Henderson Crouch was born around 1854 in Virginia. Crouch worked as a laborer and resided in Catawba County, North Carolina. Crouch was charged with larceny on September 9, 1874, and sentenced to three years in the North Carolina State Penitentiary. Crouch was recorded in the North Carolina State Penitentiary's Descriptive Register for the Years 1869-1884 as prisoner number 919. In his sentencing records, Crouch’s race is noted as "colored." Crouch was twenty years old when he was arrested. He was noted as possessing no formal education, meaning he could not read or write at that time. During his incarceration, Crouch was leased to the Western North Carolina Railroad Company to work on railroad construction. He was discharged from the railroad on June 8, 1877.