Private William David Anderson
William David Anderson was born on 19 February 1893 at Lismagiril, Bailieborough, County Cavan, the second of at least two children of farmer and shopkeeper Robert Anderson and his wife Mary (nee Chambers). The 1901 and 1911 Censuses show him living at Aghaloughan, County Cavan, with his aunt Sarah Byers and her husband James, a farmer.
Anderson enlisted in the North Irish Horse between 1 and 17 August 1917 (regimental number either 2658 or 2660 – later Corps of Hussars No.71946).
It is likely that he was part of a draft of North Irish Horsemen who arrived in France as reinforcements for the regiment on 22 November 1918, just after the Armistice. He returned to the UK in the new year and was demobilised and transferred to Class Z, Army Reserve, on 7 March 1919.
Anderson married in Belfast in 1923. He emigrated to the USA, but died in San Francisco before he was able to bring his family over to join him.
The image above shows Anderson (at rear) with A Squadron of the North Irish Horse at Vignacourt in France between December 1918 and early February 1919.
Some of the above information, and identification of Anderson in the photograph, courtesy of his grand-daughter Aileen Jervis. The full picture can be seen here.