TAYLOR, William Alfred
| Service Numbers: | Not yet discovered |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 23 February 1915, Melbourne, Vic. |
| Last Rank: | Second Lieutenant |
| Last Unit: | 8th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | East Prahran, Victoria, Australia, 6 January 1890 |
| Home Town: | Essendon, Moonee Valley, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Warrnambool State School |
| Occupation: | Minister of Religion |
| Died: | Killed In Action, Pozieres, 25 July 1916, aged 26 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" |
| Memorials: | Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Warrnambool Soldiers' Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 23 Feb 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 8th Infantry Battalion, Melbourne, Vic. | |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Nov 1915: | Involvement Private, 8th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '9' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Ceramic embarkation_ship_number: A40 public_note: '' | |
| 23 Nov 1915: | Embarked Private, 8th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Ceramic, Adelaide | |
| 25 Jul 1916: | Involvement Second Lieutenant, 8th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: awm_unit: 8 Battalion awm_rank: Second Lieutenant awm_died_date: 1916-07-25 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Faithe Jones
Second Lieutenant William Alfred Taylor, 8th Battalion (12th Reinforcement Group). Born at Warrnambool in 1890, the son of William Alfred and Matilda (Cameron) Taylor; husband of Myrtle Ruby Taylor, of 10 St. George's Rd., Elsternwick, he married Myrtle Ruby James in 1913 (two children, Lillian Maude Taylor 1913, and Clive James Taylor 1915). Taylor was a Minister of Religion, living at Daisy Street, Essendon, when he enlisted on 23rd February 1915, and embarked with the 12th Reinforcements from Adelaide on HMAT A40 Ceramic on 23rd November 1915.
According to his “Particulars required for the Roll of Honour of Australia in the Memorial War Museum” he lost two cousins at the war, 6938 Pte Dennis Crowley (A Company, 22nd Battalion), killed on the Somme on 18th May 1918, buried Ville-sur-Ancre Communal Cemetery, Ribemont, Picardie, France; and Able Seaman Allan Cameron McDonald (SV Andromeda) who drowned in the English Channel on 13th February 1915, while serving with the New Zealand Expeditionary Forces, aged 18.
He has no known grave, his name is commemorated on the Villers Bretonneux Memorial, France, also on the Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, the Warrnambool Soldiers’ Memorial, and the Christ Church Roll of Honour, Warrnambool.
Sources: Blair & Affleck, For King & Country – Great War Enlistments from Warrnambool and District; Australian War Memorial – Roll of Honour; National Archives of Australia; The AIF Project; Virtual War Memorial Australia;
Courtesy of James Affleck 2025