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WORLD WAR ONE

The Men Who Died

WORLD WAR ONE

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Father’s butchery business. He was well known in the town being an accomplished musician and popular as a piano accompanist on the concert platform and with choral parties. He was a lifelong member of Kensington Baptist Church and was, for a number of years, the organist there.

He joined the South Wales Borderers in June 1916 and was subsequently transferred to the Lancashire Fusiliers. The 15th Battalion were known as the First Salford Pals and fought with the 32nd Division. Melville had been in the thick of the fighting in France for about three months.

The 32nd division, fighting with Rawlinson's Fourth Army were involved in a number of large battles aimed at breaking the Hindenburg line system in 1918. The Battle of Epehy was on September 18th and it is probably here that Melville was killed.

Melville was born in 1881 in Brecon and was a son to Martha Elizabeth and Thomas Edward Trew. the family were butchers and lived at 13, Ship street, Brecon. His father was also a Justice of the Peace in the town.

Thomas had followed his father and grandfather who had been butchers in Brecon for over 100 years but by 1871 he was in his own business. He married Mary Ann Price in 1863 and had 4 children before Mary died in 1870. Thomas remarried in 1872 to Martha Elizabeth Thomas and had a further 6 children.

In 1881 the family were at Ship Street and young Melville was at home with his parents, seven siblings, an aunt, uncle and cousin as well as a governess and a servant. Ten years later the family living at home in Ship Street has reduced a little with Melville, his parents and now only five siblings, an aunt and a servant.

Melville's brother Edwin is one of the siblings at home in this period; his is the next record in this book. Melville initially worked as a draper and having trained in Cardiff, is back home in 1901 and working in the drapery trade, but was later a bookkeeper and worked in his

Private Melville George Trew

Lancashire Fusiliers 15th Battalion, service no. 235417

Killed in action September 18th, 1917 in Belgium, aged 36

Buried at Coxyde Military Cemetery, Belgium