>One question I want to ask you all is about a book I'm searching >for. >It is called Pathfinder Cranswick by Michael Cummings and was >published in 1962 by Kimber publishing, London. Alec (Pathfinder) Cranswick was my grandfather. My Dad and I each have a copy of the book (hard back 'novel' sized book - perhaps 200 pp?; Steve, I'll try to find out the whereabouts of any more) Incidentally, his squadron, now at RAF Whitton, Cambridgeshire, is naming five of it's buildings. Four will be named after the squadron's VCs and another will be named after Alec in view of his contributions. If I remember correctly, pilots were obliged to fly just one 'tour' (please excuse my military vocabulary - whatever the term is for a 'group' of missions); Alec was on his (I believe) fourth tour when he was killed, having volunteered to continue at the end of each previous tour. The naming ceremony is being held this Friday. A line of enquiry to kick off: I've heard that the name Cranswick derives from the three Crans brothers who left Scotland and each established a small village where they set up home. Thus was born Cranswick (hence, presumably, Hutton-Cranswick in Yorkshire) and then Cranston and Cransburgh (or equivalent local derivatives of wherever they laid their hats). I was contacted by someone a year ago who was constructing a Cranswick family tree and same that the name is listed in the Doomsday book. However, for no reason I can remember, I felt that the Crans bothers story was rather more recent than that. Also, the coat of arms (again, if I remember correctly) features a Crane (a type of bird) - hence, presumably, the Crans part of the name. However, Cranes are rare visitor to the UK, let alone Scotland (though distributions of many birds were, admittedly, historically v. different). So (making allowances for my poor knowledge/memory of several threads of this 'investigation'), is the Crans brothers story an apocryphal tale of the origins of the Cranswick name? Peter Peter Cranswick Head of WeBS Secretariat Head of Waterfowl Monitoring Unit The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust Slimbridge Glos GL2 7BT UK PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF TEL NOS Tel +44 (0) 1453 891931 (direct line) +44 (0) 1453 891900 x265 +44 (0) 1453 890333 (in case of difficulties) Fax +44 (0) 1453 891901 WWW: www.wwt.org.uk Help save wildfowl and wetlands by becoming a member of WWT