Morris, William
Private
No. 10166, 1st Battalion, Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers
Killed in action on Saturday 22 May 1915 (aged 23)
Buried:
Twelve Tree Copse Cemetery, Gallipoli, Turkey (Sp. Mem. C. 166)
Commemorated:
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Newtownards and District War Memorial
Newtownards Parish Church of Ireland Church (St Mark) (as William Morriss)
BIOGRAPHY
In some records his surname is spelt Morriss.
William Morris was born on 8 November 1891 in Little Francis Street, Newtownards and he was a son of William and Margaret (Maggie) Morris (nee Corry) who were married around 1880.
The Morris family lived at 30 Little Francis Street, Newtownards.
William Morris Senior, who was born in Chichester, England, worked in civilian life as a bricklayer’s labourer, served as a Private in the South Yorkshire Regiment and he and Maggie had at least ten children including:
Jane (born 1 October 1881 in Carrick-on-Shannon, Co Leitrim; married Thomas Dunlop on 15 January 1904 in Regent Street Methodist Church, Newtownards)
Mary (born 14 April 1883 in Barrackton, Co Cork)
Lizzie (born around 1887 in Malta)
William (born 8 November 1891 in Little Francis Street, Newtownards)
At least six of their children died in infancy.
William Morris Junior worked as a labourer in a bleach works before he joined the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers around 1911. He served in India and was transferred to the Front in 1915. Private William Morris was 23 when he was killed in action at Gallipoli on 22 May 1915 and a memorial service for him was held in Newtownards Parish Church of Ireland Church (St Mark’s) on Saturday 26 June 1915. It was reported that Private William Morris was the first member of the congregation to be killed in the Great War. Subsequently, another 75 members of the congregation died.
His family placed an Our Heroes – In Memoriam notice in the 17 June 1916 edition of the Newtownards Chronicle and it contained the verse:
Too far away thy grave to see,
But not too far to think of thee;
No morning dawns, no night returns,
But what we think of thee.
Private William Morris (No. 10166) is commemorated on Newtownards and District War Memorial and as William Morriss in Newtownards Parish Church of Ireland Church (St Mark’s).