The 'Reverend' Who Fed on Seattle’s Faith

Fred A. Jenkins, alias 'Rev. S. J. Frederick,' who had been posing as a Universalist minister for the last six weeks, has 'skipped' for parts unknown after making himself unpleasantly notorious. Jenkins first appeared in Seattle about the first of the year, securing the names of ladies connected with the Universalist association and representing himself as a minister seeking a missionary field. The ladies, in their eagerness to start a church, gave him every possible aid. He engaged a hall in the Masonic Temple and held services throughout January, increasing attendance every Sunday.

While playing the part of a pious man, Jenkins was a committed gourmand. He lived in a house on Columbia Street but made it a point to eat six square meals a day: three at home and three at the Richelieu restaurant on credit. He bought a $375 piano on a small down payment, secured the services of a widow as a housekeeper, and charmed real estate men into showing him property for a church. When the real Rev. W. H. Shinn—who knew Jenkins from his past in Dakota—was reported to be coming to Seattle, Jenkins fled. He left behind a postal card claiming his 'wife' and 'fiancee' were dead or ill in Utica, NY. It was later revealed he had abandoned his wife and five-year-old child in Fargo, North Dakota, where he was known to have 'manias' for buying horses, building houses, and, most recently, preaching.