Of missing persons, few are more notoriously unique than New York State Supreme Court Justice Joseph Force Crater, who, on the evening of August 6, 1930, waved goodbye to a couple he had just dined with and vanished into the night. No credible explanation has been forthcoming—until now.
Meanwhile, Judge Crater was reportedly seen far and wide—as an amnesia victim in Missouri, a traveler on trains and ocean liners, a monk in a Mexican monastery, and so on and on. He was reported driving different cars in a variety of states—although he had never learned to drive and instead rode in taxicabs or his own chauffeured vehicle. Nightclub jokes proliferated, such as “Judge Crater, call your office.” And the phrase “to pull a Crater,”meaning to disappear, became common. Stated one writer, “No missing man has ever had more doubles” (Clapp [1961] 2017, 2). (See also Nash 1978, 189.)
Joseph Force Crater in 1929.
Image credit: AP Newsroom
Joseph Crater
Joseph Force Crater (1889–1930?) was born to upper middle-class parents who ran a profitable produce market in Easton, Pennsylvania, as well as owning several peach orchards nearby. Crater graduated from college with honors and subsequently obtained a degree in law from Columbia University. He obtained a position as a law clerk and also became a university instructor. He married Stella Mance Wheeler on March 16, 1917—after first helping her get a divorce! From 1920 to 1926, he was secretary to State Supreme Court Justice Robert F. Wagner. In addition to an apartment on Fifth Avenue, the Craters acquired a woodland cottage in Belgrade Lakes, Maine (Crater with Fraley 1964, 20–48).
Unfortunately, Crater was attracted to long-stemmed blossoms of the chorus-girl type, and among his mistresses he gave at least one, Constance Marcus, an allowance for her apartment for seven years, as well as helping her finance a small dress shop. Crater paid for his extravagances through increasing involvement in shady deals. Political influence having led to his being appointed a New York State Supreme Court Justice, a rebate of his first year’s salary (the customary price of such a purchased post) was reportedly paid in thousand dollar bills (Nash 1978, 175– 178; Clapp [1961] 2017, 3–5). At the time of his disappearance, Crater was facing election in November to secure a full fourteen-year term to that position.