February 12, 2012

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The Missingist Man in New York: Judge Crater

June 7, 2010 By

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Newspaper article on Judge Crater's disappearance. Did he mastermind this all along?

It is the lengthiest unsolved missing persons case in the history of New York City.  Missing Persons File No. 13595 pertains to a prominent judge who disappeared without a trace on August 6th, 1930.  Despite 16,000 leads and the discovery of a shady private life, the whereabouts of Judge Joseph Force Crater was never found.  He simply became known as the “Missingest Man in New York”.

Born in Easton, Pennsylvania on January 5, 1889, Joseph Force Crater had an impressive educational record.  He graduated from the Lafayette College and the Columbia University Law School.  By 1913, he was practicing law in New York City and would marry Stella Wheeler in 1916.  The marriage occurred only a year after she retained him as her attorney in a divorce trial.

Joseph Crater began to dabble in politics and eventually became president of the Democratic Party Club in Manhattan.  His business dealings with the corrupt Tammany Hall leadership, which was the democratic political machine for New York city politics, allowed his law practice to become very successful.  So successful that he was appointed as an Associate Justice of the New York Supreme Court by the then-Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt, in April, 1930.

Judge Crater was a tall, big boned, 41 year old man who had a liking for showgirls and fine clothing.  His friends would remember the last day they saw him as wearing a brown double breasted pinstripe suit, gray spats, a high collar and straw Panama hat.

The story begins in July, 1930 when Judge Crater and his spouse were vacationing at their summer cabin in Belgrade Lakes, Maine.  Stella stated he received a mysterious phone call in which he wouldn’t explain.  His only words were that he had to return back to the city “to straighten those fellows out.”

The investigation revealed that it wasn’t business dealings that he was conducting.  Instead, he traveled home and gave his maid the next few days off.  He then traveled to Atlantic City with his showgirl girlfriend, Sally Lou Ritz.  He returned to Maine on August 1st, but then traveled back to the city on August 3rd.  He informed his wife prior to leaving that he would return to Maine by her birthday on August 9th.

After arriving in New York City, he met with his assistant, Joseph Mara, on the morning of August 6th, spending a few hours going through his personal files in the courthouse chambers.  He had Mara cash two checks totaling $5,150 (in 2010, this figure would equal more than $67,000) and also took some campaign funds totaling $20,000.  He and Mara then carried two locked briefcases to Judge Crater’s apartment at which time he gave Mara the rest of the afternoon off.

That evening, Judge Crater purchased one ticket for the broadway comedy show, Dancing Partner, at the Belasco Theatre.

After purchasing the ticket, Judge Crater joined his showgirl girlfriend, Sally Lou Ritz and his attorney friend for a dinner at Billy Haas’s Chophouse on West 45th St.  According to the attorney, Judge Crater seemed to be in good spirits.

Judge Crater excused himself from the group was last seen walking away from the restaurant heading towards the broadway show at 9:15 PM.  Nobody would see or hear from him again.

There wasn’t any concern until ten days later when Judge Crater’s spouse called his office.  She was worried because she didn’t hear from him and he missed her birthday.  His office thought he was with her on vacation, and she thought he was away on business.  It was only after he failed to show up for his opening day in court on August 25th that the police were notified.

Thousands of leads were followed through, but none of them led to Judge Crater.  Initially, the money the Judge withdrew was a significant part of the investigation, but the money was eventually discovered in his apartment in January 1931.  Also found inside was a note by Judge Crater.  The note simply said “I am very weary.  Joe.”

Judge Crater’s disappearance made headline news and even sparked various slang phrases such “to pull a Crater” if someone cannot be found or is ducking responsibilities.  Nightclub comedians would often use the phrase “Judge Crater, call your office” as part of their act.

Many theories have surfaced as to what happened to Judge Crater.  Here are some of the more popular ones:

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