On Account of Reverend Crouch

Oysterville Baptist Church Ledger Page, 1893

Oysterville Baptist Church Ledger, 1893

Among the bits and pieces of “stuff” in our house that are yet to be turned over to the Special Collections Department of the Washington State Historical Society is an account ledger for the Oysterville Baptist Church.  It spans the years 1879 (before the church was built) through 1895. Of particular interest to me are the pages devoted to payments made to Reverend Josiah Crouch.

Crouch, of course, is the infamous preacher who served at the church the first year it was built and left town in a hurry after his wife was drowned on the Willapa under questionable circumstances.  They lived here in this house which was then the parsonage and it is Mrs. Sarah Crouch who is our beloved resident ghost.

Four pages of the ledger are devoted to Mr. Crouch.  The first is titled “Copy of Subscription of the Members of Oysterville Church and their Pastor.”  It goes on to say:

We the Undersigned hereby agree to pay the amount set opposite our names toward the salary of Rv. Josiah Crouch for his services as our Pastor for one year, said year beginning Nov. 1st 1892 and ending Nov. 1/93.  We further agree to pay our stated amounts of subscription quarterly on the dates that it becomes due.
D.O. Parmeter  $40.00
S.S. Slingerland  $25.00
R.H. Espy  $150.00
Gordon G. Wahr  $20.00
A. Wirt  $10.00
John Osborne  $10.00

There follow three pages of notes concerning amounts advanced to Rev. Crouch for items of furniture – Bedroom Set (Herbert Clark’s) $37; 2 chairs, $10;46 yds Carpet at 1.50 pr yd, $69 – and so forth for a total on February 11th of $146.45.

1902

Oysterville Baptist Church 1902

His wife was drowned on July 15, 1893.  There was much concern regarding the incident.  The body was exhumed, there was a coroner’s court convened, and it was concluded that there was not enough evidence to hold Crouch for trial. However, according to the jury foreman,  ”We were at the time unanimous in our opinion that it would hardly be just to hold him for trial, and were as firmly of opinion that we could not declare him innocent.  Hence we aimed to construct our verdict so that the world might know that we entertained doubts.”

There is no record in the ledger that the pastor’s contract was renewed or even if he fulfilled his first year’s duties.  According to Tommy Nelson who was a teenager at the time, the good people of his congregation were not happy with Mr. Crouch and “they made it too hot for him and he left town.”  So far the record is silent on exactly when that happened.

3 Responses to “On Account of Reverend Crouch”

  1. Nancy says:

    Although I know most of the story of Rev. and Mrs. Crouch, I had a different “feeling” as i let the story penetrate. So much we do not understand about the spirit world. Having experienced a visit from Sarah when I was a guest in the house, I am a believer in ghostly happenings, and occasionally find myself saying, when a something mysterious has occurred in my home, “Guess Mrs. Crouch is visiting us….” Since the concept of time is merely a construct of the human mind….enough said.

  2. Stephanie Frieze says:

    I still believe this woukd make a great murder mystery!

  3. Linda J says:

    What was Nancy’s experience? Do tell.

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