When William Leslie Prout was born on August 9, 1896, his father, Charles, was 30 and his mother, Annie, was 20. He served in the U.S. Army during World War I as a Corporal in Machine Gun Company, 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. He died from his wounds received in battle in 1918 and is now buried in Montgomery Bridge Cemetery, Montgomery, Fayette County, West Virginia, USA. He was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism in action from July 18 to 22, 1918 near Soissons, France (War Department General Orders No. 132 dated December 16, 1918). He was also awarded three 1st Division Silver Citation Stars for gallantry in action.