Businessman, soldier.
Born at Eltham, Kent, England on 9 June 1893, brother of Kenneth Alec Powell, he came to Canada in 1903 and spent most of his life in Winnipeg. He worked as an office boy in the city before enlisting with the Canadian Cyclist Corps in August 1915. During the First World War, he became a Lewis machine gunner serving with several battalions, including the 102nd BC Battalion. As a gunner and corporal, he saw action at Ypres, the Somme, and Vimy Ridge.
Demobilized as a sergeant, he returned to Winnipeg in 1920 and began working in the sales department of Tees and Persse Limited. Four years later, he was transferred to Saskatoon where he eventually became a manager. In 1930, he returned to Winnipeg as a sales manager. He was promoted from Vice-President to President and General Manager of Tees and Persse in August 1948. Retiring in 1969, he also served as Chairman of the Board during his time with this company.
A member of the Gyro Club and the Manitoba Club, he moved to Victoria, British Columbia in 1972. He and his wife Jessie Ann shared one son, Alan R. Powell.
He died at the Royal Jubilee Hospital in Victoria on 27 March 1976.
“Wholesaler,” Winnipeg Tribune. [Manitoba Legislative Library, Biographical Scrapbook B10, page 94]
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 31 March 1976, page 7.
This page was prepared by Sarah Ramsden.
Page revised: 29 October 2023
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