109284 Cpl. Langford Duer Cranstoun born on September 28th, 1892, at Fitches Creek, Antigua, British West Indies.
The son of Langford Selly Cranstoun and Evelina Gibbons Harper, Langford was raised at Cassada Gardens, a sugar plantation in Antigua and his great-great-grandfather, David Cranstoun, was a member of the "Committee Of Correspondence", which was the original movement in Antigua to free the slaves. David later sold portions of his Buckley's Estate to his workers, creating Buckley's Village in Antigua.
Langford arrived in Canada in October 1912 and joined the Governor General's Body Guard soon after his arrival. On November 27th, 1914, he enlisted in the Canadian Army and attested, in Toronto, as Trooper No. 109284, 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles and attained the rank of Corporal. He was discharged on November 1st, 1918.
Surviving the war, Langford never spoke about it. Ever. He raised six children and his two eldest sons, Duer and Alan, joined the army for WWII. Langford worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs from 1924 to 1951. He passed away on September 18th, 1966, in Whitby, Ontario and lies at rest in the chapel of St James' Cemetery & Crematorium in Toronto.
Biography details and image credits: Steve Cranstoun