Early life at Hardington

William was born at Hardington in 1876, the first child of George and Mary Jane Sercombe. His father was an engineer, and his mother was a schoolteacher.

By the age of fourteen, he was a printer’s office boy, probably working at the Western Gazette with his father.

William enjoyed sports, playing cricket and football for Hardington.[1]

Move to Bristol

William had left the village by March 1901. At that date, he was a printer-compositor lodging at 13 Berkeley Road, Bristol.

Marriage

On 14 April 1903, William married Daisy Marie K. Prigg at Luckington. Daisy was a schoolmistress who, in March 1901, taught at Yeovilton. Her mother was also a schoolteacher. Her father had been a signalman in the Royal Navy before his early death in 1894.

Birth of children

Their first child, Kathleen Marie, was christened on 17 August 1904 when they lived at 25 Queens Road, Bristol. Their son, Ronald George, was christened on 6 May 1908 when they lived at Pentwist, the Avenue, Bristol.

Emigration to the USA

On 27 October 1910, William travelled to Quebec. His wife and children may have joined him later, as the 1911 census recorded them as visitors staying with a family at Stoford.

William and his family settled permanently in America. By April 1935, they had made their home in Abington, Philadelphia.[2]

Death

Daisy died at Abington in 1939, aged 59. William died in Volusia County, Florida, in 1965, aged 89.

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[1] Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser, 15 May 1895, p. 7; 6 November 1895, p.7.

[2] Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser, 24 April 1935, p.7.