William Crossing William Crossing (1847–1928) was born in Plymouth, November 14, 1847. He acquired a taste for antiquities from his mother and from early youth he was fond of Dartmoor, his early associations centring around the neighbourhood of Sheepstor, Walkhampton, Meavy, and Yannadon. After leaving school at Plymouth, he went to the Independent College at Taunton, and then returned to finish his education at the Mannamead School. He became a writer and documenter of Dartmoor and Dartmoor life. In 1872 he married and settled down at Splatton near Brent. In the previous year he began making notes about his rambles; after his marriage he seems to have become more methodical, and to have decided to write a book descriptive of the moorland district. Today he is considered one of the best contemporary authorities on Dartmoor and its antiquities, having made it the subject of his life's work. He was one of the earliest members of the Dartmoor Preservation Association, joining it imm...