James Gordon Crowdy (2 July 1847 – 16 December 1918) was an English first-class

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er and clergyman.

Life and first-class cricket

The son of George Frederick Crowdy, he was born in July 1847 at Highworth, Wiltshire. He was educated at

Rugby School Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. Up ...

, where he played for the school cricket team. From Rugby, he matriculated to

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road. Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...

. After graduating from Oxford, he was appointed a

minor canon A minor canon is a member of staff on the establishment of a cathedral or a collegiate church. In at least one foundation the post may be known as "priest-vicar". Minor canons are clergy and take part in the daily services but are not part of t ...

Winchester Cathedral The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...

in 1872, a post he held until 1890. In the same year as his appointment at Winchester, Crowdy made his debut in

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

for the

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

against

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. He later played

county cricket Inter-county cricket matches are known to have been played since the early 18th century, involving teams that are representative of the historic counties of England and Wales. Since the late 19th century, there have been two county championship ...

for

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

on six occasions between 1875 and 1884. In seven first-class matches, he scored 112 runs at an

average In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7, ...

of 9.33, with a highest score of 21. Commenting in ''Scores and Biographies'',

Arthur Haygarth Arthur Haygarth (4 August 1825 – 1 May 1903) was a noted amateur cricketer who became one of cricket's most significant historians. He played first-class cricket for the Marylebone Cricket Club and Sussex between 1844 and 1861, as well as num ...

noted that Crowdy was "a good hitter and field generally at point or cover-point". Crowdy was later appointed rector of

Sherfield on Loddon Sherfield on Loddon—formerly ''Sherfield upon Loddon''—is a village and civil parish in the English county of Hampshire. It is located at , approximately south of Reading and north of Basingstoke. At the 2001 census it had a pop ...

in 1890, alongside being an honorary canon and

precentor A precentor is a person who helps facilitate worship. The details vary depending on the religion, denomination, and era in question. The Latin derivation is ''præcentor'', from cantor, meaning "the one who sings before" (or alternatively, "first ...

at Winchester Cathedral. He held the rectorship at Sherfield until 1912. He died at Winchester in December 1918,The late Rev. J. Gordon Crowdy. ''Faringdon Advertiser and Vale of the White Horse Gazette''. 4 January 1919. p. 2 with a memorial to him being erected on the wall inside Winchester Cathedral.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Crowdy, James 1847 births 1918 deaths People from Highworth People educated at Rugby School Alumni of Wadham College, Oxford 19th-century English Anglican priests English cricketers Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers Hampshire cricketers 20th-century English Anglican priests Cricketers from Wiltshire