American troops passing Buckingham Palace, 1917
[Imperial War Museum Q30005 reproduced under IWM Non Commercial Licence]
Monday
22nd October 1917: Percy “Punch” Lovell of Luton has been chosen
as one of around 100 soldiers who are being sent to the United States to train
American soldiers in the methods of warfare used in France. He was well-known
in the town before the war as the centre-forward for the Clarence football
team. He served for two-and-a-half year in Flanders and France, gaining
promotion to the rank of sergeant. Despite being in the thick of the fighting
he escaped without a scratch, and for several months has been a machine gun
instructor in England. Sadly his parents’ pride in their son’s achievements has
been tempered by the news that their other son, Gerald, has been killed in
action. Gerald Lovell enlisted in the Bedfordshire Regiment last November, was
drafted to the Front in April, and died when a shell burst, killing him
instantly and wounding two others. He leaves a young wife, who lives at 12
Langley Road.
Source:
Luton News, 25th October 1917
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