William Gould

Full name William Richard Gould, born in 1894, son of William and Henrietta Gould. Brother of George and John Gould. William junior was admitted to Wheatley Elementary school in 1900. In 1911 he was a faggot maker of firewood. He joined the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, No. 8411 as a regular soldier, on 10 February 1913. He was posted with 3rd Battalion to France in 1914, and in September was with A Coy of the 2nd Battalion of the OBLI 5 Brigade 2nd Division. He was Wheatley's only documented ‘Old Contemptible', having served under fire from 5 August to 22 November 1914: he was thus entitled to the ‘Mons' Clasp to his 1914 Star ribbon. He returned to England on 25 December 1914. He then served with 2nd Battalion Hampshire, Regiment, Service No. 17269, and went to Gallipoli in July with their last reinforcement draft there.

He returned to France in November 1917 as a Steam Engine Driver with the Royal Army Service Corps (No. M 39375). He was sent home on 11 February 1919 and discharged on 11 March 1920. It is thought that he married Beatrice Hutchison in 1930. He died in 1945 in Sutton Coldfield. See also references to him in the Wheatley in a World at War and the ‘Pip, Squeak and Wilfred' chapters.

It is speculated that he lived at 63 High Street with his brothers John and George.