William Utting was aged 19 years and 5 months when he enlisted for service in the Territorial Force with the 4th Battalion, the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment on 12 October 1914. A single man, he was at that time living with his parents and his sister Mary at 155 Fylde Road in Preston. William had not travelled far to enlist, for the depot of this unit was on Avenham Lane in the town centre, which is perhaps a mile from the family home.

A brief medical examination revealed that he stood 5 feet 4½ inches tall, and had a 34-inch chest. He had good vision and physical development, and was found fit for service. He was given rank and number Private 2880.

William enlisted for service for four years as a soldier of the Territorial Force. Had he done so in peacetime, he would have had to attend a number of evening and weekend drills, and to attend the annual fortnights summer camp. However, William was enlisting under wartime conditions and he was immediately embodied for full time service.

He may have joined B Company at this time, although as will be seen he left the battalion for a period in 1915, and it is more certain that he was posted to B – possibly back to B – when he returned.

William moved to France with his battalion on 4 May 1915.

On 15 June 1915 in an attack west of the hamlet of Rue d’Ouvert [details here], William was wounded. He had suffered a bullet wound to a toe of the left foot. He was admitted to the 2nd Highland Division Field Ambulance (located at Locon at this time), then taken by a lorry of No. 5 Motor Ambulance Convoy to Camiers on the coast. Unfortunately the identification of the hospital he went to is not certain but we know that at this time numbers 18, 20 and 25 General Hospitals had been established there. These comprised a mix of tents and hutted accommodation. The wound was not serious enough to warrant evacuation to England – which probably came as a great disappointment – and after recovering sufficiently he was posted to a convalescent camp at Etaples, which by mid 1915 was becoming the largest base camp area for the British Expeditionary Force.

The date when he rejoined his unit is not clear; nor is some subsequent movement during late 1915 that may have been a return to action and another wounding . The first definite statement we can see is that he rejoined his unit again on 10 February 1916.

William (standing) with his cousin Robert (Bob) Moss. Bob survived the war; it is believed that he may have served with the same battalion.

In early July 1916, William was once again admitted to the Field Ambulance. The entry is not entirely clear, but it does not appear to refer to a wound this time. He was discharged on 15 July to the “Divisional Company”, which was a recent organisational change introduced in some Divisions as a small local reserve.

On 31 August 1916, William was admitted to No 38 Casualty Clearing Station, then at Heilly in the Somme valley. Once again, the entry is not clear but it appears to be “inflammation of glands”. Presumably after receiving treatment, he was moved next day on No. 9 Ambulance Train to No. 6 General Hospital at Rouen. William was evacuated to England on 13 September 1916, on the hospital ship “Asturias”.

William must have made at least a partial recovery, for on 19 December 1916 he went home for a short period of leave. He was at this time posted to Class II Command Depot, a form of military convalescent camp. The identification of the camp is not given, but was possibly one of the two at Ripon in North Yorkshire, both dedicated to the Northern Command in England.

William died of pneumonia at the 2nd Western General Hospital in Manchester on 26 April 1917. There is no remaining evidence to tell us the circumstances under which this disease was contracted, or whether it was aggravated by his general medical condition after being exposed to trench warfare.

William was moved to his home town of Preston for burial, and was interred in New Hall Lane Cemetery.

His three campaign medals, plus a commemorative parchment scroll and bronze plaque, were sent to his next of kin in 1921.

This article is published with the kind permission of William's great nephew Wayne Utting and his wife Olga, of Duncraig in Western Australia. If you have any information concerning William Utting, or would like to commemorate one of your relatives on a page like this, please contact the webmaster.

Wayne Utting at William Utting's grave in Preston.

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