Source: Michael Doyle Their Name Liveth For Evermore: The Great War Roll of Honour for Leicestershire and Rutland.
He was the son of Alfred Cooley a shoe trade finisher, born in the October quarter of 1868 in Leicester and baptised on the 7th March 1870 in St. Margaret’s Church, Leicester (son of Alfred John Cooley and Sarah Martin) and his wife Elizabeth Cooley (nee Frith, married on the 31st March 1888 in St. Nicholas’s Church, Leicester), a cigar maker, born in the January quarter of 1871 in Leicester and baptised on the 7th April 1873 in St. Margaret’s Church, Leicester (daughter of Joseph Frith and Mary Morley). William, a schoolboy, was born on the 31st October 1892 in Leicester and was baptised on the 13th March 1893 in St. Margaret’s Church, Leicester, his siblings were, John Alfred, a schoolboy, born on the 19th June 1888 and baptised on the 2nd September 1889 in St. Margaret’s Church, Leicester, Alfred, a schoolboy, born on the 4th October 1894 and baptised on the 2nd November 1896 in St. Margaret’s Church, Leicester, Joseph Frederick, a schoolboy, born on the 11th September 1896 and baptised on the 2nd November 1896 in St. Margaret’s Church, Leicester and Frederick, born in the April quarter of 1900 and baptised on the 28th November 1900 in St. Mark’s Church, Leicester, all his siblings were born in Leicester, in March 1901 the family home was at 23, Navigation Street, Leicester. William’s mother died in the October quarter of 1901 in Leicester, aged 30. In April 1911 William was employed as a shoe trade finisher and was residing in the family home at 12, London Street, North Evington, Leicester, together with his father, a shoe trade finisher, his step mother, Alice Elizabeth Cooley (nee Plummer, married on the 24th January 1903 in St. Saviour’s Church, Leicester), born in the April quarter of 1877 in Leicester (daughter of Daniel Plummer and Mary Ann Walton) and his siblings, Harry, a brush maker, born on the 3rd July 1890 in Leicester and baptised on the 18th March 1893 in St. Margaret’s Church, Leicester, Harry had been blind from birth, John, a shoe trade tacker, Alfred, a shoe trade pressman, Joseph, a shoe trade pressman, and half-blood siblings Alice Elizabeth, born in the October quarter of 1904, Emily, born in the October quarter of 1908 and Sarah, born in the April quarter of 1910, the latter three half-blood siblings were all born in Leicester. William also had the following siblings, Harold, born in the October quarter of 1898 in Leicester and who died in the January quarter of 1899 in Leicester, Elizabeth, born in the October quarter of 1901 in Leicester and who died in the October quarter of 1901 in Leicester and half-blood siblings, Charles Frederick, born in the July quarter of 1903 in Leicester and who died in the January quarter of 1905 in Leicester, aged 1, Thomas, born in the July quarter of 1906 in Leicester and who died in the July quarter of 1906 in Leicester and George, born on the 28th October 1911 in Leicester. The Bridge Road School war memorial has the name of Cooley, A inscribed upon it, however extensive research has failed to discover a casualty with that initial and surname, and given that William lived in the street adjacent to the school and that a newspaper article named him as an old boy of Bridge Road School, I think it is a safe assumption to deduce that the inscription was incorrectly inscribed with an initial A as opposed to W.
William’s Army enlistment documents do not survive, all that is known of his military service is that he enlisted in Leicester into the Territorial Force of the Leicestershire Regiment, and was allotted the service number 1659, and posted as a Private to that Regiment’s Depot for training, subsequently being posted to the 1/4th Battalion. And it was with this Battalion, that he first entered the theatre of war in Le Havre, France on the 2nd March 1915. Nothing further is known of his military service until he was reported to have been killed in action during the attack on the Hohenzollern Redoubt on the 13th October 1915, while serving with “B” Company of the 1/4th Battalion Leicestershire Regiment. His body was never recovered and he is commemorated on the Loos Memorial in France. William was awarded the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.
The War Diary records: 12 Oct-15 - At 9.00 am Battalion marched to SAILLY LABOURSE. Dinners and teas were cooked here. Rations for 134 men issued. At 5.15 pm Battalion marched to VERMELLES where stores were taken up. At 11.00 pm Battalion arrived in trenches.
The War Diary records: 13 Oct-15 - At noon our artillery started to bombard. At 1.0 0pm our smoke and gas started. At 1.50 pm smoke and gas stopped. At 2.00 pm artillery lifted and Battalion assaulted the HOHENZOLLERN REDOUBT. Lieutenant Colonel R. E. MARTIN was wounded early but remained in the fire trench directing operations for nearly 24 hours and until -?- to the dressing station by Brigadier General KEMP. All officers of the Battalion either killed or wounded.
The War Diary records: 14 Oct-15 - In the evening the Battalion was relieved by part of the 139th Brigade and went back to the LANCASHIRE TRENCH. Roll call revealed that 188 NCO’s and men returned.
The Official History of the War – Military Operations (France and Belgium 1915 Volume II) provided the following statistics for the 1/4th Battalion Leicestershire Regiment, officers killed 20, other ranks killed 453. Total losses for the day were 138th Brigade 64 officers and 1,476 other ranks. 137th Brigade 68 officers and 1,478 other ranks.
On Wednesday, October 20th, 1915, The Leicester Daily Post published the following article under the heading. “LEICESTERSHIRE AND THE WAR.” – N.C.O’S AND MEN. – Official information has been received that Private WILLIAM COOLEY, 4th Leicester’s, has been killed in action, and that Private A. DODD, 2nd Leicester’s, and Private H. STRONG, 9th Leicester’s are wounded. All three are Bridge-road Old Boys.
On Monday, November 15th, 1915, The Leicester Daily Post published the following article under the heading. – FALLEN LEICESTERS. - (A photograph accompanied the article). – Lce-Corpl. W. COOLEY. 4th Leicester’s. Killed in action. A Bridge-road Old Boy. Has two younger brothers in the Army.