1/5th Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment
Osman Trevor Powell was born in 1894 at Stonehouse, Gloucestershire. He was the son of Trevor Barrett Powell and his wife Ella Charlotte (nee Knibbs). At the time of the 1901 Census the family lived at 78 York Buildings, Gloucester but by the time of the 1911 Census had moved to 41 Cromwell Street. Latterly they lived in Hucclecote. Trevor had three sisters, born in 1896, 1897 and 1905 respectively. Trevor never married.
In the 1911 Census, Trevor’s occupation is listed as a Gas Engineer, having served as an apprentice at Messrs Fielding & Platt Ltd, Gloucester.
Prior to the Great War Trevor had enlisted in the 1/5th Battalion (Territorial Force), Gloucestershire Regiment and had reached the rank of Lance Corporal. Whilst undergoing training at Chelmsford in 1914 he developed a serious illness which affected his effectiveness as an NCO. Consequently he resigned his Lance Corporal’s stripe and reverted to a Private. His health continued to deteriorate and he remained at home, in a sanatorium when the battalion sailed for France in March 1915. He remained in the Army and was declared fit to be transferred to war work in a munitions factory. However, his physical condition went into a further decline and he never returned to his unit.
He died from his illness on 3 February 1916, aged 21 years, at the 1st General Eastern Hospital, Cambridge, after being discharged from the Army on health grounds. He was buried in Gloucester Old Cemetery, where a CWGC headstone marks his grave. He is commemorated on the Gloucester War Memorial and also that of Gloucester Rugby Football Club.
Trevor’s grandfather, also called Trevor, was a noted Justice of the Peace in Gloucester and his similarly named father played rugby for the Gloucester Club, making forty-one appearances for the First XV and scoring twenty-eight tries between 1889 and 1894. He later served as a committee man. Trevor (junior) also played ruby for the Gloucester Club, as a Wing, making 31 appearances between 1912 and 1914 (four tries), of which seven appearances were for the First XV. He had originally turned out for the St Mark’s Club.
Researched by Graham Adams 4 June 2013
(Information taken from ‘They Played for Gloucester and Fought for their Country’ by Martin Davies (with Teresa Davies), published in connection with the Gloucester Rugby Football Community Heritage Project at The Gloucestershire Archives)