The house itself, a red brick Victorian villa, was originally built in 1864 for a wealthy local businessman, John Bury.<\/p>\n
Fast forward nearly a century and it was bought by Russell Crowe\u2019s great uncle, Frank Crowe, who ran a successful fruit and veg company called Crofruit.<\/p>\n
Mario and Gill found the link with the Crowe family when they were studying the deeds for Hillbury while researching the history of the property for their anniversary celebrations.<\/p>\n
The document signed by Frank Crowe on May 31, 1954, reveals he paid \u00a36,000 for the property.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ceidiog.com\/pr\/files\/2025\/07\/15-5-25-Hillbury-House-7.jpg\")
<\/a>Pendine Park ; Hillbury House; Pictured are the deeds to Hillbury House . Picture Mandy Jones<\/p><\/div>\n
Mario said: \u201cWe were amazed to find the connection Russell Crowe and did a bit of research.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt seems Russell\u2019s great grandparents, Fred and Kezia, emigrated to Canada in June 1925 along with 12 of their 13 children.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis grandfather, John, stayed behind to run Crofruit. He was also a member of Grove Park School\u2019s water polo team. His older brother, Frank, returned from Canada in 1927 to help John run the business.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt seems that John decided to emigrate himself, to New Zealand where he married and had two children, David and Alex, Russell\u2019s father. The family later moved to Australia when Russell was still a child.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, Frank stayed put in Wrexham and had a family of his own and bought Hillbury in 1954.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Crowes lived there until 1965 when they sold Hillbury for \u00a312,500 to the Sisters of Nazareth who established a care home there, with Frank more than doubling his money and making a tidy profit in the process.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gill Kreft added: \u201cWe knew that when Wrexham\u2019s football club was taken over by a couple of other Hollywood stars, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, Russell announced his connection with Wrexham on social media, saying that his family came from here.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s clearly proud to be associated with Wrexham and rightly so, it\u2019s a fantastic place and now it\u2019s got a great football team again.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf he\u2019s ever back watching Wrexham at the Racecourse, we\u2019ll try make sure he comes to visit his family\u2019s home.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re also hoping that some of the long lost Crowe relatives might get in touch so we can invite them to a special celebration at Hillbury.\u201d<\/p>\n
News of the Crowe connection has delighted Cindy Clutton, the manager of both Hillbury and Gwern Alyn next door which became Pendine\u2019s first care home in 1985.<\/p>\n
Cindy said: \u201cIt was a total surprise when I heard about\u00a0 the link with Russell Crowe because you never think that anybody that famous would be connected to Hillbury.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would be really nice if he could come and visit \u2013 we\u2019d delighted if he came to Wrexham to retrace his family roots.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019d be more than welcome \u2013 we\u2019d give him a cup of tea and a Welsh Cake.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen he\u2019s a bit older, and perhaps needs a bit of help, there\u2019s always a warm Welsh welcome for him here.<\/p>\n
\u201cWrexham has got a lot of stars these days thanks to Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney taking over the football club but there\u2019s nobody bigger than Russell.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve all really put Wrexham on the map. It\u2019s really exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mario and Gill opened Gwern Alyn after struggling to find suitable accommodation for their grandparents.<\/p>\n
Now, four decades later, the couple operate nine care homes in Wrexham and Caernarfon, with 440 beds and more than 860 employees.<\/p>\n
Any relatives of the Crowe family who are interested in visiting Hillbury should contact Pendine Park by emailing Ceidiog Hughes at ceidiog@ceidiog.com<\/a> or ringing him on 07958 497592<\/strong>.<\/p>\n