W. A. B. Goodall
Open-knowledge reference entry
William Arthur Bates Goodall (1880–1941) was a British soldier and engineer who achieved a period of popular renown as a voluntary castaway on the island of Pulau Serimbun in the Johore Straits west of Singapore during the 1930s. The island, only two acres in area, had been uninhabited for many years and was considered to be haunted. Goodall came to be regarded as a local Robinson Crusoe in Singapore, however when his story spread through the international press he became known as 'the ruler of the world's tiniest kingdom'.
Early life
William Arthur Bates Goodall was born in Eccles, Greater Manchester in 1880 and was brought up there and in Bedford where he attended Bedford Modern School. At the age of 16 he enlisted as a private in the First Battalion, the Manchester Regiment, and fought in the Second Boer War for which he was awarded the King's South Africa Medal and the Queen's South Africa Medal with 5 clasps. Goodall was present at the Defence of Ladysmith and later recalled that when the siege was finally broken by the British under Sir Redvers Buller, he 'sat down and wept for joy' when he was offered a cigarette by one of the relieving soldiers.
Civilian life
The Regiment was drafted to Singapore in 1903 at which point Goodall, who didn't like the prospect of 'soldiering in the East', embarked on a civilian career. He spent some time in Sumatra and tried his hand at tin mining and tea planting. He secured a position with the Singapore Municipal Commissioners in the Water Department and was engaged on the construction of the Pierce, Gunong Pulai and Pontian reservoirs. He was also credited with the discovery of the Sembawang Hot Springs.
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