William "Spike" Treverton - Signalman for the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division WWII

We Remember

World War II 1939-1945

WILLIAM “SPIKE” TREVERTON

William “Spike” Treverton was born on August 9th, 1910 in Rossland, B.C. His parents, William and Mabel, were both born in Cornwall, England and moved to Canada in 1898. He had three siblings, Mary Jane, John Leslie, and Mabel.

William Treverton in uniform - 24 September 1942, in Vernon.

During World War II, William served as a signalman in the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals as part of the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division. As a signalman (sometimes referred to as radioman), William was an integral part of ensuring communication between the front lines and headquarters was maintained.

While we are not sure what offensives William took part in, there are several references to Operation Overlord or the Battle of Normandy in his letters to family.

When William’s unit was not on the front lines during rotation, he would travel around the different areas of Europe he was in, and he sent postcards home to his parents and younger sister from all over Western Europe, including Cornwall, London, Brighton, Dover, France, Belgium, Holland, and Germany. He also sent home telegrams on birthdays, Christmas, and Mother’s Day. Additionally, he saved different pieces of currency he obtained while in Europe to bring home to show his family when the war was over. There are many postcards, letters, stamps, tourism pamphlets, army letters, and maps from his travels. All of the items that William collected and sent home to his family were placed in scrapbooks, many of which have little notes to his family about the locations. The scrapbooks and other ephemera were donated to the museum in 2019 by Mabel Treverton’s estate.

After the war, William settled in Grand Forks, and he passed away in 1984 at the age of 73.

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