William Ralph Smith
Memorial: Kingswood - Holy Trinity Church
Regiment: Royal Navy
Medals: 1914–15 Star, British War Medal, Next of Kin Memorial Plaque 1914 - 1921, Victory Medal
Rank and number: Stoker 1st SS/109499
Parents: William Alfred and Julie Smith
Home address: 8 Woodland Terrace, Hanham Road, Kingswood, Bristol
Pre-war occupation: Sailor
Date of birth: 18/05/1891
Place of birth: Kingswood, Bristol
Date of death: 01/11/1914
Buried/Commemorated at: Died at sea and commemorated at Plymouth Naval Memorial Devon and Kingswood Holy Trinity Memorial
Age: 23
Further information:
William joined the Navy in 1909 and subsequently lost his life during the Naval Battle of Coronel which took place off the coast of Chile. The HMS ‘Monmouth’ along with a second armoured cruiser the ‘Good Hope’, were sunk by German battle cruisers. The combined casualties were 1660 including one commander. There were no survivors from either British ship and the Germans sustained just three casualties.
By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):
This information has been provided by Sarah Hands, Volunteer Researcher for the South Gloucestershire War Memorials Web Site.
By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):
https://www.cwgc.org/
https://www.findmypast.co.uk/
https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/