Ambrose and Julia Crouch

Home Contents Nashville, Missouri Crouch Family 1913 Ambrose and Julia Crouch Rolinda McMannus Lynch Stephen & Betty Palmer Crouch Blalock Crouch Introduction Meredith Crouch Carl Crouch Emma Parker Arch Crouch Chester Crouch Nashville, Missouri Crouch Family 1910 David & Clara Crouch Nashville School 1905 Nashville School Classes Nashville School 1933-34.htm Nashville School 1938-41 Nashville School 1943-44.htm Nashville School 1956-57 Post Office Area Pictures Nashville Church 1943 Nashville Church 1925 Aunt Em and Claude Will & Lydia Price David and Elizabeth Crouch Jonathan Crouch Meredith History Duval Missouri Duval School 1940-42 North Star School 1923 John Crouch Sr Glendale School 1942

   

Larry,

Yesterday, while going through Crouch history materials, I came upon  two small glass encased photographs which were identified on the back as Grandma and Grandpa Crouch.  This id was written by my grandmother Ollie Crouch Moore to whom the pictures belonged.  This would mean the man pictured is Ambrose Crouch .  The picture of Julia is identical to the one on your website.  Each picture has been securely taped on the back side with an inscription to "please take care of it."  Before I attempt to scan  the pictures, I want to consult with a photo expert at the Filson Historical Society in Louisville.  I am absolutely thrilled with my "find" and am anxious to share them with my Crouch kin as soon as I can safely do so.

 Also,  I  want to share with you that the account about Papa Crouch and his twin and the exchange of clothing during the Civil War, comes from page 170 of Joe Creason`s book, Crossroads and Coffee Trees.  Creason , a writer for The Courier-Journal newspaper interviewed my grandmother regarding the account and published the news story long before he wrote the book.

 Gwinn Thompson Hahn, gggrandaughter of Ambrose and Julia Huffstetter Crouch (dated January 14, 2008)

 

To call this remarkable is understatement. I'm not updating the remainder of the page, because the history and speculation about a picture of Ambrose is interesting.

   

The photograph was printed on glass. When it was mailed to Myra it was not carefully packed and broke in transit. The woman is certainly less than 40 years old. The picture would date from the 1850's or earlier. My original posting showed the cracks from the broken glass. I was never happy with my efforts to remove them. Julie Meredith finally did the restoration. It's a remarkable job. The work around the eye is artistry.  I'm including the original scan to show what is possible.

Still no picture of Ambrose.

* * *

Mom was once told that the only picture of Ambrose was buried with Julia Ann in her locket.   

You can’t help but wonder where the original picture is that they used to make the picture in the locket.

Julie Meredith

Below is the front and back of another version of the portrait. It was supplied by Cathryn Cates - Palmer Crouch's granddaughter. The Fresno, CA connection leads me to connect it with Julia's son, John Crittenden Crouch. He was 15 and living with her when she died. He later moved to Madera, CA, which is north of Fresno and had his own portrait made in Fresno - though it is unclear if he ever actually lived in Fresno himself. The glass plate would be the original and this a copy.

Julia Ann Huffstutter Crouch - Stephen Douglas Crouch's mother

(I'm opting for a spelling from the family search website - Myra who is accurate about these things spells it Hufstutter)

Born - April 15, 1820

Marriage - Ambrose Dudley Crouch - January 31, 1839

Died - August 23, 1881

 
   

 
   

 

 

 

 

 

Julie has located this copy of the full, but sadly, broken original

It does give more perspective and detail

Myra says this version was made in Stillwater, OK in 1956

On another point, I noticed from the bigger picture of Julia Ann, that where the glass is cracked, the image is missing.  That is a pretty good sign that the image was printed on glass, meaning it was an Ambrotype.  The Ambrotype appeared in the mid 1850s.  By 1856 the Ambrotype enjoyed a short-lived period of popularity.  In 1856, the Tintype method was introduced, and soon took over in popularity. 

That gives us a pretty good time period for Julia Ann’s picture.  Give that she was born in 1820, she would be between 34 and 36 in the image.  I’ll look into a bit deeper, but on the surface, that’s what the dating appears to be.   

Mom received the image from a descendent of John Crittenden Crouch.  That is consistent given that the copy Margaret’s family had was a reprint made in California and that is were John lived.

Julie
   
   
To be complete, I have included the version of the Julia photograph that Gwinn Hahn located with the picture of Ambrose.

For the more distant persons on this site I paste information from this linked site Jeanette Wheeler has accumulated a great deal of information concerning the Crouch family

AMBROSE DUDLEY CROUCH  was born 19 Feb 1817 in Bourbon, KY, USA, and died 23 Apr 1879 in Washington, KY, USA. He married JULIA ANN HUFFSTUTTER 31 Jan 1839 in Nicholas, KY, USA, daughter of JOHN HUFFSTUTTER and MARY CROUCH. She was born 15 Apr 1820 in Nicholas, KY, USA, and died 23 Aug 1881 in Willisburg, Washington, KY, USA.

Notes for AMBROSE DUDLEY CROUCH:
1850 Willisburg, Washington KY Ambrose & Julia are living with father Jonathan, and Harrison Crouch and his wife, in Johanthan's home.
1860 Willisburg, Washington KY father Jonathan is living with them, widowed age 74.

 
     

As to the Crouch farm, I just got the details from my brother David. In June 1998, he and my sister Ann went to Kentucky. They were looking for the graves of Ambrose Dudley and Julia Ann. They spoke with the Sextant who had written a book on the history of Willisburg. He took them around the cemetery and showed them the graves (I have pictures) and said, you'll probably want to see the old farm as well. So he drew them a map of how to get to it. - Julie

 

 
   
 

Larry,

The picture you inquired about was made at my grandmother Ollie Crouch Moore`s homeplace on Polin Road about two miles west of Willisburg.  Pictured are Papa Crouch(Martin Van Buren) and his wife, Elizabeth.  Standing is Ollie`s oldest daughter, Elizabeth Van Moore born March 27, 1914.  She married Cecil Kays and she is an active 93 years young, living in Harrodsburg, Ky.  Seated in the baby buggy is Ollie and W.R. Moore`s second child, Corinne born August 16,1915.  She married Marshall Ryan.  Corinne lived at Willisburg and died in 1987.  The land on which the house that is pictured sits is part of the large plot of land originally owned by Ambrose Crouch.  The original Crouch homesite is a few miles south of this location.  Martin`s sons, Richard and Barbour lived and owned property across the road (Polin Rd) before they relocated to Illinois.  According to my mother,Devola Moore Haag, Papa Crouch built the house on Polin Road soon after his marriage to Elizabeth .  His son Barbour was eleven years old at the time which would put the building date to 1879.  I have heard my grandmother tell the story about her brother, Edwin, removing the mantel from the  old homeplace and moving it by wagon  to the Polin road site.  The mantel was built by Jesse Head, a cabinetmaker for the Lincoln family who lived not far from the original Crouch homestead.  The Polin road house was sold after my grandmother`s death in 1980 and has since been torn away and replaced with a new house.  Fortunately, I was able to purchase the mantel from the new owner and my sister incorporated it into a new home she was building at the time. Larry, this is a quite long response to your question regarding id of the picture, but I thought you`d like to know.  More to follow!

 
Gwinn
Gwinn Hahn

Jesse Head is more than a cabinetmaker. He was also the minister who married Lincoln's parents.

 

 
   

Grave Stones of Ambrose and Julia Crouch

 
   

February 19, 1817 - April 23, 1879

Contents Introduction Stephen Crouch Index Crouch Family Index Barton County Index

If you have information or photographs concerning the descendants of Stephen Douglas Crouch or the Barton County village of Nashville, Missouri, please contact me. I share my pictures and I return any photographs entrusted to me promptly.

EMAIL: stephendcrouch@pacbell.net

Larry Crouch