WAUGH, William David VETERAN

Name – WAUGH, William David VETERAN
Born – 23/10/1889
Died – 5/09/1958
Location – No 25 in the Presbyterian Section
Mother – Rosa Spencer
Father – William Waugh

Notes – William David was born 23rd October, 1889 to Rosa (nee Spence) and William Waugh at Guy Fawkes, Ebor, New South Wales. His mother died when he was 3 years old. Her death is believe to be related to something to do with child birth, as his brother Hugh was born in 1892. William also had a sister Rosa Mary Lucy.

His father remarried and he had half siblings of Isabel Dorothy Harvey, Thomas William Oakes, Roy Colin Campbell and Donald Richard.

In 1910 William married Ethel Hepher. She was older than him and he needed to get written premission from his father to get married, which he had. He had two children with Ethel, Phyliss and Douglas.

He enlisted in WWI in September 1915 and was sent to Egypt. He received a major injury there which made him stone deaf. He was a member of the 6th Light Horse Regiment. He returned home to Australia on the ship Wilsthire and was invalided out of the army as medically unfit. He received a small pension from them for himself and his family. His war records describe him as being 5 ft 10 1/2, with blue eyes and fair hair.

He came to Queensland by himself after the war to obtain work and by 1919 had himself a selection. In 1929 he filed for divorce from his wife Ethel on the grounds of desertion. She apparently didn’t like the bush and wished him well, so an agreeable outcome for them both. She had never been to Queensland.

In 1924 William broke his leg while running up the steps to help his invalid father. His father died in November. In the same year he was also fined for not sending in a stock return. In 1926 he was found by the side of the road after being thrown from his sulky. He was taken to hospital suffering from heat stroke.

On the 6th January, 1931 he married Grace Mary Elizabeth Taylor. They had a son who died in 1943 and two daughters and on other son.

Grace and William moved to Tara to Culwulla in 1938. William’s census records are 1930 at The Ranch, Macalister with his father, 1931 to 1937 with Grace Mary Elizabeth and 1938 at Culwulla, Tara with Grace.

In 1941, William was still trying to get his war medals. Grace wrote a letter to the Army for him, but they wouldn’t give them to her then beause William hadn’t written the letter himself. In 1959, a claim was put in for Repatriation Benefits to the Army.

William is buried in Tara Cemetery with Grace. He has a headstone that reads – In Loving Memory of or dear father, WILLIAM DAVID WAUGH. Died Sept.5.1958. Aged 69 years. At Rest. Our dear mother, GRACE MARY ELIZABETH WAUGH. Died Jan.4. 1960. Aged 62 years. At Rest.

Newspaper Article – Read here.

War Service File  – Waugh, William David

Learn more about the Tara Cemetery here.