After his father's death his mother married John Marsh Taylor on the 18th August 1860 in the Church of England Church at Yarrowyck. His parents moved out to a second homestead on the property East Lakes another 20 kms to the west of Yarrowyck. He was not happy living with his stepfather and finally left home in January, 1867, returning to Yarrowyck, where he found Thunderbolt and requested permission to join him in his activities. Thunderbolt insisted that he think for a day, about what it would mean to be a bushranger. He returned the next day & joined Thunderbolt.
He was active with Thunderbolt for 10 months until he finally left him in November, 1867 and eventually gave himself up to the police for being an assistant of Thunderbolts. He was tried and was sentenced to hard labour in Darlinghurst gaol for 12 calendar months, and then he was to be sent to such a Reformatory School as should be directed by the Colonial Secretary for five years. His honour advised him "to try to reform, and by no means to harbour the thought that he was undeserving of punishment." He was committed on the 15th January, 1869 and sent to Darlinghurst gaol on the 15th April, 1869, to serve his 12 months. His release from gaol was held up for several weeks and, by chance, he was sent by carriage to Armidale in the last week of May. The carriage was passing through Uralla on Saturday the 28th May, 3 days after Thunderbolt had been shot, and as the police had not identified the body as that of Fred Ward, Will was taken off the carriage and placed in the Uralla gaol overnight and was taken to identify the body on the Sunday.
Will knew that William Ward had been shot in the right knee eighteen months earlier at Moonbi while he and Fred were near Tenterfield and he told the police of the scar that would be near the right knee, and used that scar to identify the body as that of Frederick Ward. The police were very willing to accept the identification and released him from the further 5 years he was to spend in the Reformatory School as was directed by the Colonial Secretary. However the police did not have the authority to do this, so they went against the law to release him.
Will married Elizabeth Mallis on the 18th April, 1881, at the Church of England Bundarra. They went on to have 10 children, Emily b.1882, George b.1883, William b.1884, Henry, b.1885, Martha, b.1887, Albert, b.1889, Edward, b.1891, Hannah, b.1892, Sylvia, b.1895, Molley, b.1896.
In the early 1900's Will was asked by a solicitor in Armidale, Ambrose Pratt, for his version of a story on his time with
Thunderbolt. Ambrose then wrote an excellent book "Three Years With Thunderbolt".
The book told of the life of Thunderbolt,
however Will was only with Thunderbolt for 10 months. He told many of the stories told to him by Fred, of the years before he
joined Fred.
In the late 1930s Annie Rixon spent 6 months living in Will's home, learning all the stories of his time as a bushranger and in 1940
released a book on Will's life with Thunderbolt. He was called to recount the story concerning the well-known outlaw, Thunderbolt "Captain Thunderbolt".
I have been asked many times to recount the story concerning the well-known outlaw, Thunderbolt. His story is as full of romance and daring as the "Courtship of Miles Standish" and as complicated as "The Comedy of Errors".
To begin with, Fred Ward was not Thunderbolt. I lived in company with the notorious bushranger, Thunderbolt, at intervals, for three years, but never at any time did I meet Fred Ward.
I, together with several friends of the outlaw -after the killing of the man at Uralla- took a solemn oath to keep his identity a close secret for the period of forty years. It is now over seventy years since we both took that oath. My friends and his have crossed the Great Divide. I shall soon join them, but before I go I should like to leave the correct story concerning the gentleman outlaw to posterity.
He was at large at a time when the country was raw and rough, and men were, in many instances, little better than savages. The law was over-severe, and extremely crude, and there was brutality in the treatment of prisoners, who were often innocent men.
Among the members of the Police Force were a few who were craven; and some who were nervous, as they had every reason to be. Many brave policemen had lost their lives in encounters with criminals and outlaws, but there were many heroic men in the force also.
With the exception of Sergeant Steel, who was shot through the wrist, no member of the Police Force was ever injured by Thunderbolt.
Will died on 24th August, 1942 at Howell, near Inverell, NSW at the age of 88 years BDM-1942/18546
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