The Crowe Family
The Crowes or Crows were minor Northumbrian gentry and venturers until Christopher made his fortune in Italy as the British Consul in Livorno (Leghorn). He married a King’s granddaughter (albeit from the wrong side of the blanket), and in 1722 bought Kiplin Hall from his step-son Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore. It became their family home for the next 146 years, as Christopher and his descendants purchased neighbouring estates and developed superior methods of cultivation.