WILLIAM DONALD ROWBOTHAM
From May through to September 2026, Andrew will be fulfilling his dream to hike the iconic Land’s End to John O’Groats! You are all warmly invited to follow Andrew’s epic journey on his Facebook page, “Andrew Beal LEJOG” https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61577588795730
As Andrew hikes the 1,300+ miles, he will raise funds for the Ipswich War Memorial Project to help finance our future exhibitions and research of the brave Ipswich men and women who lost their lives in conflict. If you would like to make a small donation, please click on the link: https://gofund.me/5d4a50570
Thank you for your love and support. Andrew & Helen – I.W.M.P.
Image courtesy of Mark.
Image from the Evening Star of William taken while he was in training – 4th December 1941
BILL
Born: 17th March 1922, Ipswich.
Died: 1st December 1941; age: 19. Failed to return from a lone Mediterranean reconnaissance.
Residence: ‘Sunbank’ 87, Grove Lane, Ipswich.
Employed: as a Clerk at the Ipswich office of Employers’ Liability Assurance Corporation Ltd.
As soon as William turned 18, he went to the Recruiting Office to join the R.A.F. He was sent home on deferred service. He went to his unit in September 1940, and gained his wings in June 1941, and was posted to a squadron in the Middle East.
Rank: Sergeant/Pilot; Service Number: 1160291.
Regiment: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, 39 Squadron. Coastal Command.
Memorial Reference:
Column 243.
El Alamein,
Matruh,
Egypt.
Father: Tom Rowbotham, born 1885, Great Grimsby, Lincolnshire. A Sales Manager.
Mother: Alice Maud Rowbotham (nee Sims), 1885, Ipswich.
William was educated at Ipswich School.
ENGLAND & WALES REGISTER 1939
William was a Clerk in an Insurance Office. He was living with his parents and sister at their family home – 87, Grove Lane, Ipswich.
Tom, a Buyer – Wholesale Confectionery.
Alice, unpaid Domestic Duties.
Pearl A. Rowbotham, at School, born April 1928, Ipswich.
Probate to Thomas Rowbotham – father, a Sales Manager.
William is also remembered on the Ipswich School Chapel war memorial.
30th November 1941 – 1st December 1941
Aircraft – Beaufort I, Serial number: W6496. Shot down in the sea off Crete on a night patrol – 30th November/1st December 1941.
Crew:
Norman Frederick Sewell; Sergeant; age 20; R.A.F.V.R.
Philip Alan Goodley; Sergeant; age 21; R.A.F.V.R.
Photograph of James courtesy of Susan.
James Herbert Killick; Sergeant; age 21; R.A.F.V.R.
Evening Star – 29th June 1942
IPSWICH PILOT PRESUMED KILLED
Previously reported missing whilst on an operational flight over the Mediterranean in December 1941, Sergeant-Pilot William Donald Rowbotham, of Ipswich, is now officially presumed to have
lost his life.
Aged 19, Sergeant Rowbotham was the only son of Mr. and Mrs. T. Rowbotham, of 87, Grove Lane, Ipswich. Educated at Ipswich School, he spent about two years with the Employers’ Liability Assurance Corporation, and as soon as he was 18, went to the Recruiting Office to join the R.A.F. He was sent home on deferred service, went to his unit in September 1940, and gained his wings in June 1941. He was subsequently posted to a squadron in the Middle East.
His Wing-Commander wrote of him that he had done some very good work, both on the ground and in the air, that he was a first-class pilot and keen on any operational flight that was going.
Memorial card courtesy of Susan.
2 Comments
Part of the crew on the reconnaissance trip piloted by William Donald Rowbotham on December 1st 1941 was my uncle James Herbert Killick.
I have a copy of the memorial card issued by William’s family. My daughter has subsequently found the article on the Ipswich Memorial site.
I have been searching for information regarding his time in the R.A.F. and amazed to read the obituary of the pilot after all these years.
Hello Susan. Hopefully you are still able to be contacted via this web site. My Uncle was William Rowbotham the pilot of the plane which was sadly lost with your uncle on board. Just touching base for now. Regards, Mark Rowe