| William Oakley | |
| Birth Date: | 31 August 1857 |
| Birth Place: | Aberdeen, Scotland |
| Death Place: | Wivenhoe, Essex, England |
| Placeofburial: | Wivenhoe, Essex, England |
| Branch: | United States Navy |
| Rank: | Gunner's Mate First Class |
| Unit: | U.S.S. Marblehead |
| Battles: | Spanish–American War |
| Awards: | Medal of Honor |
| Laterwork: | Medal of Honor |
William Oakley (31 August 1857 - 22 November 1918) was a gunner's mate second class serving in the United States Navy during the Spanish–American War who received the Medal of Honor for bravery.
Oakley was born on 31 August 1857 at 5 Hanover Street, Aberdeen, Scotland,[1] and emigrated to the United States in April 1880. He enlisted in the Navy at Boston in November 1880[2] and was sent to fight in the Spanish–American War aboard the U.S.S. Marblehead as a gunner's mate second class.[3] He was later promoted to gunner's mate first class.[4] [5]
He returned to England after 1911 as a US Navy pensioner and died 22 November 1918 in Wivenhoe, Essex, England. He was buried in the Old Cemetery (grave reference: section B-2-65).
In 2018 the US government erected a headstone at his grave which had previously been unmarked.