Curious Crockers of Barnstable: Sheriff Lauchlan Crocker
By Jeffrey D. Crocker
Lauchlan Crocker election poster (Courtesy of Sue Crocker of Marstons Mills)
Perhaps our most notable Crocker from the town of Barnstable is Lauchlan MacLean Crocker, Senior. Lauchlan, or “Lauchie” as he was often called, is remembered as the three-hundred-pound Sheriff of Barnstable County for fourteen years (1932-1947). He served as Sheriff during the end of Prohibition, the Great Depression, and through World War II. He was also Sheriff during Barnstable’s Tercentenary celebration in 1939.
Lauchie grew up in Marstons Mills at 885 River Road, and was the son of Zenas Crocker IV and Annie Jean MacLean. This house, now known as the Zenas Crocker IV House, was where Zenas and Annie Jean raised their five children: Susie, Zenas V, twins Neil and Henry, and Lauchlan. Lauchlan married Wilhelmina Sherman in the bay window of this house in 1917, just prior to his service as a Major in World War I.
During WWI he served honorably in the Yankee 26th Division on the Western Front as a Sergeant Major. It was reported that he was the first American soldier to shoot down an enemy plane with a rifle.
After the war, Lauchie returned home, where he ran for, and was elected Surveyor of Highways.
Hyannis Patriot Political Advertisement, February 26, 1923
As Surveyor of Highways, he supervised the design and construction of the cattle pass tunnel under Race Lane in Marstons Mills in 1929. This tunnel connected the Mystic Lake Dairy Farm to Mystic Lake so the cattle could drink water from the lake without having to cross the road.
From The Yarmouth Register in 1929 we learn the following:
When Race Lane was straightened it was found necessary to cut down through the Mystic Lake Dairy farm. Mr. Crocker, getting away from the standardized concrete box type of pass, designed this new one, using a pure iron culvert pipe, seven feet in diameter and 36 feet long. So far as known, this type of construction has never been used, the regular design being of concrete with a square box type underpass.
Finding native fieldstone in abundance on the very land in which the lane crossed, Mr. Crocker utilized it in the headwalls. The culvert pipe, coated with asphalt, was set into place and the highway built over it. The fieldstone being set into place with cement.
The result has been a neat piece of work, materially cheaper than the regular concrete construction, and more important, a pass in keeping with the rustic atmosphere of the Cape Cod surroundings. One large fieldstone, Mr. Crocker had split into two pieces and set in the headwalls, one giving the date, 1928, and the other having the seal in bronze of the town of Barnstable.
Race Lane Cattle Tunnel designed and built by Lauchlan Crocker, Sr.
(Courtesy of the Marstons Mills Historical Society)
While the dairy farm is long gone, this tunnel can still be accessed. The entrance to the tunnel is on the north side of Race Lane, adjacent to the Marstons Mills Airfield.
In 1932, Lauchlan was elected Sheriff of Barnstable County, where he introduced several innovative reforms. From the book “The Seven Villages of Barnstable” we learn the following:
In olden days, according to former Barnstable County Sheriff Donald Tullock, most prisoners were in jail for non-payment of debts, alcoholism, or a combination of both. But Lauchlan Crocker was a visionary and realized that keeping a man in jail for nonsupport was compounding the problem. Crocker campaigned long and diligently for state legislative prison reforms. From his efforts have come many of the present-day innovative programs for rehabilitation of those adjudged to be guilty of crime.
Seven Villages, p. 362
From the book “Marstons Mills” we learn he also “opened the prison farm, installed the first county-wide radio system, and implemented the first fingerprinting system for the county.” Marstons Mills, p. 51.
James Gould relays an amusing anecdote when Lauchlan was Sheriff during the last days of the Prohibition era. At that time, Lauchlan’s brother, Zenas V, ran a nightclub at the Cape Cod Airfield in Marstons Mills. According to Gould:
The biggest attraction at the airport during the Prohibition Era was the nearby Aviation Country Club which ran an open bar and night club, despite the ban on liquor sales. This annoyed Zenas Crocker’s brother, Lauchlan, who happened to be the County Sheriff at the time. He raided the place and closed it down.
James Gould, “Cape Cod Airport: Past, Present, and (Maybe) Future.”
Lauchlan served as Barnstable Sheriff during World War II. The “Hyannis 10,000” poster, seen below, was created during WWII, alerting Cape Cod residents to report suspicious activities by dialing this phone number. Lauchlan’s name appears at the bottom of the poster.
Sadly, Lauchlan passed away unexpectedly in 1947 at the age of 53 while in office, having served fourteen years as Sheriff. His passing was greatly mourned by his family and the town at the time. He is remembered with affection. Below is the headline of his passing from The Barnstable Patriot newspaper:
