Silver City Greats - Jim Crocker

Born in 1885, Jim Crocker became a local legend. In her book, Booth’s Drum, The Salvation Army in Australia 1880-1980, Barbara Bolton writes: “He grew up there learning to handle horses, to play hard and drink hard. He eventually went to work in the mines where he learnt to know the men and the conditions of their lives first hand.” After coming into contact with The Salvation Army, Jim’s life changed. He spent the next 40 years in service to God and his home city. “He became the Chaplain on the Barrier, the workman asked to perform the funerals of other workmen, the man turned to in time of trouble. He died in 1960 after receiving an M.B.E and the Army’s Order of the Founder of this work in the community,” writes Barbara.