William Thomas Crabb

WILLIAM was born on April 20th 1846 in St. Pancras, London. He married ELIZA JANE PARKER on April 8th 1877. Their marriage was registered in Kensington, London in Q2 1877. Eliza was born circa 1851 in Suffolk. William and Eliza appeared in the census of 1881 living at 29 Edbrooke Road, Paddington, London. In 1861 William, aged 14, was an errand boy. William was a Cab Driver in 1871, 1881 and in 1901. William and Eliza had two children, both sons.

	ERNEST WILLIAM CRABB born circa 1879 in Clerkenwell, London. Birth registered in Q4 1878 in Holborn, London. Listed in the census of March 31st 1901, aged 22, as a Tarpaulin Dresser, living in Paddington.
	ALFRED CRABB born 13th June 1880 in Paddington, London. Birth registered in Q3 1880 in Kensington, London. Listed in the census of March 31st 1901, aged 20, as a Dustman, living in Tottenham, Middlesex.

ALFRED married ELEANOR ELIZA CHRISTMAS (also known as NELLIE) on October 7th 1901 St. Marks's Church in Islington, London. Their marriage was registered in Islington in Q4 1901. Eleanor was born on March 14th 1883 and was the daughter of WALTER CHRISTMAS and ELEANOR ELIZA BEDFORD. Alfred was known to live at 94 Pratt Street, Camden Town, London. Alfred died on September 25th 1942 in St. Pancras, London aged 62. His death was registered in Edmonton, Middlesex in Q3 1942. Alfred's wife, Eleanor, died on November 26th 1940 in St. Pancras, London aged 57. View Alfred and Eleanor's grave.

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Alfred is known to have worked for St. Pancras Borough Council in the 1920's and 1930's. Six days a week he would go to the stables, collect his pair of shire horses, put on their harnesses and couple them to a large, round fronted cart. He would then drive to Somers Town railway goods yard, located at the rear of Kings Cross station, fill and load two hundred-weight sacks with coal and drive to the Houses of Parliament in a queue of others carts. After unloading the coal he would return for more.

Among his responsibilities was the care and preparation of the horses for the Easter Cart Horse Parade. As the show approached the show harnesses would be retrieved from a large wooden chest for cleaning and polishing. The harnesses would be put into a sack containing silver sand and while sawdust and shaken until the links of the harness shone like chrome. On the evening of the show the horses would be washed down and groomed until their coats shone. Someone would stay up with the horses all night to ensure that they did not lay down in any dirt. On show day the manes and tails would be platted and grooming would continue until it was their turn to go into the show ring. Alfred won many prizes in his class over the years.

The Cart Horse Parade was traditionally held on Whit Monday and its founder chairman was Sir Walter Gilbey Bart, whose descendant, Walter Gilbey, chairs the current parade committee. The objectives of the parade were to improve the general condition and treatment of London’s working cart or heavy horses and to encourage drivers to take a humane interest in the welfare of their animals. The first parade was held in Battersea Park and attracted 102 entries and the following year, entries were accepted from those who owned cart horses stabled within a seven mile radius of Charing Cross, attracting 383 turnouts. In 1888 the parade moved to Regents Park and after the presentation of prizes, turnouts would then drive around the park before setting off across central London. Due to the popularity of the parade, entries were limited until 1914 to 1,000 but in time, with the introduction of motor vehicles and mechanisation in general, and the resulting demise of horses as a means of transport, the entry gradually decreased.

Alfred and Eleanor had seven children.

	WILLIAM CRABB. Little is known about William. He is thought to have been the eldest child and married EDIE. He lived at 176 Westmoreland Avenue, Luton and he ran the Buzzie Bee Cafe. He had at least one child, a girl.
	WALTER HENRY CRABB born November 1st 1908. Birth registered in Q4 1908 in St. Pancras London.
	ANNIE L. CRABB born 1911. Married HAROLD WATERS in St. Pancras in Q3 1936. Annie and Harold lived in Camden Town and did not have children. Annie worked for Walter Brothers drapers.
	DORIS A. CRABB born March 5th 1913. Marriage to ALFRED J. BURNS in Q2 1938.
	ELSIE CRABB born 1919. Married JOSEPH MOORE c 1940/41. Elsie and Joseph had no children. Joseph was a fireman during WWII and died of a brain tumour after the war. After the death of her mother, Eleanor, in November 1940, Elsie lived with and looked after her father, Alfred until he died in September 1942. At this time Alfred was living in Glasslyn Road, Crouch End. Elsie continued living in Glasslyn Road after Alfred's death.

Elise and Joseph's Wedding c. 1940

GLADYS IRENE CRABB born 1921. Married VICTOR SPEIRS (aged 21) on 13th July 1941 in St. Pancras. At the time of their marriage, Victor was in the RAF and formally a "Hotel Servant". Victor's father was JOHN SPEIRS, deceased at the time of their marriage. Both Victor and Gladys gave 94 Pratt Street, London NW1 as their address. Gladys gave her profession as Ladies Tailor. Witnesses at the wedding were Alfred Crabb (Gladys' father) and Walter Crabb (Gladys' brother).

Victor served in the RAF until the end of WWII mostly in Canada and the United States. He worked at The Leicester Square Theatre in London (now the Odeon West End) as a projectionist. Gladys is known to have run a baby shop in Rayners Lane, London. They then lived in Greenford, Middlesex and emigrated to Ohio, USA between 1953 and 1955. At the time they emigrated, Gladys and Victor had a son, HOWARD SPEIRS.


Alfred and Eleanor circa 1938	William circia 1940	Annie circia 1940	Doris circa 1940	Elsie circa 1940	Gladys circa 1940


Gladys, Victor and Howard c.1950	Gladys and Howard c.1955	Leicester Square Theatre