, and Herbert, were boarders at Arnold House School, Chester. By 1911 he was back living with his mother who now lived at ‘Ferndale’, 60 Liverpool Road, Chester. William was employed as a clerk in the timber trade. It is probable that he was working in Liverpool – this is based on him serving in the 1/5 Bn KLR, Territorials before the war when he was commissioned a Lieutenant. By the time of the war he had retired and was on the Officer Reserve List. In 1911 his twin, Herbert, was in the army, commissioned in the Royal Garrison Artillery, he would survive the war.

At the outbreak of war William, regardless of his former service as a Territorial Officer, enlisted as Private 15642 in 17 (Service) Bn King’s Liverpool Regiment; this was on 1 September 1914. The 17 Bn KLR  was the first of four ‘Pals’ battalions raised in Liverpool. Over the period of 27 August – 3 September hundreds of mainly office workers from the City’s business district enlisted en masse. It is very possible that William had wanted to go with his ‘Pals’ rather than rejoin his previous unit. However, on 5 May 1915 he was discharged under KR329 as ‘irregularly been enlisted’. In May 1915, the KLR was reorganising and was seeking out men from the ranks for officer training. It is probable that at this time his ‘irregular enlisting’ came to light and his discharge was an administrative procedure given that he would already have had an army personnel file. He was commissioned into 5 Bn KLR, his old unit.

Also, around this time he was courting Doris Marion Minshall. She was the eldest daughter of Mr & Mrs John Minshall, and cousin to Captain T C Wynne Minshall.  William and Doris would get married in August 1915. His wife’s connection to Oswestry is William’s only known link to the town. William’s Medal Card gives her address as York Street Chambers, Bryanston Square, London W1.

William went over to France on 12 February 1916 joining the battalion at Halloy and Beaumetz near to Arras. He was KIA on 8 August 1916 at Maltz Horn Farm, Guillemont during the Somme Offensive. He was at first buried near to Carnoy, beside the track on the way to Talus Bois, and was later re-interred at Peronne Road Cemetery, Maricourt. He is also commemorated at St Oswald’s Church, Oswestry and on Chester Citizens War Memorial.

Acknowledgements.

References and Sources

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