Oscar Trafford Dell was born in Gordon and was a Railway Employee when he enlisted in the 14th Battalion on 1 October 1914 at the age of 29. His unit embarked from Melbourne, Victoria, on board HMAT A38 Ulysses on 22 December 1914. His service record notes that on his left forearm was a tattooed scroll carrying the words æDeath before dishonour'. He was wounded at Gallipoli during the August offensive, suffering a bullet wound to his left foot, and evacuated to Mudros. While there he contracted enteric fever which caused his transfer to Richmond Military Hospital in England. While in England he completed a Machine Gun Course of Instruction. He returned briefly to Alexandria before rejoining his unit in France. In April 1917 he was again wounded, suffering a gunshot wound to his tattooed left forearm. From this point, he had a succession of encounters with the military authorities, the worst of which saw him face a Court Martial charged with being absent without leave for several months. For this he was sentenced to 18 months detention, to be served at the Lewes Detention Barracks. He returned to Australia on the Leicestershire in December 1918, and was eventually discharged in March 1919.
Tree No. 298