Born in 1842 into a wealthy industrial family, Walter Powell was educated at Rugby School. He moved to North Wiltshire in 1867, renting Dauntsey House. In 1868 he was selected as the Conservative Party candidate for Malmesbury and was duly elected later that year.
As well as taking an interest in matters of national importance raised in the House of Commons, he ensured his involvement in Bills that affected his constituents. These included supporting funds for turnpike roads being drawn from the Treasury rather than town councils and applying for a military pay station to be opened in Malmesbury. His popularity was evident in his greatly increased majority in the 1880 general election.
A large degree of this popularity resulted from his generosity to the people of Malmesbury. In 1870 he provided a reading room with a library in the town. In 1873 he established the Ragged School. In addition he and his wife frequently aided Sunday School outings and children's teas. A keen collector of magic lantern slide shows, he laid on magic lantern evenings for wide ranging audiences from children to working men, on a range of educational and entertaining topics.
Walter Powell is also remembered as a balloonist. He had first discovered this activity through Henry Coxwell, a highly regarded balloonist of the time. Walter Powell received formal training in flying balloons and in June 1881 made a successful flight from Cross Hayes to Spirit Hill in 'Eclipse', the balloon of Thomas Wright. By the autumn of that year Walter Powell had his own balloon and was making regular flights over the Wiltshire and Gloucestershire countryside.
In December 1881, Powell and Captain James Templer, an experienced balloonist and Mr A Agg-Gardner, an interested party, took off from Bath in 'Saladin', a War Office balloon. Their flight took them south over Dorset where according to Captain Templer's account they attempted to land. As the basket approached the ground it tipped up and Captain Templer and Agg-Gardner fell out. Captain Templer retained a grip on the balloon's valve line and was dragged for some way until the balloon, with Walter Powell still aboard began to lift once more. As the balloon headed out to sea, Captain Templer telegraphed the local commander of the Royal Engineers for help. A search which continued into the winter night failed to find any trace of Walter Powell or 'Saladin'.
