Harry Albert Craven Griffiths
- Born: 30 Sep 1866, Deansgate, Manchester, Lancashire
- Christened: 28 Oct 1866, Manchester, St Mary, St Denys and St George
- Marriage (1): Annie Hester Bodenham on 21 Jun 1893 in Much Wenlock, Shropshire, England
- Marriage (2): Mable Sawkins in 1918 in Ross Memorial Church, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
- Died: 23 Mar 1935, Ord Street West Perth, Western Australia aged 68
- Buried: Karrakatta, Nedlands City, Western Australia, Australia
 General Notes:
https://www.parliament.wa.gov.au/parliament/library/MPHistoricalData.nsf/(Lookup)/63D4013B49C33CD7482577E50028A619?OpenDocument
In 1866, in the industrial heart of Manchester, Harry Albert Griffiths was born and baptised at Manchester Cathedral. His early life was modest: by 1891 he was working as a grocer's assistant in Shropshire, living with his uncle and aunt Thomas and Jane Cooke along with his younger brother Ernest . But Harry's destiny would take him far beyond shopkeeping.
By the mid-1890s, gold fever had gripped Western Australia. Harry emigrated to the colony with his young wife Annie Hester Bodenham of Much Wenlock, Shropshire, and their first child, Douglas Harry Griffiths. Tragically, little Douglas, only three years old, died in Coolgardie in 1897 - just months after the family arrived.
Despite this heartbreak, Harry carved out a new life. He and Annie had two more sons, Ernest Norman and Roy Neil Craven. Annie herself died in 1911, buried in her own grave at Karrakatta Cemetery.
Harry eventually remarried. His second wife, Mabel White (née Sawkins), had been widowed young and was working as his secretary in the Western Australian Parliament. They married in 1918. Together they had three daughters - Annie Hilda, Nancy Craven, and possibly Mabel Ada Marigold - though some details remain to be confirmed.
Harry Albert Griffiths rose to prominence as a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly. Newspaper obituaries in 1935 praised him as a "true Manchester man" who championed old-age pensions and relief for struggling farmers. He died aged 68, buried with Mable at Karrakatta. After his death, Mabel briefly carried on his political legacy before her own decline in health following a tragic road accident.
Harry married Annie Hester Bodenham on 21 Jun 1893 in Much Wenlock, Shropshire, England. (Annie Hester Bodenham was born on 21 Mar 1872 in Much Wenlock, Shropshire, England and died on 15 Jul 1911 in Perth, Western Australia.)
Harry next married Mable Sawkins in 1918 in Ross Memorial Church, Perth, Western Australia, Australia. (Mable Sawkins was born on 7 Apr 1883 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and died on 24 May 1966 in Home of Peace, Subiaco, Western Australia.)
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