Private Alfred Towes enlisted a East Sydney, NSW. His surname is misspelt as Towse on the honour roll at the Canowindra Soldiers Memorial Hospital.
The misspelling came about because a friend of the family, Andrew Purcell of Canowindra, responded to an advertisement in the Canowindra Star in 1921, which was looking for the Alfred's next-of-kin. For some reason, Purcell knew Mrs. Towes had returned to England. In the letter, there was a typographical error—"Towes" was spelt "Towse". This error must have been carried over when the list of soldiers to be memorialised on the plaques at the entrance of the hospital was compiled.
It is not clear what connection Alfred might have had with Canowindra. He gave several addresses, including Mosman and Blacktown, which are suburbs of Sydney and therefore quite far from the town. There is one item in his war service record showing Mrs Towes living at "Tincell", Canowindra. Furthermore, around June 1918, Alfred's effects were posted from the kit stores in London to "Mrs Alice L. Towes, C/- HP Purcell, Canowindra, New South Wales". Around this time, Purcell was a millionaire and property developer, so Mrs Towes may have been a domestic in the Purcell houshold.