Alexander Basil Crawford

Alexander Basil Crawford was born in Coleshill on 24th May 1891. His parents were Dr Alexander David Crawford (a medical practitioner) and Etty Crawford née Carr of 'The Cottage', Little Coxwell, Faringdon, Berkshire. His father Alexander was born in 1862 in Cumbraes, Bute, and his mother Etty Carr was born in 1856 in Halifax, Yorkshire; they were married in 1890, their marriage being recorded in the Hull registration district. They had three sons, Alexander Basil born 24th May 1891, Frederick Lascelles born 28th April 1894 and Ninian James Carr; all their sons were born at Coleshill, Warwickshire. In 1901 the family lived at 64 High Street, Coleshill. By the 1911 census the the family had moved to Skegby, Nottinghamshire, and are shown living at 'Healsdwood', Skegby, Nottinghamshire. His father Alexander David Crawford is shown as 49 yrs, a medical practitioner, and he is living with his son Alexander Basil Crawford, 19yrs an articled solicitors clerk; they are living at the address with two servants. However, his mother Etty together with his brother Frederick are visiting Thomas Wells and his family and on the night of the census are staying at 83 Gough Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham. (No trace can be found of Ninian in the 1911 census.) Alexander married his wife Fanny Edith Jane Sheasby in 1913 at Southam, Warwickshire Alexander Basil then took charge of a legal practice in Boston Lincolnshire, but left a clerk in charge when he joined up. His father died on 11th December 1919 at the age of 57 yrs and is recorded in the Mansfield registration district. On 17th April 1926 his mother together with her two surviving sons, Frederick and Ninian, emigrated to Canada.

Alexander attended the King Edward’s School, Birmingham, and Coleshill Grammar School. He was a talented cricketer, both as a right-handed batsman and a right-arm fast-medium bowler, playing at county level for both Warwickshire and Nottinghamshire during 1911-1912. He was educated at the Nottingham High School, he was admitted on 14th January 1902 when he was 10 yrs of age but was removed at Easter 1903 when he went on to Oundle boarding school in Northamptonshire, he was at Laxton House from 1903-1908 and was an excellent sportsman. He was a school prefect, captain of the XV in his last year and was chosen as captain of the cricket XI for the 1908 season, having played in the team for the previous three years, but left Oundle before he could take up this position.

Private Crawford enlisted in the Lincolnshire Regiment (service number 2432). Early in 1915 he was given a commission in the Sherwood Foresters and later again he was transferred to the 17th West Yorkshires, and was promoted Captain. He first served in France on 31st January 1916. He was killed in action on the 10th May 1916 in the Neuve Chapelle-Ferme du Bois Sector. The Divisional History for the 10th May 1916 reads “A few quiet days followed, during which Captain A B Crawford and Captain G S de Williams were unfortunately killed in the line by shell burst.” Captain Crawford is buried in the St Vaast Post Military Cemetery, Richebourg-L’avoue, France. He was awarded the Victory and British medals. He served with the 2nd Leeds Pals. The 17th (2nd Leeds Pals) Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment was raised in Leeds in December 1914 by the Lord Mayor and City, as a Bantam Battalion from men who were under the normal regulation minimum height of 5 feet 3 inches. After initial training close to home, they joined 106th Brigade, 35th Division in June 1915 at Masham, North Yorkshire. The Division moved to Salisbury Plain for final training in August. They were ordered to Egypt in late 1915, but the order was soon cancelled and they proceeded to France on the 1st of February 1916, landing at Le Havre, the division concentrated east of St Omer.

Article from the Nottingham Evening Post dated 15th May 1916 : - “KILLED -IN ACTION. “WELL-KNOWN CRICKETER AND GOLFER. “News has been received in Nottingham of the death in action of Capt. A. B. Crawford, of the West Yorks. Regiment. The late Capt. Crawford joined the army as private in the Lincolnshire Regiment at the outbreak of war, and received his commission early last year. He was a son of Dr. A. B. Crawford, of Stanton Hill, and was educated at Oundle School, Northamptonshire. He was articled to Messrs. Eking, Morris, and Armitage, Nottingham, before going to London in 1913, where he was with Messrs. Kinch and Richerdson. In June, 1914, he succeeded to the practice in Boston of his friend, Mr. Herbert George Smith, who was killed in a motor car accident near Sleaford. “Crawford was well known in local cricket circles as a dashing batsman and a fast bowler. In 1911, the year they won the county championship, Capt. Crawford played in six matches for Warwickshire, for which county he had a birth qualification. He had an average of 16.57 for nine innings, and took seven wickets at a cost of 39.14 runs each. “His cricket interests, however, chiefly lay in Nottingham, where he had been resident for the greater part of his life, and 1912 took part in most of the matches played by Notts. during the first half of the season. He played in eight county championship games, and had batting average of 12.18, and he took five wickets. He assisted Notts, against both the Australians and South Africans, and against the former at Trent Bridge accomplished his best performance for the county when in the first innings he hit up 51 in brilliant style. He never quite reached the same level afterwards, and midway through the season dropped out of the eleven. The late Captain Crawford was also a fine golfer.” Above article is courtesy of Jim Grundy and his Facebook pages, Small Town Great War Hucknall 1914-1918. His Divisional Commander writes: "Your boy was doing splendidly. He had been commanding his company for some time and was if anything too brave. " He is a great loss to his Regiment, I might say to the Division. I wish we had more like him." His Battalion Commander writes: "He was a most able Company Commander, a most gallant man, full of dash and pluck, and would have risen high in the Army." He is also commemorated on the Coleshill Grammar School Memorial,