Timothy Mark Crutchfield -- Amateur Writer

 

Tim Crutchfield was born on March 5, 1966 in St. Louis, Missouri, the oldest son of Dennis Crutchfield and Margaret Douthitt Crutchfield.  When he was two days old, they moved to Cape Girardeau, Missouri and when he was nine months old they settled in Graves County, Kentucky.

He graduated from Mayfield High School in Mayfield, Kentucky and went on to earn a degree in Criminal Justice from Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau.  He later settled in Dexter, Missouri.

As a young child he was encouraged to read by his mother and was already reading at a 4th grade level by the time he was in the 1st grade. Even at a young age, he had a keen interest in political history as a hobby. He had the Presidents memorized by 3rd grade and the Prime Ministers of Canada memorized by 5th grade.  He started writing short stories at a young age and even created his own comic books. He became an avid reader with his reading interests including Stephen King and Edgar Allen Poe, but he read anything he could get his hands on. His reading frequently centered on politics and history.

In October of 2015, he published his first novel, Spirit and Image, which was self published and is available on Amazon. The story came to him 20 years before he published it but he had difficulty putting it into writing.  With encouragement from his fellow writers, he finished it after those 20 years of writer’s block.  The majority of the book was written while sitting beside his wife’s hospital bedside where she was in a coma after a car accident.  His wife was in the coma for over five years until her death.

Tim also had a great interest in cemeteries since he was a kid.  It always bothered his parents who called it a "morbid hobby".   But he felt his cemetery interest paid off, since cemeteries have helped his knowledge of History. As an adult when he visited a city he would visit their local cemetery or cemeteries and search for famous graves   He would then take pictures and post them to the Find-a-Grave website if they are not already posted.  Tim posted over 11,000 memorials to the Find-a-Grave website as well as adding over 15,000 photos.

In April of 2000, he became the youngest elected Alderman in Dexter, Missouri and the second youngest Alderman to ever sit on the Council.  He also became the first Alderman to be of Native American Descent (He was 1/8 Cherokee.) He was also the first elected Republican from his Ward. He was reelected on April 2nd, 2002.  He lost in 2004, but was elected again in 2006.

Tim died on November 7, 2017. Tim’s obituary did not mention any of the accomplishments stated above. It simply said he was a cashier at the Wal-Mart in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.  He was buried in the Wingo Cemetery in Wingo, Kentucky.

The cover of Tim Crutchfield's novel Spirit and Image

Tim and his wife Tracy standing in front of the Woolridge Monuments in Mayfield, Kentucky, holding their local newspaper. They won a month’s free subscription to the newspaper for this photo.

LINEAGE:

(Timothy Mark Crutchfield was the son of Dennis Russell and Margaret Douthitt Crutchfield, the grandson of Louis Jesse and Reba Dean Martin Douthitt, the great grandson of William Luther and Ollie Esther Pritchard Martin and the great-great grandson of John Wesley and Dora Mae Bridges Pritchard.  Dora Mae was the third child of James C. and Mary Calhoon Bridges.  James C. was the sixth child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges.  William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.  Mary Thomas was the fifth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)