Is a too-shallow foundation allowing excessive water into my dirt crawl space?
Water flows in the direction of least resistance. 

Moisture is either coming up from below (a rising water table) or its coming from the surrounding ground water in the saturated soil, or both. 

If it comes up from a rising water table, it will enter the crawl space from below. 

If it comes from the surrounding ground water, it COULD enter the crawl space through the wall, especially if the EXTERIOR side of the foundation wall is not sealed properly, especially if your wood retaining wall is keeping dirt against the foundation wall. 

Either way the moisture enters the crawl space and it will need to be collected AND disposed. NEVER install perf pipe around your house and under your footings. This can cause settlement. Removing undisturbed soil to install drainrock and a perf pipe, it will cause settlement. 

I think the best way to collect it is on the exterior side of the foundation wall in drainrock and a perf pipe laid 6”-8” below the interior crawl space dirt, but no lower than the bottom of the footing. 

To keep the subsurface water from seeping through the wall, I recommend installing a moisture barrier on the exterior side of the foundation wall and install a 2” thick plastic mesh on the wall to allow water to flow down to the perf pipe. (Water flows in the direction of least resistance. You want water to flow down the wall not lay against the wall.) If dirt is allowed to be backfilled against the wall, the dirt could hold the moisture giving it a chance to seep through the wall.

Once collected it needs to be disposed by extending a solid pipe over an embankment, to your drain ditch or in a collection well and pumped away.

This may be the most expensive method of solving the problem, but it’s sure to work.