The Strange Desecration of Timmerman’s Grave
After two years in the earth, the body of an executed murderer was dragged from its resting place and anchored in the river.
Goldendale Courier: Last Sunday it was reported that Timmerman, who was hanged two years ago for the murder of a man named Sterling, had been taken from his grave. The report was thought to be unfounded, but on investigation pieces of the coffin were found scattered about, and a trail could be seen where his dead body had been dragged from the cemetery to the river, a distance of several hundred yards. On Monday morning, a ripple of excitement was caused when the report came in that Timmerman’s body had been found in a large sack, tied to some brush and anchored in the river. The body was taken from the water, and also from the sack. The remains were in a state of decomposition, one arm being off at the elbow, and also the head. A guard was placed over the remains and the coroner sent for, who arrived late in the evening. He did not deem it necessary to hold an inquest, and the remains were re-interred in the cemetery. The whole affair seems to be shrouded in mystery, and no clue to the perpetrator of the deed can be found.
“The whole affair seems to be shrouded in mystery, and no clue to the perpetrator of the deed can be found.”
Grave robbing was a grim reality of the frontier era, often linked to medical study or deep-seated local vendettas. While modern forensics and cemetery security have changed the nature of such crimes, the story reflects the era's visceral obsession with the boundary between the living and the dead.
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