Lance Corporal William Louis Schermuly

William was born in Holborn, London on 7 July 1884. He was the son of former seaman Augustus Schermuly, a man of Dutch ancestry and his Jersey-born wife, Susan. William was baptized on 21 July 1884 at St John the Evangelist, Red Lion Square. His family was then living at 2 Green Street, London. Despite having little formal education, his father held a wide range of jobs, many linked to the maritime world. In 1884 he was working as a Dockman but also served as a fireman in Clerkenwell and by 1886 was employed as a dock policeman.

In April 1886, William’s sister Rose was born in Holborn. By 1890 the family had moved to the Limehouse district of London and William had two more sisters, Lily and Anne. The 1891 census shows the family living at 41 Three Colt Street, Limehouse. William’s father (now also listed as William – his second name,) was working as a wardrobe dealer. Sadly a few years later, Anne Schermuly died aged nine.

In 1901, William Schermuly snr was listed as a Rope (or wire) Splicer living by his own Account - this work involved making maritime ropes and cables for mooring ships. He and his family, now including two further children – Conrad and Alfred, were living with William snr’s parents, Prussian -born Conrad Shermuly and his wife Eliza. For a brief period, the household also included Mabel Pinwell, thought to be a relative of Susan Schermuly. By this period William jnr – now aged 16, seems to have left home and records suggest that he had joined the Navy on 7th July 1900, stating he was born in 1882 making him appear aged 18. His sister Rose had also moved elsewhere, possibly to find employment. We know that she married John Sparkes in Limehouse in August 1906.

By 1911 William snr and his family were living at 7 Frederick Road, Gander Green Lane, North. He was now a Rope Splicer, Inventor and Patentee, famous for inventing the Pistol Rocket Lifesaving Apparatus. This was a hand-held device that used rocket propulsion to fire a rope to sailors who had ended up in the sea – whether having fallen overboard, capsized or as a result of a ship sinking. The device was an important life saving device and prevented many men from drowning.

William Jnr is said to have spent several years at sea but never really settled, he ran away several times and was discharged on 6th November 1908 for "Bad Record". By the time war broke out in 1914, he was aged 30 and enlisted with the 17th (County of London) Battalion (Poplar & Stepney Rifles). This was a Territorial unit based at 66 Tredgar Road, Bow, at 66 Tredgar Road. This part of London had a major Jewish community and the battalion attracted a large number of Jewish recruits.

In March 1915 the 17th battalion was mobilised for war and landed at Le Havre, France. On 11 May William’s unit became part of the 141st Brigade of the 47th (2nd London) division. The men fought in various key actions on the Western Front, including the Battle of Aubers Ridge, the Battle of Festubert ( 15 – 25 May ) and the Battle of Loos ( 25 September – 15 October, 1915.)

In 1916 each Battalion of the London Regiment was allocated a block of serial numbers for its men. These new six figure digits replaced the four digit army numbers used previously. During November William’s unit was transferred to Salonika in Greece. Here the British army was involved in a campaign to defend the Greeks and the Serbs against Bulgarian attack. By 1917 fighting was taking place around Lake Doiran and in April the British staged a major assault, gaining considerable ground. It is likely that William Schermuly jnr died during this offensive. He was killed in action on 8th April and is one of 1421 identified British and Commonwealth servicemen buried at the Karasouli Military Cemetery, near Thessalonika, Greece.

At the time of his son’s death, William snr and family was living at Stone Cot Hill, Sutton. William snr is buried at St. Lawrence churchyard, Morden and William jnr is also commemorated on the same gravestone.