John W. Wilkinson
Early Life
John William Wilkinson was born on August 24, 1889, in Rye, New York, the son of John Wilkinson, a native of Ireland, and Sarah Keenan Wilkinson. A lifelong resident of Rye, he grew up in a working-class household and was educated in the local school system. From a young age, he entered the building trades, apprenticing under a Rye contractor and developing skills as a mason and plasterer.
By 1909, Wilkinson had become a member of the International Bricklayers, Masons and Plasterers Union of America, beginning a career that would span decades. His early life reflects the skilled labor tradition that supported the growth of Rye and surrounding communities in the early twentieth century.
World War I Service
John W. Wilkinson entered military service on December 5, 1917, when he enlisted in the United States Army at Fort Slocum, New York. He was assigned to a construction company within the Army Service forces, identified as Construction Company No. 1, where his civilian trade skills as a mason were directly applied to military needs.
Wilkinson served overseas in France from March 16, 1918, until March 19, 1919, contributing to the construction and maintenance of military infrastructure essential to the operations of the American Expeditionary Forces. Units of this type were responsible for building roads, barracks, supply depots, and other facilities that supported frontline combat units.
During his service, he advanced to the rank of Sergeant on January 15, 1918, before later returning to the rank of Private, a change not uncommon during wartime restructuring and reassignment. He completed his service without recorded wounds or injuries and was honorably discharged on March 12, 1920, following the extended demobilization period.
His service reflects the critical role of skilled tradesmen in sustaining the infrastructure of the American war effort in Europe, enabling combat units to operate effectively on the Western Front.
Life After Service
After returning from the war, Wilkinson resumed his long career as a mason-plasterer, working for more than forty years with the P. W. Nethercott contracting firm of Port Chester. He remained deeply connected to his trade union, holding a fifty-year membership in the International Bricklayers, Masons and Plasterers Union of America, reflecting a lifetime commitment to his profession.
He was also active in the Rye community, serving as a charter member of the Fire Police Patrol of the Rye Fire Department and maintaining ties to Christ’s Episcopal Church, where he had been a choir boy in his youth.
John William Wilkinson died on September 15, 1961, in Rye, New York, at the age of seventy-two.
At the time of his death, he was survived by his wife, Susan Juliana Wilkinson; his sister, Mrs. Margaret Miller of Old Greenwich, Connecticut; and several cousins.
He was buried in Rye, the community in which he had lived his entire life.