Creffield and the Holy Rollers made page one headlines from 1903 to 1907. When I was researching Holy Rollers: Murder and Madness in Oregon’s Love Cult I spent months transcribing hundreds of articles. I’m not sure why I was so obsessive. Maybe it was my way of immersing my self into a cult without joining one. Anyway, I’m posting them all for those who are really interested in the story, or are interested the history of journalism, or are interested in how a scandalous story played out in the "media" in a by gone era. Since I no doubt made typos and unconsciously corrected papers' typos, these web pages should not be cited in anything serious (e.g. your dissertation). For such projects they should only be used as starting points and you should refer to the original sources. If you want a shorter version of the story, buy my book. Enjoy.
Evening Telegram (Portland)
July 14, 1906: Family
Deserts The Murderess
Evening Telegram (Portland) 7/14/1906 p1
Family Deserts The Murderess
Esther Mitchell Must Trust To Lawyers Named By Court
First Degree Murder
Mrs. Creffield To Be Jointly Charged With Crime By
District Attorney
Brothers Endeavoring To Raise Money To Bring Victim’s
Body To Newberg.
[Telegram Coast Special.]
SEATTLE, Wash., July 14.--Esther Mitchell’s family will do nothing for her defense. she must trust to lawyers appointed by the court for
her defense, so far as they are concerned. Two brothers, Fred and Perry, made
this statement this morning, and similar statements of the intention of her
father brother, Hurley, reached them from Dayton, Wash. They will not even go
to see her, as they feel they could not, although realizing that the girl is
their own sister.
Esther Mitchell and Mrs.
Creffield will be charged with murder in the first degree by Prosecuting
Attorney Mackintosh Monday morning and will be tried about the first of
October. Dr. Loughary on behalf of the state is observing the women daily, and
it is expected that he will testify that they are fully responsible for their
acts.
Two boys endeavoring to
raise money enough to take George Mitchell’s body to Newberg, Or., where they desire to bury it beside the grave of their
mother, hope to leave Seattle with the body tomorrow noon.
Mrs. Maud Creffield and
Esther Mitchell alone conspired for and planned the assassination of George
Mitchell. They plotted his death for weeks in the event he should be acquitted
by the jury, and had settled upon all points. none of
the other Holy Rollers in Seattle were taken into the confidence of the two
women because they feared a leak if the conspiracy included too many. Mrs. Burgess E. Starr, of Portland, in particular was feared by the
two women. She talks too much they say, and that is the reason they took
precautions to prevent her learning that they had planned to avenge “Joshua”
Creffield’s death. Neither of the two plotters doubted Mrs. Starr’s loyalty to
the “cause,” but each feared she might let slip some hint of the plan.
“Esther kept telling me all
the time that we must not tell Mrs. Starr anything about it,” said Mrs.
Creffield, yesterday afternoon.
WIDOW ASSUMES ALL BLAME
Mrs. Creffield assumed all
the responsibility for Mitchell’s murder with the same nonchalance that she
walked out of her cell this morning to face the photographers. Her only concern
then was that she had not been notified and had no time to put on a collar.
Last night Chief of Police
Wappenstein was determined to round up all the Holy Rollers, but he had a
conference with Sheriff Smith at noon today and the two officers, acting under
advice from the prosecuting attorney, decided not to make any immediate
arrests. The prosecuting attorney knows where Frank Hurt is and can get him at
any time. For the present that is sufficient. Chief Wappenstein and Sheriff
Smith decided of their own motion, however, to drive the Holy Rollers out of
King County.
Dr. McLeish, former
superintendent, and Dr. J. B. Loughary, former assistant superintendent of the
Steilacoom Asylum, examined both women today for traces of insanity. Dr.
Loughary saw Miss Mitchell last night. The two physicians will be given every
opportunity to see the women frequently and will make a study of their cases.
The state has abandoned any idea held immediately after the shooting of George
Mitchell of treating the women as insane persons and is determined upon a
vigorous prosecution. The two insanity experts are in the case to further this
plan. No statement from them will be asked until their investigations are over.
“I am positive that no
insanity exists in any member of the Mitchell family, that is any that I have
seen, and our office will make a hard fight against this plea,” said Deputy
Prosecuting Attorney Miller in a statement tonight.
“All stories that she was to
become the mother of a new Christ was denied to me by the girls. I investigated
these charges while in Portland and received corroboration of Esther’s
statement. She stated on several occasions that her brother had no reason for
shooting Creffield on this account.
“I would like to see her,”
she said. “I volunteered to shoot George.” Then, apparently anxious to shield
Mrs. Creffield further, she added: “She did not want me to, but we knew that
she could not do it for they were afraid of her, so I did it.
DISGUSTED BY JAIL SIGHTS
Esther Mitchell is not
concerned at all over the prospect of punishment, and looks forward to hanging
without the slightest fear apparently.
Last night both women turned
away from all newspaper men, refusing to give more
than a passing word to anyone save the chief of police. Esther spent the night
alone in her cell, and Mrs. Creffield was confined in the women’s tank,
surrounded by the off-scouring of the red light
district.
The oaths that fell from the
lips of other women prisoners, and the sight of a burly negress sitting on a table smoking cigarettes, disgusted her. Both women talked
comparatively freely today, apparently to relieve their feelings.
Peculiar as it may seem, the
only persons of any prominence in the Mitchell Creffield case who have come
forward to plead for mercy for the two women charged with the murder of George
Mitchell, so far, are the attorneys who successfully fought to obtain for the
boy now dead the liberty he enjoyed so briefly.
In a lengthy signed
statement, issued today, Will H. Morris and Silas M. Shipley, who defended
young Mitchell when he was on trial for his life, state their belief in the
insanity of Esther Mitchell and ask that both women be fairly tried.
Following
are excerpts from the statement:
“I can only feel sorry for the two women. They are certainly insane, as I have contended all along. The prosecution would not believe us, but I will leave it to any one who has talked to them. They are absolutely crazy, and have been made so by the acts of Creffield.
“This is an awful thing, but not entirely unexpected when you consider the factors in the case. I only hope that it will end here. We have felt all along that these women should be put under restraint or cared for in some way.”
MITCHELL’S BRAIN NORMAL
George Mitchell had a normal
brain. It was correct in weight, and there was no sign of mental weakness
apparent to the physicians who conducted an autopsy on his body tonight. So far
as a medical examination could disclose, his was a well
balanced mind, and one not apt to be swayed or upset by vagaries.
The bullet that killed
Mitchell entered half an inch behind and half an inch below the center of the
left ear. It passed through the base of the brain, finding lodgement behind the right ear, causing instantaneous death. The most vital sections of
the brain were penetrated. Of curious incidental interest is the fact that the bullet which George Mitchell fired at Creffield took almost
identically the same deadly course.
A critical examination of
other organs showed that young Mitchell was health, robust and normally
developed. Dr. J. B. Loughary performed the autopsy, under the direction of
County Coroner Carroll and his deputy, Dr. S. F. Wiltsie.
SWEETHEART AT THE DALLES
The story was given to the
police today that George Mitchell had a sweetheart in The Dalles to whom he
proposed to write as soon as he reached Portland. A day or two ago he received
a postal card from The Dalles with a single word on it. He remarked to a friend
that the writer of that card would be happy to hear of his acquittal, and
declared he would correspond with her as soon as he reached Portland. He did
not tell his brother’s the girl’s name.
This may explain why
Mitchell appeared indifferent to the attentions women showered upon him during
the trial. The only woman in whom he manifested any interest was a girl who presented him with flowers almost daily, but so far
as known, he did not even see her after the trial and they did not talk while
the case pending.
Mitchell’s brothers are said
to be practically without funds. They had expected to go to work at once.
Evening Telegram (Portland) 7/14/1906 p26
Holy Rollers of Western New York
The latest curious sect to take root in Western New York are the Holy Rollers
and the Knee Benders. The Holy Rollers were organized about six years ago on
the shores of Canandaigua Lake, and the story of the rise of this strange
religious sect is absurdly out of place in the 20th century. Hell is the chief
tenet of the Holy Roller’s belief--a hell of sputtering brimstone and flames
that eternally torture, but never consume the bodies of the damned. To this
hell is destined everyone who does not accept the faith. The creed embodies doctrines which were regarded as essential to happiness 100
years ago. It is a creed that converts by fear, and the writer has seen a
number of young women in various stages of hysteria at the conclusion of a Holy
Roller revival meeting. The leaders of the faith are Mrs. Mary McIntyre, Miss
Emma Chase, Professor James Woodworth, of Syracuse, N.
Y. Regeneration is effected in several ways, the course of treatment including
prayer, bathing, robing and baptism by immersion.
When these remedies prove futile in cleansing the soul of the sinner, the
penitent is obliged to perform what the believers call the “holy roll.” The
unregenerate lies on the floor at one end of the building and rolls over and
over like a log until every one present is satisfied that the devil has been
rolled out. Sometimes the ceremony lasts a quarter of an hour, but if the
convert has been an unusually tough customer, he may be compelled to roll for
four or five hours--a most heroic method of securing salvation. as the subject rolls by the kneeling audience, every person
has the privilege to ask such questions as each sees fit and the convert must
make satisfactory answers before he is allowed to rise. the sins of a lifetime must be confessed in detail, and the innermost secrets of
the soul made public.
***
The Holy Rollers have
operated extensively in Central and Western New York, and certain small
communities are in a condition of religious excitement not unlike that which
marked the beginning of Mormonism. Perhaps the strongest feature of this frenzy
is the establishment of the strangest of all sects, the adherents of which call
themselves Knee Benders. The Knee Benders are a small community and live along
the eastern shore of Seneca Lake. This sect originated five years ago. At that
time a Swedish farmer named Burson, a man of some
education, began to act in a strange manner. He claimed that he had visions and
refused to assist in work on the farm, and spent most of his time on a knoll
near the lake. He remained on his knees, and in answer to all inquiries said
that the great Jehovah had commanded him to remain the rest of his life in this
uncomfortable position. Shortly after receiving this interesting but
inconvenient revelation he began to preach, his themes being on socialistic
lines. Gradually his relatives became imbued with the sincerity of his preachings and espoused the strange religion. the entire family soon began to live on their knees. The
enthusiasts now number about 200. The Knee Benders deny the existence of
punishment in the next world, declaring that hell will come on earth in the
shape of some great sorrow for the wrongdoer. Prayers are not made to the
Supreme Being, but to nature which is held accountable
for all changes in the elements and all accidents caused by fire, wind and
water. Socialism is the primary principle of this queer religion; the farms of
the enthusiasts are worked in common, and it is claimed that the weeding,
planting and hoeing are done on all fours by the Knee Benders. They hold knee bending services five times a day on the knoll where Burson was “inspired,” and in the worship their faces are
turned always towards the sun. Each week a revival meeting is held, and
ridiculous as the thing is, the Knee Benders keep adding converts. Such a story
as this belongs to 100 years ago, but as an illustration of religious frenzy
dominating the human, it is an interesting psychological study of the present
day.
***
If the complete history of
Central and Western New York is ever written, at least one-third of the volume
could probably be devoted to the many curious sects and religious communities
which have played a more or less important part in the complex story of
American life and development. It is now almost 80 years since Joseph Smith,
the Mormon prophet, claimed to have found the golden plates of the Bible of the
Latter Day Saints in the hollow of a hill in Wayne County. With them, he said,
was unearthed the “Urim and Thummim,”
the wonderful stone spectacles, by which he was enabled to translate the
characters on the golden plates. In 1830 the Book of Mormon was printed, and
Joseph Smith began to preach the new religion. In a surprisingly short time he
succeeded in gathering a goodly sized congregation, and arousing the hostility
of his neighbors. His reputation in Palmyra, his home at that time, was not of
the best. He was nicknamed “Rip Van Winkle,” because his convivial habits and
general shiftlessness were not unlike the traits of Irving’s hero of the
Catskills. The persecution of his neighbors finally forced the prophet to
abandon his home, and with his wife, three dogs and a congenial company of
proselytes he removed to the village of Fayette, in Seneca County. The new
environment wrought a substantial change in the expounder of the word of
Mormon. From an idle, dissolute fellow, the butt of the villagers’ rude jests
and jokes, he became an earnest, tireless worker in behalf of the religion
whose tenets he claimed to have discovered (the rest of the article is cut off)
Chapter 23: Seeking Reconciliation
Chapter 24: Another Holy Roller Page One Murder
***
Seattle Star July 14, 1906: Mitchell
Boys Are Done With Esther
Seattle Times July 14, 1906: Brothers
Refuse to Aid Esther Mitchell
Seattle Post Intelligencer July 14, 1906: Post Mortem Shows
Mitchell Had Normal Brain
Evening Telegram (Portland) July14, 1906: Family Deserts the Murderess
Oregon Daily Journal (Portland) July 14, 1906: Women
Are Both Charged With Murder
***
July 13, 1906: Esther Mitchell Kills Her Brother!
July 15, 1906: Hurt Will Come to Aid of His Daughter
***
Newspaper Articles about Creffield & the Holy Rollers
1897-1903: B.C. (Before Creffield)
October to December 1903:Holy Rollers Burn Furniture & Pets
January to March, 1904: Holy Rollers Tarred and Feathered
April to June 1904: Holy Rollers are Committed to the Asylum
July 1904: Creffield is Found & Arrested
September 1904: Creffield's Trial
April 1906: Men are Gunning For Creffield
May 1906: Creffield is Murdered, Murderer is Considered a Hero
May 1906: Holy Rollers Found Starving Near Heceta Head
June 1906: George Mitchell's Trial Begins
July 1906: Hurt Testifies of Debauched Wife and Debased Sisters
July 1906: Esther Mitchell Kills Her Brother
August to October 1906: Seattle Prepares for another Big Trial
November 1906: Maud Hurt Creffield Commits Suicide
April 1909-August 1914: Esther Leaves the Asylum
1953 Stewart Holbrook's Murder Without Tears
1951Startling Detective Magazine, Nemesis of the Nudist High Priest
***
Chapters from
Holy Rollers: Murder & Madness in Oregon's Love Cult
Part 1: The Seduction
Chapter 1: Trust Me, Brothers And Sisters
(Life Before Creffield [B.C.])
Chapter 2: God, Save Us From Compromising Preachers
(Creffield's Preachings)
Chapter 3: The Flock
(Profiles of the Holy Rollers Were)
Chapter 4: The Holy Rollers
(Things Start to Get Wild on on Kiger Island)
Chapter 5: Housecleaning
(There's a Sacrificial Bonfire)
Chapter 6: Community Concerns
(Officers Visit)
Chapter 7: Esther, The Chosen One
(Creffield Plans to Marry 16-Year- Old)
Chapter 8: Tar and Feathers
(The Men of Corvallis Act)
Chapter 9: Sane People Don’t Go Bareheaded
(Holy Rollers are Committed to the Asylum)
Chapter 10: More Beast Than Man
( Creffield is Arrested)
Chapter 11: God Will Plead Creffield's Case
(Creffield in Court)
Chapter 12: Scandal
(Shocking Testimony at the Trial)
Chapter 13: Calm Before the Storm
(The Holy Rollers Resume their Lives)
Chapter 14: Giving Up The Ghost
(Men are Gunning for Creffield)
Part Two: The People V. Creffield
Chapter 16: The Widow Creffield
Chapter 19: An Inherited Streak of Insanity
Part Three: The Madness
Chapter 23: Seeking Reconciliation
Chapter 24: Another Holy Roller Page One Murder
Chapter 25: What Can Papa Do For You?
Chapter 26: Human Life is Too Cheap In This Community
Chapter 30: The Final Chapter
(What Happened to Everyone Afterwards)
The Epilogue
(Heaven's Gate)