DANIEL, CLARKE, ANDREWS, CROISSETTE, WOHLMANN, WOODRUFF & RELATED FAMILIES
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Birth registered Edmonton 3a, p. 365, December quarter 1899. His death was registered December
?1978 (to be checked) Hendon 13, p. 0533. Freeman of the City of London, Gold spinner. He and his parents appear in the 1901 census with only one 's'. His daughter wrote about him 30th July 2003: EDWIN LESLIE JOHN LE CROISSETTE - 1899-1978 My father was the older son of Edwin Mortimer (1868-1942) and Melita (nee Sibthorp) (1872-1926). His younger brother being Alexander George Mortimer (1903-1976). When he was 13 years old my grandfather removed him from school and apprenticed him to a tailor - this was to provide funds for his brother's future. Until my grandfather's time the family had been reasonably well off, but unfortunately, my grandfather frittered away the family fortunes and understandably, was not very popular. He was known irreverently as 'ten waistcoat Ted' because he wore a lot of clothes. My father was very unhappy at this turn of events and soon left the tailor and apprenticed himself to a Mr Tabor (Anglicized from Taboriski) of the Cleveland Art Metal Works, off Mortimer Street, Tottenham Court Road (near the Middlesex Hospital), who was a skilled craftsman and taught my father all he knew. This company did a lot of church work, from altar sets to wrought iron gates, items for companies around London and private work, ie silver coffee sets etc. During the second world war a bomb fell on a large restaurant behind the Cleveland Art Metal Works at lunch time and my father and fellow workers watched the building collapse around them. Fortunately none of them were hurt, although many people had been killed. When Mr Tabor's son Simon took over the business, my father did not get on with him and as he was poorly paid, was persuaded by my brother Kenneth to join him at the G.E.C., North Wembley, in their X-Ray Department, assembling X-Ray equipment, during the mid 1950s. After a few years at the G.E.C. he left and went to work for Handley Page on the prototype of the Victor bomber, until he retired in 1966 at the age of 66. Following my mother's death in 1968, he helped out in a café for a short time. In 1975, my brother Kenneth was then working for a company called Soil Equipment doing precision engineering on items such as seismographs and was asked if he knew of any good engineers, as they were having difficulty finding any. My brother said he did know of one, my father, but he was 74. He was asked to bring him along and after being interviewed, went to work for them full-time. As my father was only 5'1" tall they made a special bench for him and made sure the apprentices supplied him with cups of tea. He worked there very happily until Christmas 1977, when he was told he had terminal cancer and must leave immediately as he had only six months to live. He died ten months later, a month before his 79th birthday. His daughter says Edwin made a wrought-iron lantern for NatWest, a chandelier for South African House, and a silver pen-and-pencil set for Lord Reith, former Director General of the BBC, a gift for his retirement. Before the second world war he made part of the altar set for the Catholic Cathedral in Liverpool. It wasn't used, but allowed to deteriorate. Just before he died he showed his grandson his work in London. |