William Henry Hawkins, Age 31

Private, 7179, 1st Battalion, King's Shropshire Light Infantry.

K.S.L.I Regiment Cap Badge.

William was the eldest son of Robert & Phoebe Hawkins and the elder brother of Robert, of East Grove, Old Park.

He had married the sister of Charles and James Freeman and was living at 14 Old Park with his wife and three children at the time of his recall to the army. William had served in the British army previously and had been on the reserve list at the outbreak of war.

Since first leaving the army, he had worked as a miner at the Woodhouse colliery (now under the Priorslee Lake) for the Lilleshall company, He had a good bass voice and was well known in the area for his singing at special services at various chapels, He was also a regular correspondent with the members of the Dawley Bank Brotherhood in their publication the Dawley (Weekly) News.

William had been wounded in the head by shrapnel and had been bought back via various hospitals to the Red Cross Hospital at Cheltenham where he died of his wounds on June 27 1915

The Hawkins family had quite a military past with William and Robert's grandfather having served in the Welsh Fusiliers and their great grandfather having fought at Waterloo where he had lost a leg.

WWI Medal Rolls Index Card

William lies buried at Cheltenham Cemetery in grave Bl.919

Commonwealth War Graves
Buried Cheltenham Cemetery

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Victory Medal	British War Medal	1914 Star Medal