Although not a Crathorne by name, Mary Crathorne and Joseph Bywater's son William Henry, born in 1829, emigrated to India in 1848. Just 2 years after his mother's early death, William went to London and joined up the East India Company Army on December 27th 1846. He trained at Warley Barracks, Essex, during 1847 and on 7th April 1848 he left England forever, arriving in Madras three months later.  Mary had been born on 31 May 1789, the daughter of Joseph Crathorne and Ann Cliff, of Kings Norton, Birmingham.  

William Bywater rose through the ranks of the Madras Army quite rapidly, becoming a 2nd Corporal at 20, and married Margaret in Madras in about 1853. They were based at Trichinopoly (now called Tiruchirapalli, in Tamil Nadu) where their children were born, and by the early 1860's William had reached the rank of Sub-conductor (Warrant Officer) in the Public Works Department, and was named in the Officer Lists of the Madras Army. He was involved in building - mainly bridges and roads - and it was while he was based in a place called Pamban that tragedy struck. Pamban is on the most south-eastern tip of India, near Sri Lanka (in Ramanathapuram, Tamil Nadu, some 125 miles south of Trichinopoly). William Henry Bywater died of cholera on 23 March 1866 aged just 37. It seems likely that the news of his death had an effect on his father Joseph, as just 3 months later (mail boats from Madras to England taking nearly 3 months to carry the news) Joseph became ill and died from bronchitis on 8 June 1866. He is buried at Key Hill Cemetery, Icknield Street, Hockley, Birmingham.

The Rock Fort Temple at Tiruchirapalli, India

William and Margaret's daughter Emma Caroline (born 1858) was named after two of William's sisters - Emma and Caroline Bywater. She went on to marry Charles Whale in 1876 in Trichinopoly. Tragedy was to strike again - twice this time, as first Charles died at sea, then Emma herself died of cholera at the age of just 32, leaving their 3 daughters orphaned. William's wife Margaret also died soon after, aged 53. Thankfully the girls (Florence, Alice and Gertrude Whale) were looked after by their uncle George Crathorne Bywater, William's only surviving son. George had several of his own children and lived until 1936 in Trichinopoly. 

One of the orphaned girls, Gertrude Whale married a George Etches in 1923 in Madurai: their daughter Phyllis Etches (1910-1982) married Donald Dalrymple Johnson (1903 -1993) in May 1929 in Trichinopoly, India (his side descended from the Dalrymples of Stair in Scotland). They had 6 children, of whom only 5 survived: George, Guy, Ursula, Chris and Wendy. As the Empire was coming to a close and India became independent, so Donald and Phyllis took the decision to leave India. They arrived in England in April 1955 and settled in London. Their son Guy Johnson (born August 1934 in Trichinopoly) married Marcella Ficotto (born July 1934 Venice Italy) in April 1965 in Kensington, and they went on to have three children, all now living in the south-east of England. However, many other family members opted to stay in India - including the Bywaters - while others ventured onwards to Australia. 

Thanks to information from Stephen Johnson, November 2009 

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