Henry was born in Blackburn, Lancashire, on 28th September, 1887, and baptised at St. Thomas' Church, (now demolished), on 2nd October. He was the eldest of four children born to Edward Critchley, a builder and joiner, and his wife, Mary. Henry followed in his Father's footsteps and was already apprenticed as a carpenter and joiner by 1901, when he was 13 years old.
