| Notes |
- This was a very strange marriage, as reported at the Yorkshire, UK Assizes 2 years later, when William was brought to justice on a charge of bigamy with his second 'wife'.
William was 18 when he married Ruth, who was 27. According to William, whose earlier adventures in Canada reveal him to be a liar, he lied about his age at the time of his marriage only at Ruth's insistence. He insisted that he was unaware that Ruth already had 2 children.
William and Ruth lived together for only 14 days before he went to serve in the trenches in France. He returned 6 months later suffering from shell shock, and spent some time in hospital. On leaving hospital, he lived with Ruth another 7 days before again returning to France.
He was discharged from the army in January 1918, suffering from shell-shock, poor eyesight and gassing. Shortly after returning home, he left to find work in Newcastle, where he met Annie Price. He was a fast worker. On May 25 he 'married' her, but then deserted her 3 weeks later, perhaps because Ruth had discovered his deception. At the end of June he was arrested. He served 9 months for the offence of bigamy.
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Mother | Female
