Brief Overview of his Life
Francis Arnold Lejeune was born in 1888, the seventh of eight children borne by Jane Louisa Maclaren Lejeune. Arnold was educated first in Withington (Ladybarn House) and then Sedburgh in Cumbria. He left school in 1906 and in 1907 left England for British Columbia, Canada where, except for brief trips back to England (speculation: accompany sister Marion and baby Ruth in 1912, and to marry in 1914), remained there until returning to England in 1916 to enlist and join in WWI.
Arnold was gassed in Ypres and returned to England. He was discharged from the Army in 1920 and in 1924 he and his family (wife Gladys, daughter Diana Mary and son Michael Leonard) emigrated to Santa Barbara, California, USA where he lived for the remainder of his life.
<short explanation of his interest in English language, teaching, publishing etc>
Arnold became the founding Headmaster of Crane Country Day School in Santa Barbara. The school was founded in 1928 by William D. Crane and his wife Kitty. Initially for boys, subsequently also for girls, it offers a unique brand of education for children from Kindergarten to Grade 8.
Silk Worms and a Redwood at Crane School
Arnold died in 1977 at the age of 88.
Photo Gallery containing photos at different stages of FAL’s life
Life Events Timeline (will contain links to subpages for children)
| Year | Month/Day | Event/Source | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1888 | April 2 | Birth | Withington, Manchester, England |
| 1891 | Census | Withington, Manchester, England | |
| 1893 | Kindergarten | Ladybarn House, Manchester, England (link to photo of Russell and Arnold) | |
| 1901 | Census | Withington, Manchester, England | |
| 1902 | School | Sedburgh, Cumbia, England | |
| 1906 | Ended School | Sedburgh, Cumbia, England | |
| 1907 | Traveled | British Columbia, Canada | |
| 1910 | Working | Delta, BC on the Fraser River | |
| 1911 | Census | Yale-Cariboo, BC | |
| 1912 | Traveled | Liverpool; Post Office, Armstrong, BC | |
| 1913 | Introduced to Gladys Brown | Vancouver, BC | |
| 1914 | Traveled | Liverpool, England | |
| 1914 | February 12 | Marriage | Gladys Brown in Edinburgh, Scotland |
| 1914 | Traveled | Galiano Island, Farm work for Max Enke | |
| 1916 | Traveled | Liverpool, England to serve in army | |
| 1916 | Enlisted | Officer Candidate School | |
| 1916 | Deployed | Belgium, Forward Observer, Artillery | |
| 1916 | August 16 | Birth of Daughter | Birth of Diana Mary Lejeune |
| 1917 | Gassed | First use of mustard gas, Ypres, Belgium | |
| 1917 | Hospitalized | Lung damage from gas | |
| 1917 | Instructor | Army Training Center, Aldershot | |
| 1918 | March 22 | Birth of Son | Birth of Michael Leonard Lejeune |
| 1920 | Discharged | Royal Garrison Artillery | |
| 1924 | Emigrated | Santa Barbara, California, USA | |
| 1925 | July 26 | Birth of Son | Birth of Patrick Arnold Lejeune |
| 1930 | Census | Santa Barbara, California, USA | |
| 1940 | Census | Santa Barbara, California, USA | |
| 1940 | The Growing Vocabulary published | ||
| 1943 | January 1 | Published | The Latin Key to Better English etc. |
| 1953 | Retired | Cate School. Continued tutoring students | |
| 1971 | January 1 | 3rd Edition | The Growing Vocabulary etc. |
| 1977 | September 3 | Died | Santa Barbara, California, USA |
Gallery of remaining photos
Links to any other media of interest
The Marion Project - A Family History 