WOODS, William Henry
| Service Number: | 258 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Corporal |
| Last Unit: | Railway Unit (AIF) |
| Born: | Waterloo, New South Wales, Australia, 7 July 1881 |
| Home Town: | Hornsby, Hornsby Shire, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Locomotive Driver |
| Died: | Hornsby, New South Wales, Australia, 23 September 1955, aged 74 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Macquarie Park Cemetery and Crematorium, Ryde, New South Wales |
| Memorials: | Hornsby War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 7 Feb 1917: | Involvement Corporal, 258, Railway Unit (AIF), --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '6' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Wiltshire embarkation_ship_number: A18 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 7 Feb 1917: | Embarked Corporal, 258, Railway Unit (AIF), HMAT Wiltshire, Sydney |
Biography of William Henry Woods
William Woods was born on July 7th, 1881, in the Sydney suburb of Waterloo. He was the oldest of the five sons and nine children of Thomas Woods and Celia Hunter, both of whom were born in New South Wales. William's brother Roydon also enlisted in the war.
William was a locomotive driver, living in May Street in Hornsby in 1915, when he married Margaret Treatt, a widow with a young daughter, Norma. When he enlisted in 1916, they also had a son named Roydon. William enlisted on December 12th, 1916, in Sydney and embarked with the recently formed 6th Broad Gauge Railway Unit on the “Wiltshire” on February 7th, 1917.
William’s service record has very little detail about his time overseas other than he was twice promoted from Private to Corporal to Sergeant and then, at his own request, demoted to Sapper. He returned to Australia on July 1st, 1919, on the “Kambala”.
Margaret and William had a daughter in 1923 named Mary and he continued to drive locomotives after the war. William’s son, Roydon, enlisted in the RAAF in World War 2. William died on September 23rd, 1955, in Hornsby, New South Wales. He is buried in the Anglican Section at Macquarie Park cemetery.
Submitted 16 October 2024 by Maree Woods
Biography contributed by Maree Woods
William Woods was born on July 7th, 1881, in the Sydney suburb of Waterloo. He was the oldest of the five sons and nine children of Thomas Woods and Celia Hunter, both of whom were born in New South Wales. William's brother Roydon also enlisted in the war.
William was a locomotive driver, living in May Street in Hornsby in 1915, when he married Margaret Treatt, a widow with a young daughter, Norma. When he enlisted in 1916, they also had a son named Roydon. William enlisted on December 12th, 1916, in Sydney and embarked with the recently formed 6th Broad Gauge Railway Unit on the “Wiltshire” on February 7th, 1917.
William’s service record has very little detail about his time overseas other than he was twice promoted from Private to Corporal to Sergeant and then, at his own request, demoted to Sapper. He returned to Australia on July 1st, 1919, on the “Kambala”.
Margaret and William had a daughter in 1923 named Mary and he continued to drive locomotives after the war. William’s son, Roydon, enlisted in the RAAF in World War 2. William died on September 23rd, 1955, in Hornsby, New South Wales. He is buried in the Anglican Section at Macquarie Park cemetery.
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