The Tragic End of a Seattle Logger
After years of success followed by a swift decline in fortune, a once-prosperous logger faces the ruin of his livelihood and his mental health.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Yesterday morning, it was reported about the streets that D. W. Crooks, a well-known logger residing at Salmon Bay, had committed suicide by hanging himself. Further inquiry proved the rumor to be a stern reality. Mr. Crooks had been engaged in logging on the Sound for a number of years, and for a long time success seemed to crown his every move. Finally, the tides seemed to turn against him; booms would break, prices would go down just as he was ready to sell, and creditors would sue him when he was least able to meet their demands. A few months ago, he quit logging and settled on his place at Salmon Bay with his family, but the trouble did not end. Harassed by debt and surrounded by embarrassments, he was driven almost to insanity. According to witness testimony, he had demonstrated symptoms of temporary insanity of late. It is supposed that while laboring under one of these depressed spells, he took his own life. When found, he was hanging from a beam in an old cabin not far from his dwelling. On his person was found only a few dollars in silver. Coroner H. R. Bagley had the remains brought to the city for an inquest. Deceased was about 53 years old and came to this country from Flamborough, Canada; he leaves a family in Canada to mourn his untimely end.
“Finally the tides seemed to turn against him, and every move he made appeared to prove disastrous to his pecuniary welfare.”
This story from 1878 echoes the modern vulnerability of local workers caught in the boom-and-bust cycles of the Pacific Northwest economy. Like today’s residents struggling with the high costs of living and housing insecurity, Crooks’ story highlights how easily professional ruin can spiral into personal crisis.
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