Alexander Frederick Wishart was born in Marylebone, London at the end of 1899. His father Thomas, (who died in 1912) was a painter’s labourer from the East End, however, his mother, Jane Higgs, was a local girl. He had one younger brother and at the time war broke out in 1914, was living at 19 Little Goodge Street off Tottenham Court Road, and working as a tailor’s trimmer.

Alexander enlisted on 6 April 1915 at the Chenies Street recruiting office which was the headquarters and drill station of the 12th (County of London) Battalion, The London Regiment. At the time he declared his age to be 19 years, one month when in fact he was only fifteen. Consequently, Rifleman Wishart only served 95 days with the 3/12th Battalion before being ‘discovered’ and was discharged from service on 9 July 1915.

There is no evidence to suggest that Alexander tried to re-enlist at a later date and after the war, he found employment as a commercial traveller, often working overseas as part of his job.

In 1923 he married May Annie Boyling and had two daughters with her. After the Second World War, the family moved to Heston in Middlesex, where Alexander died in 1974.

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