Mr William Watson was born in Greater Manchester (possibly Stockport), England around 1884.

Little is known about Watson’s background and it appears that he may have lost his family at an early age. Contemporary press states that he had practically been raised by a Mrs Margaret Matkin, a married woman who had a family of her own in Reddish, Stockport. Mrs Matkin’s daughter Edith (b. 1883) married Samuel Edward Knight (b. 1884) in 1908, raising a family with him. By 1912 Mr Knight operated a fish and chip shop at 3 Bent’s Lane in Bredbury, Stockport and he and William Lucas were close friends and reportedly lived together for some thirteen years. At some point he also lived with a Mr Dobbins, also of Bredbury. 

It is not known when Watson first went to sea; he signed on for the maiden voyage of the Titanic, stating his local address as 13 York Street, Southampton. Prior to departure, he had written to a friend in Stockport, on a postcard depicting the Titanic, saying:

Old Chum Jim－Would you like to come with me in this ship on Wednesday to New York?－Titanic, W. Watson. 

William Watson, who was unmarried, died in the sinking. His body was recovered by the Mackay-Bennett and was buried at sea.

A Stockport Heritage Trust blue plaque marks the spot of his former home in Bent’s Lane, Stockport.