Mr J.J. (Joseph John) Crosfield was a garden designer, horticulturalist and philanthropist active in the early-20th century.
He was born on 11 April 1866 in Altrincham, Cheshire, England. Around 1925 he became the owner of the house and garden at Embley Park, Romsey, Hampshire, England, a childhood home of Florence Nightingale, to which he made alterations. Together with his wife, Lilian, he often hosted events in honour of Nightingale at the property. In 1932 he served as the High Sheriff of Hampshire.
Saplings from the gardens at Embley were donated by Crosfield to the 1939 World's Fair. Crosfield died a year later on 9 May 1940 at Embley Park. He was buried in the churchyard of St. Margaret's Church, East Wellow in Hampshire.
Sources:
'A Tribute to Florence Nightingale at the World's Fair, New York, U.S.A.', British Journal of Nursing, September 1939, p. 241 <http://rcnarchive.rcn.org.uk/data/VOLUME087-1939/page241-volume87-september1939.pdf> [accessed 31 December 2007]
'F.N', The American Journal of Nursing, Vol. 37, No. 11. (Nov., 1937), pp. 1198-1200 <http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0002-936X%28193711%2937%3A11%3C1198%3AFN%3E2.0.CO%3B2-0> [accessed 31 December 2007]
'The Nursing Profession Loses a True Friend', British Journal of Nursing, June 1940, pp. 98-100 <http://rcnarchive.rcn.org.uk/data/VOLUME088-1940/page098-volume88-june1940.pdf> [accessed 31 December 2007]
The Royal College of Nursing, RCN Archives and Catalogue, Historical Nursing Journals, <http://rcnarchive.rcn.org.uk/cgi-bin/webglimpse.cgi?ID=1&maxchars=500&query=crosfield> [accessed 31 December 2007]