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Beginners => Family History Beginners Board => Topic started by: Shrimper19 on Sunday 31 July 22 19:37 BST (UK)
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Hi All
I've discovered that both my great-grandfather and my great-great-grandfather were acrobats. GGF was married at the age of 22 in 1893 so I imagine they were operating from ~1860 onwards and possibly before.
GGGF was called John Williams and his son was James Henry Williams.
I'm really struggling to find out more about the family and I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts about where to go next. They seemed to have settled in the Kennington area of London but that's as much as I've been able to glean.
I've ordered JHW's birth certificate which will tell me where he was born which might help.
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Welcome to Rootschat :)
Who did James Henry marry in 1893?
Do you have them in censuses?
Do you have birthplaces?
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Hi,
Welcome :)
Did he marry Matilda Martin in Lambeth in 1893? Other on page Sarah Ann Quartley.
Have found a James Henry Williams Cragg with wife Tillie in Lambeth in1901, he is an acrobat.
Cathy
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Thank you both for the welcome :).
James married Matilda Martin, but I couldn't find any info in censuses.
James Henry William Cragg is very definitely a possibility; my grandfather changed his name to Craig at some point (he's down on his marriage certificate as Williams, otherwise Craig) and that's not a huge step from Cragg.
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May not be him at all of course but this James' family is under surname Cragg in 1911.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XW56-C1C
Cathy
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I've also found James Henry Cragg (minus the Williams altogether now) in the 1911 census.
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If that is them, there are lots of newspaper notices/advertisements for THE CRAGGS
Particularly 05 March 1898 - The Era - London, London, England
One sentence of interest . “They have been seen frequently in Edinburgh in another guise
So perhaps they have reinvented themselves?
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Craggs acrobats...Photo of them
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https://www.rootschat.com/links/01rq3/
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Well spotted both :)
Looks a distinct possibility
Cathy
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1871 372/16/25
John and Caroline Williams with children including James H, 1yr b Bradford
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VBDV-YJP
John and Caroline are acrobats
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Marriage 1833 Manchester
Edward Williams and Mary Laborow Cragg
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What an interesting family! Lots to find online including https://www.facebook.com/TheMarvellousCraggs/
Cathy
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What an interesting family! Lots to find online including https://www.facebook.com/TheMarvellousCraggs/
Cathy
Yes, I am so hoping it is the OP’s family!
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/AS19020325.2.79.7?query=Marvellous+craggs&snippet=true
So they should be on LOTS of shipping lists.
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Fantastic finds :)
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This one says the “father” was previously of the De Castro troupe
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/ESD19020206.2.64?items_per_page=10&page=7&query=Marvellous+craggs&snippet=true
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John WilliamS Cragg died in an accident 1931, his inquest mentions a daughter Kathleen WilliamS Cragg
A newspaper article of 1891 mentions a son Arthur aged 12, a daughter aged 16 and that John W Cragg had 15 ! children, all acrobats. His wife died six years ago (1885).
I do hope this is the family too,it looks good so hopefully......
Cathy
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He had 3 wives I think.
Caroline - haven’t found a death for her yet. Think she was Caroline Harrop? But if so they weren’t acrobats at marriage in 1863
Then Amanda Noel - marriage?
And his probate has a wife Amy, I think she must be the one in 1911, as Amanda died 1909
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Oh, my gosh, everyone. Thank you so much for all your links, help and interest. I'm in awe :)!
It's absolutely fascinating and I'm thrilled to find that there might finally be answer to a bit of a family mystery.
I found James Henry Cragg listed in the 1921 census as being an out-of-work theatrical entertainer living with a brother (Alfred), Alfred's wife, Florence and their daughter Lalla who is also listed as being an out-of-work theatrical entertainer. No mention of Matilda (though JHC is listed as still being married). My grandfather, John Craig, we know, was in the British Indian Army from 1920 onwards so was out of the country for this census.
I had spent a lot of time wondering about why GP had changed his name but now it seems that he was known as Cragg from at least the age of 6 and it's not much of a step from there to Craig. He always struck me (although he was very old at the time so maybe not surprising) as a bit straight-laced and not a lot of fun. He was pretty much a career soldier going from WWI service into the Indian Army and then volunteering again (despite being in his 50's by then) for WWII working in logistics.
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Apologies if this has been posted - I can’t see it.
Marriage 1910 Lambeth
John W Cragg and Amy L Bowen are on the same page.
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https://cdnx.jumpseller.com/oldtest/image/7199597/craggs_acrobats.jpg?1577177497
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Just in case some numbers might help:
Sunday Sun (Newcastle) 28 August 1921
A reporter interviewed John W. Cragg, "leader of the famous Craggs"
at his Kennington Road gymnasium, and in this interview asked about family:
He has been married four times.
He is the father of 24 children, of whom 13 are living.
His oldest child is 58; his youngest 3.
He is great-grandfather to 18 children.
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Busy bloke!!
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It does seem a bit odd he would change to Craig, when his birth certificate would have said Williams, and also his baptism was as Williams. So he had that to fall back on if he didn’t want to be a Cragg.
What name did he marry under? When and who did he marry?
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He married Kathleen Lavender in 1916 in Kingston, Surrey.
The marriage certificate says "John Henry Williams (otherwise Craig)", so he was going under both names at the time. I can well imagine my gran saying that she wasn't going to marry a Cragg! She was a bit like that, from what I remember.
Certainly, she and their daughters were always Craig and his death certificate has Craig as his surname - I'd be surprised if mum knew about the Williams/Cragg thing.
I also don't know which name he'd have used to enlist in the army - presumably Williams as that came first on the marriage certificate. I've requested his military record, but the lead time is very long (a year or so) so I won't get it for a while. I don't know how complete that will be as I don't know how much linkage there is between his three stints and whether he informed them of his change of name.
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That’s OK then.
What a great family to suddenly come across. They are going to keep you busy for a while. Especially tracking down 24 children!
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Ancestry shows a Fold3 record (subscription) for:
John Henry Craig birthdate 24th April 1894
Military Year 1922
Captain, Indian Army.
Would that be him?
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Yes, that would be him.
But he also served in WWI, in the Ox and Bucks Light Infantry (2nd lieutenant on his marriage certificate) and again in the logistics core in WWII (acting lieutenant colonel).
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A quick update:
I had a chat with the guy (Charlie) who runs the Facebook page, and I am related to the Craggs which is exciting. I discovered that my great grandfather, James Henry, died of tabes dorsalis (late stage neurosyphilis) in 1930.
I still have no idea what happened to Matilda. She disappeared between the 1911 and 1921 censuses and I've not been able to find a death certificate under Cragg or Williams, but it's just this minute occurred to me that she might have taken the name Craig too, so I'll look for her with that name. I feel really sorry for her; James either had syphilis when they married (in which case he hid it from her), or he caught it after they were married so obviously had at least one affair. I'm assuming that it was him, not her, that brought it into the family, but Charlie seemed to think that was the case.
It also makes it even more likely that grandpa changed his name to dissociate himself from the family - he probably felt that both Williams and Cragg were somewhat tarnished.
James lived with his brother John Albert in 1921 and was probably already showing symptoms of TD. John's wife was also Matilda's sister and Charlie thinks that another brother married another Martin sister.