The Murder of Nell Cropsey | Episode 1, part 1, "Disappearance and Recovery"

Connecting the Docs: True Stories from the Old North State

The story of young Nell Cropsey is one that has been repeated throughout time. A relationship ends and a woman disappears shortly thereafter. Records maintained by the State Archives illustrate the tragedy as it unfolded in turn-of-the-20th-century Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

In episode 1, “Disappearance and Recovery”, our archivists set the stage for the tragedy that unfolds late in the year 1901 when Nell Cropsey disappears from her home. Her sister Olive, Olive’s suitor Roy Crawford, and Nell’s suitor Jim Wilcox were the last people known to see her alive. Her body was found in the Pasquotank River in front of her home thirty-seven days later.

See the documents referenced in this episode at the State Archives of North Carolina's History For All the People blog.