 My grandfather, Langford Duer Cranstoun, was born September 28, 1892 at Fitches Creek, Antigua, the eldest son of Langford Selly Cranstoun and Evelina Gibbons Harper. He left Antigua in 1912 and on 6 Oct 1912 he arrived in Canada from Hamilton, Bermuda and promtly joined the Govenor General's Body Guards.
On 27 November, 1914 Langford Duer Cranstoun signed Attestation Papers and joined the Canadian Army to fight in WWI in a mounted unit the Govenor General's Body Guards.
Langford’s unit was the first Canadian unit to volunteer to go to Europe for WWI, they got assigned in 1914 to Toronto, to train with their horses. While they were training in Toronto somewhere between 1914-1915 Langford met his future wife Ada Mary Dawson born September, 1895 in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, England, they are married on April 9, 1915, a date of coincidence as my father was born on April 9. Three month’s later Langford’s unit was ordered to France, one problem, the mounted unit that has been training for over one year will only be allowed 8 horses. When they arrived in France they were informed only one horse would be allowed. Fortunately for a lot of Cranstoun’s, I often wonder how Langford felt, but he got very ill and was hospitalized when his unit was ordered into battle, unfortunately, the mounted unit was forced into the trenches and nearly wiped out. Langford stayed in Europe until war’s end. This was the recollection of my father and upon further research I found a book called "The 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles 1914 - 1919" a downloadable pdf file which related the story.
Langford returned home in 1918 to be greeted by his wife and a son he had never met, Duer Selly Cranstoun born February 20, 1916 in Toronto, Ontario. Birth records show Grace Needham, Ada’s sister made the return for birth information, Langford’s occupation was listed as Soldier and they lived on Sproat Avenue in Toronto, Ontario.
Langford Duer Cranstoun and his wife Ada Mary Dawson had six children.
Below is the lineage of the family of Langford Duer Cranstoun from Antigua.
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Wife - Ada Mary Dawson
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 Ada Mary Dawson was my grandmother and the wife of Langford Duer Cranstoun. She was born in September 1895 in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, England and died of stomach cancer on June 1, 1968 at her home in Toronto, York County, Ontario, Canada.
She was the daughter of Frederick Whin Dawson 1852–1909 and Anna Elizabeth Huggins 1860–1950.
My grandmother Ada was pretty aggressive when it came to money.
My father remembered his parents arguing over "the plantation" and my grandmother complaning that my grandfather, didn't get his fair share.
In 1923, three years after the death of my great grandfather Langford Selly Cranstoun, my grandmother got in touch with J. Pogson Turner the Chief Registrar of Antigua requesting a copy of the Will of Langford Selly Cranstoun, because she thought there was money to be had.
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Children
- Duer Selly Cranstoun (1916-1993)
 Dixon Stewart Curtis, 1916-1993, was born in Toronto, Ontario as Duer Selly Cranstoun. He officially changed his name in 1941. He was a news reporter and radio writer in Ottawa, and in the late 1940's moved to Calgary where he ran Curtis Studios, a photographic business, from 1949 to 1956. He subsequently worked briefly in real estate, headed the Chinook Olympic Club in its unsuccessful attempt to build a sports and social club in Calgary, and planned, again unsuccessfully, to establish a summer camp for children. He taught swimming lessons and coached several sports teams. Over the years he continued his work as a photographer, and often took the photographs which accompanied Linda's articles in various journals.
For what-ever-the reason, I have had a story told to me and others have related other stories, Duer Selly Cranstoun left home never to return or heard from again. He officially changed his name in 1941 to Stewart Dixon Curtis and married Linda Winifred Adshead in Calgary, Alberta in 1951. Her father was a member of the Canadian parliament. Stewart served in the Canadian Army and was discharged on June 3, 1940. Stewart died on April 16, 1993 in Calgary, Alberta at the age of 77, no children.
- Vivian Eunice Cranstoun (1919-2010)
Vivian Eunice Cranstoun, the eldest daughter of Langford was born on December 8, 1919 in Toronto, Ontario and died on August 15, 2010 in Torrance, California.
 Vivian had a child out of wedlock and back in those days, a single girl with child was a definite no-no. The father was a man named James Raymond Taylor Alty who wanted to marry Vivian but because his mother thought there was colour in the Cranstoun family she denied her permission and they did not marry. They worked on it and were about to be married and Ada her mother said, “If you weren’t good enough the first time you won’t be good enough now” and denied Vivian.
Vivian had the baby and Ada found an adoptive mother, her boss, named Lightfoot. My father and I both wonder how much family information Ada took with her to her grave. I contacted my cousin after reading the History of the Island of Antigua and finding a pedigree for the Lightfoot family. She told me her family came from the US. I told her I had the proof that some Lightfoot’s went to the Carolina’s and walked up from the US and into Canada through the Underground Railroad but she would not accept my findings. To me it’s all just to coincidental, the name Lightfoot in our family and never ever having heard of it before and finding a pedigree for the family when I am searching for my family, I believe my Grandma Ada knew more than was ever spoken.
Vivian then married James Scatterly Booth Ritchie born November 6, 1919 and they had three children. James worked for Avro Canada and when they went out of business, thanks Prime Minister Diefenbaker’s lack of ability to stand up to the American’s, he was offered a position at Boeing Aircraft in California, as were many people from Avro Canada. He accepted the position and off they went to California.
Vivian and James had three children a daughter, and two boys (twins).
- Pearl Ruth Cranstoun (1921-1998)
 Pearl Ruth Cranstoun was born on May 8, 1921 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the second daughter of Langford Duer Cranstoun and Ada Mary Dawson. Pearl had a strong dislike of her father and his family background. I am told the reason she took the family papers from the Cranstoun home was to protect her siblings from the problems she had with the family history.
Pearl Ruth Cranstoun married Flight Lieutenant Alfred George Rowe, at the age of twenty, on March 7, 1942. Alfred George Rowe was killed in action over Essen, Germany on March 11, 1945 at the age of 24. They had no children.
Pearl then remarried to John Thomson born August 21, 1922 in Torry, Aberdeen, Scotland. They had two children. Uncle Jack, suffered from Post Traumatic Stress when he returned from WWII and lost every hair on his body, so there are very few pictures of him. One story, told to me by my father was that Uncle Jack was a baseball player, a pitcher and from what my father says a pretty good one. He used to practice throwing a cannonball up in the air and catching it with his throwing arm to strengthen it. One day Uncle Jack gave me that cannonball, which I used as a child to practice shot put, I still have that cannonball today.
Pearl passed away at her daughter's home in 1998 and John passed away in 1989, they are both buried at Pine Hills Cemetary in the military section in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada. They also had a son.
- Alan Dawson Cranstoun (1922-2010)
 Alan Dawson Cranstoun was born on 31 October, 1922 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the second son of Langford Duer Cranstoun and Ada Mary Dawson.
Alan Dawson Cranstoun (Past Master Huron-Bruce Lodge No. 611 and Very Worshipful Past Grand Steward of the Grand Lodge of Canada in The Province of Ontario) passed away peacefully surrounded by his family on August 29, 2010 at Lakeridge Health Oshawa.
Beloved husband of Janetta Adams Brownlee. Cherished father and loving Pupa of 8 grandchildren and 8 great-grandchildren.
Brother of Eric and Joan. Predeceased by his sisters Pearl Thompson and Vivian Ritchie.
Alan and Jan had 4 children, we are able to fill in the family tree further from this point on however as all children are living we will stop this branch here.
- Joan Ada Cranstoun (1927-?)
Joan Ada Cranstoun married and divorced John Cameron,
they had two daughters. Joan and Jan (Alan's wife)
were bridesmaids at my parent’s wedding. I remember
Joan and her family lived in the maisonettes at Warden
and Lawrence in  Scarborough
when I was a child. Her sister Vivian lived around
the corner from her. Joan and her family left and
went to Quebec so I do not know much about her.
She and her husband were divorced and she returned to Ontario.
There was some kind of family problem between her and her daughters, I know what happened, but it is not for here.
Her daughters had nothing to do with her in her later years, she developed dementia and ended up in a home and my cousin (Pearl's daughter) was her guardian.
Joan did contact my father late in life and it broke his heart, as he could not look after her, “She’s my sister, the last one, I have to.” He simply could not as he himself was in poor health.
We are able to fill in the family tree further from this point on however as all children are living we will stop this branch here.
- Eric William Cranstoun (1929-2016)
Eric William Cranstoun was born on April 9, 1929 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the third son of Langford Duer Cranstoun and Ada Mary Dawson.
 Eric William Cranstoun was married to Gladys Ellen Perrin on July 23, 1949 at Riverdale Presbyterian Church, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Although this site is about the Cranstoun side of the family, I would also learn what my mother never knew about her family and found quite an interesting family picture on her side. When I found her history I wished I had started this project while she was alive, as she would have been pleased to know she wasn't as alone in this world as she thought.)
Eric and Gladys had 6 children, 3 sons and 3 daughters, we are able to fill in the family tree further from this point on however as all children are living we will stop this branch here
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Parents
Langford Duer Cranstoun was the son of Langford Selly Cranstoun and Evelina Gibbons Harper.
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