Walter F. Trivett

Lieutenant Walter Franklin Trivett (763004) was born in Newmarket on August 22, 1879. He lived in Hunstville and was was employed as a civil servant. His wife was Frances Eleanor Trivett, and they had three children, Douglas, Stanley and Mary. He had three years of experience in the Canadian Militia before enlisting in Huntsville on December 13, 1915, at the age of 36. He was assigned to the 112th Muskoka Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force. 

After training in Canada, the Battalion embarked on May 2, 1916 from Halifax on the S. S. Olympic, arriving in Liverpool on July 9th. Lieut. Trivett was transferred to the Canadian Forestry Corps June 10, 1917, perhaps due to some experience with woodcutting while living in Huntsville, which was just starting to grow as a town.  Lieut. Trivett was sent to France in early July, 1917, and served in several Forestry Corps. He was promoted to Lieutenant on August 1, 1917. 

The Forestry Corps was formed in 1916 to provide lumber from forests in England, Scotland and France to build duckboards and shoring timbers for the trenches, crates and railway ties, as well as using tractors, ploughs, and steam rollers to scrape out runways to build and improve aerodromes in France. Additionally, they providing timber to build and repair bridges and railways, vital to support the troops during the Hundred Days Offensive later in 1918. Lieut. Trivett would have been responsible for overseeing the men who served in these Corps. Many were underage volunteers who lied about their age to serve overseas but were not allowed to serve in combat roles until they turned 19. After his successful military service in France, Lieut. Trivett returned safely to Canada and was demobilized on May 20, 1919. 

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