Lieutenant-Colonel G.C. Oswell
9th Armoured Regiment (British Columbia Dragoons)

Determined to show him that the cavalrymen of today are as bold and thorough as the cavalrymen of old, and that the cavalry is still an essential part of the forces being trained here in this Vernon camp for the defence of British Columbia … I met the C.O.—tall (six foot six) Lt.-Col. G.C. Oswell of the whipcord muscles and hawk-nose–beau ideal of the cavalryman.

(Vancouver Sun, 28 June 1940, 4)

Born on 10 August 1894 in Barton-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England Gordon Cecil Oswell had been one of the earliest volunteers with the Canadian Expeditionary Force in August 1914. He transferred from the British Columbia Horse to the Lord Strathcona’s Horse in September and went to France in May 1915. In early 1916, the six-foot-four, former rancher was selected for officer training.

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