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Joseph William was born 1889 in Harrington, Cumberland, he was the eldest child (and only son) of Joseph and Hannah (nee ?).
On the 1891 census he is living at Harrington, Cumberland with his parents and sister.
Article from The Whitehaven News, Thursday, August 3, 1916
On the 1901 census he is living at Greysothen, Cumberland with his parents and siblings.
SERGT. JOS. MOSSOP
(COCKERMOUTH)
ROYAL FUSILIERS,
KILLED IN ACTION.
Sergt. J. Mossop, Royal Fusiliers, only son of Mr and Mrs Joseph Mossop, 14, Main Street, Cockermouth, has been killed in action. According to letters received from his comrades a machine gun bullet struck him on the head and killed him instantly, while advancing in an attack at three o clock in the morning.
Sergt. Mossop left a high reputation in the regiment as an efficient and brave soldier, and a loyal and true comrade. A single man, 26 years of age, he had excellent prospects in civil life when the war broke out, and he joined the Royal Fusiliers. He served an apprenticeship to the drapery trade with Messrs. Cairns, Cockermouth, and afterwards proceeded to London, where he obtained an appointment in the well known firm of Messrs Cook & Son, St Paul's Churchyard. Here his business qualities, energy and intelligence secured the favourable notice of the head of the firm and he became a traveller, with the result that at the time of the outbreak of hostilities, he held an excellent position. He was an only son, the surviving members of the family being three sisters.
One of these it may be noted is employed as lady assistant in Messrs W. H. Smith & Son's shop at Cockermouth where the staff had no less than 14 brothers serving. Of these two - Sergt. Mossop, the subject of our photograph, and Private Dempster, brother of the male assistant, have been killed, another Dempster, and Sergt. Williams, brother of the manager, are wounded, while the last named has another brother serving as a non-commissioned officer in the Near East, who is down with malaria.
For the staff of a shop consisting of a manager, lady assistant, youth, and some boys to have 14 relatives serving with a roll of honour of two killed, two wounded, and one down with malarial fever is surely a record. Dempster, the youth in question, has four and had five brothers in the Army - one was killed in the 5th Border; one, who is wounded in the Durham Light Infantry; one in Y. & C.Y.C.; one in the A.S.C., and one in the 5th Border.