VERNON, William Ewart. CH. WW1. CWGC.

Died 16/10/1918 Age 35. Private, South Staffordshire Regiment, 5th Reserve Bn. Service Number 32937. Son of Mr. W. and Mrs. H. Vernon, of Derby; husband of Elizabeth Florence Vernon, of 44, Moss St., Derby.

William Ewart VERNON had his birth registered in Derby in the late autumn of 1883. His parents were William Vernon and Harriet Elizabeth Vernon (nee Hibbert) who had married in the autumn of 1878 in Derby.

The 1891 Census has his family living at 30, Depot Street, Litchurch, Derby, with his parents William and Harriet Vernon; William Ewart VERNON was the eldest of their children, there was also a daughter Harriet and a son Henry, and William’s widowed mother (William Ewart VERNON’s grandmother) Mary Vernon.

By the 1901 Census the family were at 35, Church Street, Derby. Together with his parents William and Harriet Vernon, William Ewart VERNON then aged 17 was the eldest of their five living children and he was a gilder in a china factory. Children Harriet and Henry were joined by two more siblings, Mary and Rose.

William Ewart VERNON married Elizabeth Florence Watson in Derby in late 1908, and by the 1911 Census they were living at 180 Crewe St, Derby with their infant daughter Dorothy Irene Vernon, born in the spring of 1910, and he was employed as a china decorator. Dorothy Irene Vernon died in Derby in 1917, aged just 7.

In his death notice in October 1918, William Ewart VERNON address was given as 35 Church Street, Derby, this is where his parents were living.

William Ewart VERNON died in service on 16 October 1918 at Alford, Lincolnshire aged 35, and his widow Elizabeth Florence Vernon received his personal effects from the army.

William Ewart VERNON was awarded the Victory Medal and British War Medal.

The 1921 Census of 35 Church Street, Derby shows his parents William and Harriet Vernon, their son Henry, daughter Mary (now married as Mary Lester) and granddaughter Gladys May Lester living there. The 1921 Census of 44 Moss Street, Derby shows his widow Elizabeth Florence Vernon living there with her widowed mother Matilda Watson.

Sources: Derby Census of 1891, 1901, 1911 and 1921. Register of Marriages in Derby. Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths in Derby. Military Record, Medal Records and Register of Soldiers’ Effects. Newspaper articles and announcements.