William Edgar Tilley, Jr. was born in Roslyn, New York in October 1896. He was the son of William Edgar and Carolina (Hutts) Tilley on Main Street in Roslyn.  He had five sisters: Annie, Elizabeth, Hattie, Carine, and Cornelia.  He also had a brother Willard Eugene, who served in 306th Infantry Regiment during the war.  As a youth, William was active in the Roslyn Boy Scouts and he graduated from Roslyn High School.  At the time that he joined the service, William was working as a bookkeeper in Manhattan.

On 15 May 1917, William joined the Coastal Artillery of New York National Guard.  When the New York National Guard was called into federal service on 5 August 1917, it bcame the 27th Infantry Divsion and William was assigned C Company of the 106th Machine Gun Battalion.  He shpped to France on 10 May 1918.  On 31 July 1918, he was in the front line trenches near Mount Kemmel in Belgium when he was struck by an exploding shell.  He died at a dressing station two hours later.  William was 22 years old. In 1936 a monument with a plaque listing the names of all the Roslyn men who served World War I was erected in Roslyn (Gerry) Park, where it still stands.

Information provided by Danielle Roubroeks and information published by the Bryant Library, https://www.bryantlibrary.org/local-history-v15-172/from-the-bryant-room...