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94-608: Membership fluctuated from robbery to robbery, as the outlaws' raids were usually separated by many months. As well as the notorious James brothers, at various times it included the Younger brothers ( Cole , Jim , John , and Bob ), John Jarrett (married to the Youngers' sister Josie), Arthur McCoy, George Shepherd, Oliver Shepherd, William McDaniel, Tom McDaniel, Clell Miller , Charlie Pitts, William Chadwell (alias Bill Stiles), and Matthew "Ace" Nelson. The James–Younger Gang had its origins in

188-522: A Christian and repented of his criminal past. He was baptized at Lee's Summit Christian Church on 16 August 1913. Frank James died on February 18, 1915. A year later, Cole Younger died, on March 21, 1916, in his hometown of Lee's Summit, Missouri , and is buried in the Lee's Summit Historical Cemetery . Battle of Kirksville The Battle of Kirksville took place during the American Civil War and

282-558: A Kansas City police officer after the robbery, and later was shot during an escape attempt. On the night of January 25, 1875, Pinkerton agents surrounded the James farm in Kearney, Missouri . Frank and Jesse James had been there earlier but had already left. When the Pinkertons threw an iron incendiary device into the house, it exploded when it rolled into a blazing fireplace. The blast nearly severed

376-416: A Republican. Three of the outlaws entered the bank, as the remaining five, led by Cole Younger, remained on the street to provide cover. The crime soon went awry, however, when the townspeople sent up the alarm and ran for their guns. Younger and his brothers began to fire in the air to clear the streets, but the townspeople (shooting from behind cover, through windows and around the corners of buildings) opened

470-465: A coroner's inquest before succumbing to his wounds a few days later. The Pinkerton deaths added to the growing embarrassment suffered by Missouri's first post-war Democratic governor, Silas Woodson . He issued a $ 2,000 reward offer for the Iron Mountain robbers (the reward usually offered for criminals was $ 300). He also persuaded the state legislature to provide $ 10,000 for a secret fund to track down

564-557: A county sheriff in tracking the gang to a farm in Civil Bend, Missouri . A short gunfight ended indecisively as the gang escaped. On June 24, Jesse James wrote a letter to the Kansas City Times , claiming Republicans were persecuting him for his Confederate loyalties by accusing him and Frank of carrying out the robberies. "But I don't care what the degraded Radical party thinks about me," he wrote, "I would just as soon they would think I

658-414: A deadly fusillade, killing gang members Clell Miller and William Chadwell and badly wounding Bob Younger through the elbow. Herb Potter rode off in a hail of bullets. The outlaws killed two townspeople, including the acting cashier of the bank, and fled empty-handed. As hundreds of Minnesotans formed posses to pursue the fleeing gang, the outlaws separated. The James brothers made it back to Missouri, but

752-477: A descendant.) Union Colonel John McNeil of the 2nd Missouri Cavalry Regiment and his troops, totalling about 1,000, had been pursuing Porter for more than a week. Before noon on August 6, McNeil attacked Porter in the town of Kirksville, where the Confederates had concealed themselves in homes and stores and among the crops in the nearby fields, especially in the county courthouse and the commercial buildings on

846-421: A famous editorial entitled, "The Chivalry of Crime." Edwards soon published an anonymous letter from one of the outlaws (believed to be Jesse) that referred to the approaching presidential election: "Just let a party of men commit a bold robbery, and the cry is hang them. But [President Ulysses S. ] Grant and his party can steal millions and it is all right," the outlaw wrote. "They rob the poor and rich, and we rob

940-457: A group of Confederate bushwhackers that participated in the bitter partisan fighting that wracked Missouri during the American Civil War . After the war, the men continued to plunder and murder, though the motive shifted to personal profit rather than in the name of the Confederacy. The loose association of outlaws did not truly become the "James–Younger Gang" until 1868 at the earliest, when

1034-609: A gunfight on a Missouri road on March 17, 1874. Lull and John Younger were killed and Boyle and Jim Younger fled the scene. Another Pinkerton agent who pursued the James brothers, W. J. Whicher, was abducted and later found dead alongside a rural road in Jackson County, Missouri. Some Younger families changed their last names to Jungers to avoid a family association with the gangsters. The James and Younger brothers survived capture longer than most Western outlaws because of their strong support among former Confederates. Jesse James became

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1128-518: A large amount of cash. On November 24, John Newman Edwards published a lengthy glorification of the James brothers, Cole and John Younger, and Arthur McCoy, in a twenty-page special supplement to his newspaper the St. Louis Dispatch (Edwards had moved from the Kansas City Times to the Dispatch in 1873). Most of the supplement, entitled "A Terrible Quintet," was devoted to Jesse James, the gang's public face, and

1222-517: A layover in St. Paul they divided into two groups, one going to Mankato , the other to Red Wing , on either side of Northfield. They purchased expensive horses and scouted the terrain around the towns, agreeing to meet south of Northfield along the Cannon River near Dundas on the morning of September 7, 1876. The gang attempted to rob the bank about 2:00 p.m. on September 7. Northfield residents had seen

1316-492: A letter by resident J. Martin, written a week after the battle, Confederate dead numbered about 200; Union 30. McNeill's official tally was 150 Confederates killed (300-400 wounded) against 6 Union deaths (32 wounded). Two civilian casualties were noted: James Dye, a sixty-year-old farmer with two sons in the Union army, was held overnight by Porter during his approach to the town, then told to be on his way, but shot as he left. The other

1410-439: A little girl in the ensuing struggle with the ticket-seller. Apart from Chiles' testimony, there is no other evidence this crime was committed by the James or Younger brothers, and Jesse later wrote a letter denying his or the Youngers' involvement. Cole was furious over this, because neither he nor brother John had been linked to the crime before the letter. The crime was praised by Kansas City Times editor John Newman Edwards in

1504-460: A mission to California , he learned that Quantrill and Anderson had both been killed. The James brothers, however, continued to associate with their old guerrilla comrades, who remained together under the leadership of Archie Clement. It was likely Clement who, amid the tumult of Reconstruction in Missouri, turned the guerrillas into outlaws. On February 12, 1866, a group of gunmen carried out one of

1598-681: A new gang, including Clell Miller's brother Ed and the Ford brothers ( Robert and Charles ), and renewed his criminal career. This career came to an end in 1882 when Robert Ford shot Jesse James from behind, killing him. For nearly a decade following the Civil War, the James–Younger Gang was among the most feared, most publicized, and most wanted confederations of outlaws on the American frontier . Though their crimes were reckless and brutal, many members of

1692-414: A rail fence, west of the square. The Union troops then advanced in two wings, with Lt. Col. William F. Shaffer of the 2nd Missouri in command of the Union right wing and Major Henry Clay Caldwell of the 3rd Iowa Cavalry Regiment in charge of the left. As the two wings met, they succeeded in driving the Confederates from the courthouse. Porter's remaining forces yielded ground and joined the others behind

1786-467: A reward for Clement, but he and his band of outlaws conducted further robberies that year. On election day of 1866, Clement led his men to polling places in Lexington, Missouri , where they intimidated citizens and secured the election of a slate of candidates. A state militia unit entered the town shortly thereafter and killed Clement when he resisted arrest. It is uncertain when the Younger brothers joined

1880-647: A stagecoach near Mammoth Cave, Kentucky . On October 5, 1880, they robbed the store of John Dovey in Mercer, Kentucky . On March 11, 1881, Jesse, Ryan, and Jesse's cousin Wood Hite robbed a federal paymaster at Muscle Shoals, Alabama , taking $ 5,240. Shortly afterward, a drunk and boastful Ryan was arrested in Whites Creek, near Nashville, and both Frank and Jesse James fled back to Missouri. On July 15, 1881, Frank and Jesse James, Wood and Clarence Hite, and Dick Liddil robbed

1974-439: A subordinate of Porter who was tried and sentenced to death as a bushwhacker , even though he was captured wearing a regular Confederate uniform and carrying letters authorizing him to recruit troops. He was granted permission to give the order to fire, and his final words were, "May God forgive you for this cold-blooded murder. Aim at the heart. Fire!" A second volley was necessary. McNeil's reputation would be darkened further by

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2068-627: A succession of atrocities committed by both sides. Union troops often executed or tortured suspects without trial and burned the homes of suspected guerrillas and those suspected of aiding or harboring them. Where credentials were suspect, the accused guerrilla was often executed, as in the case of Lt. Col. Frisby McCullough after the Battle of Kirksville . Bushwhackers, meanwhile, frequently went house to house, executing Unionist farmers. The James and Younger brothers belonged to families from an area known as " Little Dixie " in western Missouri with strong ties to

2162-453: A swamp called Hanska Slough, just south of La Salle, Minnesota , on September 21, two weeks after the Northfield raid. In the gunfight that followed, Pitts was killed and the Youngers were again wounded. The Youngers surrendered and pleaded guilty to murder in order to avoid execution. Frank and Jesse secured horses and fled west across southern Minnesota, turning south just inside the border of

2256-633: The Dakota Territory . In the face of hundreds of pursuers and a nationwide alarm, Frank and Jesse escaped, but the infamous James–Younger Gang was no more. On September 23, 1876, the Younger brothers were taken to the Rice County jail in Faribault . On November 16, a grand jury issued four indictments – one each for the first-degree murders of Joseph Heywood and Nicolaus Gustafson, one for bank robbery, and one for assault with deadly weapons on

2350-590: The Daviess County Savings Association in Gallatin, Missouri . Jesse is suspected of having shot down the cashier, John W. Sheets, in the mistaken belief that he was Samuel P. Cox , the Union militia officer who had ambushed and killed "Bloody Bill" Anderson during the Civil War. The James brothers were unknown up to this point; this may have been their first robbery. Their names were later added to previous robberies as an afterthought. John Younger

2444-517: The James–Younger Gang . He was the elder brother of Jim , John and Bob Younger , who were also members of the gang. Younger was born on January 15, 1844, on the Younger family farm in Jackson County , Missouri . He was a son of Henry Washington Younger , a prosperous farmer from Greenwood, Missouri and Bersheba Leighton Fristoe , daughter of a prominent Jackson County farmer. Cole was

2538-553: The Rock Island Railroad near Winston, Missouri , of $ 900. Train conductor William Westfall and passenger John McCullough were killed. On September 7, 1881, Jesse James carried out his last train robbery, holding up the Chicago and Alton Railroad . The gang held up the passengers when the express safe proved to be nearly empty. With this new outbreak of train robberies, the new Governor of Missouri, Thomas T. Crittenden , convinced

2632-492: The Cannon River near 5th Street. About 2:00 p.m., they heard gunshots. Nicolaus Gustafson ran to the intersection of Division and 5th a block away, where he was shot in the head as the bank was being robbed. Gustafson died four days later. Another Swede named John Olson was an eyewitness to the Gustafson shooting and later testified against Cole Younger. Inside the bank, the assistant cashier Joseph Lee Heywood refused to open

2726-527: The Clement gang. The first mention of their involvement came in 1868, when authorities identified Cole as a member of a gang that robbed Nimrod Long & Co., a bank in Russellville, Kentucky . Former guerrillas John Jarrett (Younger's brother-in-law), Arthur McCoy, and George and Oliver Shepard were also implicated. Oliver Shepard was killed resisting arrest and George was imprisoned. Once the more senior members of

2820-611: The Confederate wounded. McNeil supplied a surgeon and instruments, the departed Porter having previously commandeered all medical equipment. The Confederate dead were deposited in several mass graves in Forest Llewellen Cemetery; a monument now marks the spot. Some were later recovered by their families. Fifteen Confederates were quickly court-martialed on McNeil's orders and executed for having violated previous parole agreements not to take up arms again until exchanged. Although

2914-519: The Dundas Road toward Millersburg where four of them had spent the night before. Minnesotans joined posses and set up picket lines by the hundreds. After several days the gang had only reached the western outskirts of Mankato when they decided to split up (despite persistent stories to the contrary, Cole Younger told interviewers that they all agreed to the decision). The Youngers and Pitts remained on foot, moving west, until finally they were cornered in

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3008-778: The July 15, 1881, robbery of the Rock Island Line train at Winston, Missouri in which a train crewman and a passenger were killed, and one in Huntsville, Alabama , for the March 11, 1881, robbery of a United States Army Corps of Engineers payroll at Muscle Shoals, Alabama . Frank James was found not guilty by juries in both cases (July 1883 at Gallatin and April 1884 at Huntsville). Missouri kept jurisdiction over him with other charges but they never came to trial and they kept him from being extradited to Minnesota. Frank James died on February 8, 1915, at

3102-570: The Kirksville area were high (though Union sentiment was stronger than in surrounding counties), due to the Southern heritage of most of the residents. Porter had been urged to come to Kirksville by Confederate Captain Tice Cain, an Adair County farmer who claimed to be holding Kirksville with 500 fresh recruits. (In one of the battle's mysteries, Cain disappeared and was never heard from again, according to

3196-472: The Republican government that now held power in the state. On election day, Clement led his men into Lexington, where they drove Republican voters away from the polls , thereby securing a Republican defeat. A detachment of state militiamen was dispatched to the town. They convinced the bushwhackers to disperse, then attempted to capture Clement, who still had a price on his head. Clement refused to surrender and

3290-532: The South. Zerelda Samuel , the mother of Frank and Jesse James, was an outspoken partisan of the South, though the Youngers' father, Henry Washington Younger , was believed to be a Unionist. Cole Younger 's initial decision to fight as a bushwhacker is usually attributed to the death of his father at the hands of Union forces in July 1862. He and Frank James fought under one of the most famous Confederate bushwhackers, William Clarke Quantrill , though Cole eventually joined

3384-470: The Unionist provisional government mobilized a state militia to fight the increasingly organized and deadly partisans. This conflict (fought largely, though not exclusively, between Missourians themselves) raged until after the fall of Richmond and the surrender of General Robert E. Lee , costing thousands of lives and devastating broad swathes of the Missouri countryside. The conflict rapidly escalated into

3478-450: The Whites Creek area. Jesse did not adapt well to peace; he gathered up recruits, formed a new gang and returned to a life of crime. On October 8, 1879, Jesse and his gang robbed the Chicago and Alton Railroad near Glendale, in Jackson County, Missouri. Unfortunately for Jesse, one of the men, Tucker Basham, was captured by a posse. He told authorities he had been recruited by Bill Ryan. On September 3, 1880, Jesse James and Bill Ryan robbed

3572-465: The aftermath of the two raids, however, the more senior bushwhackers were killed, captured or simply left the group. This set the stage for the emergence of the James and Younger brothers, and the transformation of the old crew into the James–Younger Gang. John Jarrett and Arthur McCoy were mentioned in numerous newspaper accounts, so they were likely active in gang activities up to 1875. On December 7, 1869, Frank and Jesse James are believed to have robbed

3666-478: The age of 36. After much legal dispute, Cole and Jim Younger were paroled in 1901 on the condition they remain in Minnesota. Jim committed suicide on October 19, 1902, while on parole in St. Paul, at the age of 54. Cole Younger received a pardon in 1903 on the condition that he leave Minnesota and never return. He traveled to Missouri where he joined a "Wild West" show with Frank James and died there on March 21, 1916, at

3760-515: The age of 72. Bill Ayers and Diana Oughton headed a splinter group of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) that called itself the " Jesse James Gang " and evolved into the Weather Underground . Cole Younger Thomas Coleman Younger (January 15, 1844 – March 21, 1916) was an American Confederate guerrilla during the American Civil War and later an outlaw leader with

3854-689: The age of 72. The Youngers remained loyal to the Jameses when they were in prison and never informed on them. They ended up being model prisoners and in one incident helped keep other prisoners from escaping during a fire at the prison. Cole Younger also founded the longest-running prison newspaper in the United States during his stay at the Minnesota Territorial Prison in Stillwater. Bob Younger died in prison of tuberculosis on September 15, 1889, at

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3948-496: The article stressed their Confederate loyalties. In January 1874, the outlaws were suspected of holding up a stagecoach in Bienville Parish, Louisiana . Later another suspected stage robbery took place between Malvern and Hot Springs, Arkansas . There, the gang returned a pocket watch to a Confederate veteran, saying that Northern men had driven them to outlawry and that they intended to make them pay for it. On January 31,

4042-586: The authorities first named Cole Younger, John Jarrett, Arthur McCoy, George Shepherd and Oliver Shepherd as suspects in the robbery of the Nimrod Long bank in Russellville, Kentucky . The James–Younger Gang dissolved in 1876, following the capture of the Younger brothers in Minnesota during the unsuccessful attempt to rob the Northfield First National Bank . Three years later, Jesse James organized

4136-455: The bank's front door and the other three were waiting in Mills Square to guard the gang's escape route. According to some reports, J. S. Allen shouted to the townspeople, “Get your guns, boys, they’re robbing the bank!” Once local citizens realized a robbery was in progress, several took up arms from local hardware stores. Shooting from behind cover, they poured deadly fire on the outlaws. During

4230-495: The bank. Every year in September, Northfield hosts "Defeat of Jesse James Days", a celebration of the town's victory over the James–Younger Gang. In addition to the death of Miller and Stiles, every one of the rest of the gang was wounded, including Frank James and Pitts, both shot in their right legs. Jesse James was the last one to be shot, taking a bullet in the thigh as the gang escaped. The six surviving outlaws rode out of town on

4324-536: The beginning of the American Civil War , the state of Missouri had chosen not to secede from the Union but neither to fight for it nor against it: its position, as determined by an 1861 constitutional convention, was officially neutral. Missouri, however, had been the scene of much of the agitation leading up to the outbreak of the war, and was home to dedicated partisans from both sides. In the mid-1850s, local Unionists and Secessionists had begun to battle each other throughout

4418-667: The consequences." Cole, Jim, and Bob pleaded guilty to their crimes to avoid execution. They were sentenced to life in prison at the Minnesota Territorial Prison at Stillwater on November 18, 1876. Frank and Jesse James fled to Nashville, Tennessee , where they lived peacefully for the next three years. In 1879, Jesse returned to a life of crime, which ended with his death on April 3, 1882, in Saint Joseph, Missouri . Frank James surrendered to Missouri Governor Thomas T. Crittenden on October 4, 1882. Eventually, Frank James

4512-426: The ear at James's rented apartment in St. Joseph, Missouri . Bob and his brother Charley surrendered to the authorities, pleaded guilty, and were promptly pardoned by Crittenden. On October 4, 1882, Frank James surrendered to Crittenden. Accounts say that Frank surrendered with the understanding that he would not be extradited to Northfield, Minnesota . Only two cases ever came to trial: one in Gallatin, Missouri , for

4606-485: The execution was permissible within military norms, it was seldom done and McNeil has been criticized for both the justice and necessity of the proceedings, by John L. Porter (see Kirksville Daily Express , 1912, below) and Joseph Mudd (see references to Palmyra massacre ), among others. A number of other questionable shootings followed, including those of Dr. John Davis (said by some to have been told to run and then shot when he did) and Lt. Col. Frisby McCullough —

4700-616: The express car on the Rock Island Railroad in Adair, Iowa . Younger and his brothers were also suspects in robberies in Missouri, Kentucky, Kansas, and West Virginia. Following the robbery of the Iron Mountain Railroad at Gad's Hill, Missouri in 1874, the Pinkerton National Detective Agency began to pursue the so-called James–Younger Gang. Two agents (Louis J. Lull and John Boyle) engaged John and Jim Younger in

4794-506: The famous outlaws. The first agent, J. W. Ragsdale, was hired on April 9, 1874. On August 30, three of the gang held up a stagecoach across the Missouri River from Lexington, Missouri, in view of hundreds of onlookers on the bluffs of the town. A passenger identified two of the robbers as Frank and Jesse James. The acting governor, Charles P. Johnson , dispatched an agent selected from the St. Louis police department to investigate. The gang

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4888-521: The first daylight, peacetime, armed bank robberies in U.S. history when they held up the Clay County Savings Association in Liberty, Missouri . The outlaws stole some $ 60,000 in cash and bonds and killed a bystander named George Wymore on the street outside the bank. State authorities suspected Archie Clement of leading the raid, and promptly issued a reward for his capture. In later years,

4982-402: The gang commanded a notoriety in the public eye that earned the gang significant popular support and sympathy. The gang's activities spanned much of the central part of the country; they are suspected of having robbed banks , trains , and stagecoaches in at least eleven states: Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Alabama, and West Virginia. From

5076-410: The gang had been killed, captured, or quit, its core thereafter consisted of the Younger brothers, Frank James , and Jesse James . Witnesses repeatedly gave identifications that matched Cole Younger in robberies carried out over the next few years, as the outlaws robbed banks and stagecoaches in Missouri and Kentucky. On July 21, 1873, they turned to train robbery , derailing a locomotive and looting

5170-547: The gang had ventured east to Huntington, West Virginia , where they robbed a bank on September 7. Two new members participated: Tom McDaniel (brother of Bud) and Tom Webb (a Confederate veteran who had been at Lawrence with Frank and Cole). McDaniel was killed by a posse and Webb was caught. The other two robbers, Frank and Cole, escaped. Also in 1875, the two James brothers moved to the outskirts of Nashville, Tennessee , probably to save their mother from further raids by detectives. Once there, Jesse James began to write letters to

5264-569: The gang leave a local restaurant near the mill shortly after noon, where they dined on fried eggs. They testified at the Younger brothers' trial that the group smelled of alcohol and that the gang was obviously under the influence when they greeted General Ames. Three of the outlaws (Bob Younger, Frank James and Charlie Pitts) crossed the bridge by the Ames Mill and entered the bank; the other five (Jesse James, Cole and Jim Younger, Bill Stiles and Clell Miller) stood guard outside. Two were standing outside

5358-550: The gang robbed a southbound train on the Iron Mountain Railway at Gads Hill, Missouri . For the first of two times in all their train robberies, the outlaws robbed the passengers. In both train robberies, their usual target, the safe in the baggage car belonging to an express company, held an unusually small amount of money. On this occasion, the outlaws reportedly examined the hands of the passengers to ensure that they did not rob any working men. Many newspapers reported this

5452-533: The gospel, or carrying out other public roles. The constitution freed all slaves in Missouri in advance of the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It enacted a number of reforms, but the restrictions on former Confederates created disunity. Most of the former bushwhackers returned to peaceful lives. Many left Missouri for friendlier places, particularly Kentucky, where they had relatives. Most of their former leaders, including Quantrill and William "Bloody Bill" Anderson , had been killed during

5546-518: The gun battle, medical student Henry Wheeler killed Miller, shooting from a third-floor window of the Dampier House Hotel, across the street from the bank. Another civilian named A. R. Manning, who took cover at the corner of the Sciver building down the street, killed Stiles. Other civilians wounded the Younger brothers (Cole was shot in his left hip, Bob suffered a shattered elbow, and Jim was shot in

5640-440: The help of the prison warden. Jim committed suicide in a hotel room in St. Paul, Minnesota , on October 19, 1902. Cole wrote a memoir that portrayed himself as a Confederate avenger more than an outlaw, admitting to only one crime, that at Northfield. He lectured and toured the south with Frank James in a wild west show, The Cole Younger and Frank James Wild West Company , in 1903. On August 21, 1912, Cole declared that he had become

5734-470: The jailer, Henry Bugler, was killed. The James brothers are believed to have been involved. The gang began a string of robberies, many of which were linked to Clement's group of bushwhackers. The hold-up most clearly linked to the group was of Alexander Mitchell and Company in Lexington, Missouri, on October 30, 1866, which netted $ 2,011.50. Clement was also linked to violence and intimidation against officials of

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5828-702: The jaw). The only civilian fatality on the street was 30-year-old Nicholas Gustafson, an unarmed recent Swedish immigrant, who was killed by Cole Younger at the corner of 5th Street and Division. Thirteen Swedish families lived west of Northfield in the Millersburg area in 1876, including Peter Gustafson, who had recently been joined by his brother Nicolaus and nephew Ernst from Sweden. West of Millersburg that morning, Peter Youngquist harnessed his mules and headed for Northfield to sell farm produce, accompanied by Gustafson and three others. The Swedes arrived in Northfield about 1:00 p.m. and set up their vegetable wagon along

5922-457: The list of suspects grew to include Jesse and Frank James, Cole Younger, John Jarrett, Oliver Shepherd, Bud and Donny Pence, Frank Greg, Bill and James Wilkerson, Joab Perry, Ben Cooper, Red Mankus, and Allen Parmer (who later married Susan James, Frank and Jesse's sister). Four months later, on June 13, 1866, two members of Quantrill's Raiders were freed from prison in Independence, Missouri ;

6016-502: The local press, asserting his place as a Confederate hero and a martyr to Radical Republican vindictiveness. On July 7, 1876, Frank and Jesse James, Cole and Bob Younger, Clell Miller, Charlie Pitts, Bill Chadwell and Hobbs Kerry robbed the Missouri Pacific Railroad at the "Rocky Cut" near Otterville, Missouri . The new man, Kerry, was arrested soon after and he readily identified his accomplices. The Rocky Cut raid set

6110-440: The mill on the Cannon River and had a large amount of stock in the bank. One of the outlaws "had a spite" against Ames, Bob said. Cole Younger said much the same thing years later and recalled greeting "General Ames" on the street in Northfield just before the robbery. Cole, Jim and Bob Younger, Frank and Jesse James, Charlie Pitts, Clell Miller and Bill Chadwell took the train to St. Paul, Minnesota , in early September 1876. After

6204-501: The public face of the James–Younger Gang, appealing to the public in letters to the press. On September 7, 1876, the James–Younger Gang attempted to rob a bank in Northfield, Minnesota . Cole Younger and his brother Bob both later said that they selected the bank because of its connection to two former Union generals and Radical politicians, Benjamin Butler , a Democrat, and Adelbert Ames ,

6298-430: The rail fence. From this position, the Confederates poured heavy fire into McNeil's men, but were ultimately overwhelmed. The battle began at 11 a.m. and was over by 2 p.m. The Federals then secured the town, capturing numerous prisoners, and driving away the remaining Confederates. Three days later, another Union force arrived and finished the work begun at Kirksville, virtually destroying Porter's command. According to

6392-550: The regular Confederate Army . Jesse James began his guerrilla career in 1864, at the age of sixteen, fighting alongside Frank under the leadership of Archie Clement and "Bloody Bill" Anderson . At the war's end, Frank James surrendered in Kentucky ; Jesse James attempted to surrender to Union militia but was shot through the lung outside of Lexington, Missouri . He was nursed back to health by his cousin, Zerelda "Zee" Mimms , whom he eventually married. When Cole Younger returned from

6486-550: The rich and give to the poor." On May 27, 1873, the James–Younger Gang robbed the Ste. Genevieve Savings Association in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri . As they rode off they fired in the air and shouted, "Hurrah for Hildebrand!" Samuel S. Hildebrand was a famous Confederate bushwhacker from the area who had recently been shot dead in Illinois . Arthur McCoy had lived in this area and knew it quite well; he

6580-458: The right arm of Zerelda Samuel, the James boys' mother (the arm had to be amputated at the elbow that night), and killed their 9-year-old half-brother, Archie Samuel. On April 12, 1875, an unknown gunman shot dead Daniel Askew, a neighbor and former Union militiaman who may have been suspected of providing the Pinkertons with a base for their raid. Allan Pinkerton then abandoned the chase for the James–Younger Gang. By September 1875, at least part of

6674-435: The safe and was murdered for resisting. The two other employees in the bank were teller Alonzo Bunker and assistant bookkeeper Frank Wilcox. Bunker escaped from the bank by running out the back door despite being wounded in the right shoulder by Pitts as he ran. The three robbers then ran out of the bank after hearing the shooting outside and mounted their horses to make a run for it, having taken only several bags of nickels from

6768-470: The seventh of fourteen children. During the American Civil War , savage guerrilla warfare wracked the state of Missouri . Younger's father was a Union supporter, but he was shot dead by a Union soldier from Kansas . After that, Cole Younger sought revenge as a pro-Confederate guerrilla or " bushwhacker " under William Clarke Quantrill . By 1862, the Confederate Army had been forced to withdraw from

6862-514: The sister of the Fords. Bob Ford , not yet a member of the gang, assisted Liddil in his gunfight. Ford and Liddil, with Bolton as an intermediary, made deals with Governor Crittenden. On February 11, 1882, James Timberlake arrested Wood Hite's brother Clarence, who made a confession but died of tuberculosis in prison. Ford, on the other hand, agreed to bring down Jesse James in return for the reward. On April 3, 1882, Ford fatally shot Jesse James behind

6956-414: The square. Their presence was discovered by a Union detachment that volunteered to ride around the square in order to draw fire and cause the Confederates to reveal themselves — an act of courage which cost two Union soldiers their lives. McNeil deployed his artillery before moving in a broad line towards the town square. The subsequent cannon fire demoralized the defenders, some of whom retreated behind

7050-755: The stage for the final act of the James–Younger Gang: the famous Northfield, Minnesota raid on September 7, 1876. The target was the First National Bank of Northfield , which was far outside the gang's usual territory. The idea for the raid came from Jesse and Bob Younger. Cole tried to talk his brother out of the plan, but Bob refused to back down. Reluctantly, Cole agreed to go, writing to his brother Jim in California to come home. Jim Younger had never wanted anything to do with Cole's outlaw activities, but he agreed to go out of family loyalty. The Northfield bank

7144-433: The state's railroad and express executives to put up the money for a large reward for the capture of the James brothers. Creed Chapman and John Bugler were arrested for participating in the robbery on September 7, 1881. Though they were confirmed as having participated in the robbery by convicted members of the gang, neither was ever convicted. In December 1881, Wood Hite was killed by Liddil in an argument over Martha Bolton,

7238-464: The state, and by the end of 1861, guerrilla warfare erupted between Confederate partisans known as " bushwhackers " and the more organized Union forces. The Missouri State Guard and the newly elected Governor of Missouri, Claiborne Fox Jackson , who maintained implicit Southern sympathies, were forced into exile as Union troops under Nathaniel Lyon and John C. Frémont took control of the state. Still, pro-Confederate guerrillas resisted; by early 1862,

7332-419: The state, and most of the fighting involved pro-Union and pro-Confederate partisans rather than regular armies. However, the bushwhackers held a special hatred for the "red leg" Union troops from Kansas who frequently entered Missouri and earned a reputation for ruthlessness. Younger rode with Quantrill in a retaliatory raid on Lawrence, Kansas on August 21, 1863, during which about 200 citizens were killed and

7426-486: The three Youngers (Cole, Bob, and Jim) did not. They and another gang member, Charlie Pitts, waged a gun battle with a local posse in a wooded ravine along the Watonwan River west of Madelia, Minnesota . Pitts was killed, and Cole, Jim, and Bob Younger were badly wounded and captured. Cole, asked about the robbery, responded, "We tried a desperate game and lost. But we are rough men used to rough ways, and we will abide by

7520-597: The town looted and burned. Younger later claimed to have eventually left the bushwhackers and enlisted in the Confederate Army. He claimed he was sent to California on a recruiting mission, and returned after the war's end to find Missouri ruled by a militant faction of Unionist Radicals. In the last days of the war, the Radicals had pushed through a new state constitution that barred all Confederate sympathizers from voting, serving on juries, holding public office, preaching

7614-507: The war. But a small core of Anderson's men, led by the ruthless Archie Clement , remained together. State authorities believed that Clement planned and led the first daylight peacetime armed bank robbery in U.S. history when he held up the Clay County Savings Association on February 13, 1866. The bank was run by the leading citizens of Clay County, who had just held a public meeting for their association. The governor posted

7708-567: The wounded bank clerk, Bunker. The three brothers pleaded guilty on November 20, 1876, and were sentenced to life terms in the Minnesota Territorial Prison at Stillwater . Nicolaus Gustafson was buried in Northfield because the Millersburg Swedes had no cemetery in 1876. After his death, the Millersburg Swedes determined to establish their own church and burial ground. Peter Youngquist and Carl Hirdler donated an acre of land adjacent to their homes overlooking Circle Lake and in 1877 John Olson

7802-422: Was Mrs. Elizabeth Cutts (also given as "Kutz" and "Coots"). Most Kirksville residents had heeded Porter's warning to depart, but Cutts was shot when two Confederate soldiers attempted to enter the cellar where she was hiding, and she was hit by a Union bullet meant for them as she ran out. John L. Porter, a prominent local citizen (no relation to the Confederate leader), asked for and was granted permission to treat

7896-585: Was a robber as not." On April 29, 1872, the gang robbed a bank in Columbia, Kentucky . One of the outlaws shot the cashier, R. A. C. Martin, who had refused to open the safe. On September 23, 1872, three men (identified by former bushwhacker Jim Chiles as Jesse James and Cole and John Younger) robbed a ticket booth of the Second Annual Kansas City Industrial Exposition, amid thousands of people. They took some $ 900, and accidentally shot

7990-536: Was acquitted and lived quietly and peacefully after that. While in custody, Cole, Jim and Bob donated money for the creation of the Prison Mirror , one of the first prison newspapers in the US. Cole also worked for the newspaper as their printer's devil , and also worked as the prison's librarian. Bob Younger died in Stillwater prison on September 16, 1889, of tuberculosis . Cole and Jim were paroled on July 10, 1901, with

8084-493: Was actually done by the "Arthur McCoy" gang. To correct errors, the gang telegraphed a report of the Gads Hill robbery to the St. Louis Dispatch newspaper for publication. The Adams Express Company , which owned the safe robbed at Gads Hill, hired the Pinkerton National Detective Agency . On March 11, 1874, Joseph W. Whicher, the agent who was sent to investigate the James brothers,

8178-687: Was almost arrested in Dallas County, Texas in January 1871. He killed two lawmen [Nichols and Mcmahan] during the attempt and escaped. On June 3, 1871, the gang robbed a bank in Corydon, Iowa ; the James and Younger brothers were suspects. The bank contacted the Pinkerton National Detective Agency in Chicago, the first involvement of the famous agency in the pursuit of the James–Younger Gang. Agency founder Allan Pinkerton dispatched his son, Robert Pinkerton, who joined

8272-511: Was fought in the town of Kirksville, Missouri , on August 6, 1862. The Union victory helped consolidate Federal control over northeastern Missouri. Confederate Col. Joseph C. Porter had been recruiting in the Macon area, to the south of Kirksville. He had assembled a brigade of between 1,500 and 2,500 ill-trained and poorly equipped troops, but his irregulars had harried and recruited as far north as Memphis, Missouri . Confederate sympathies in

8366-519: Was found shot to death alongside a rural road in Jackson County, Missouri . Two other agents, John Boyle and Louis J. Lull, accompanied by Deputy Sheriff Edwin B. Daniels to track the Youngers, posed as cattle buyers. On March 17, 1874, the trio was stopped and attacked by John and Jim Younger on a rural stretch of road near Monegaw Springs, Missouri . Daniels was killed instantly, Lull and John Younger shot and killed each other, while Boyle and Jim Younger escaped. Lull lived long enough to testify before

8460-697: Was hired to build the Christdala Evangelical Swedish Lutheran Church 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Millersburg. Today the church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and historical markers in front of the church tell the story of Nicolaus Gustafson and the founding of Christdala. Having escaped, Frank James joined Jesse in Nashville, Tennessee , where they spent the next three years living peacefully. Frank in particular seemed to have thrived in his new life farming in

8554-480: Was likely involved and may have been the planner and leader. On July 21, 1873, the gang carried out what was arguably the first train robbery west of the Mississippi River, derailing a locomotive of the Rock Island Railroad near Adair, Iowa . Engineer John Rafferty died in the crash. The outlaws took $ 2,337 from the express safe in the baggage car, having narrowly missed a transcontinental express shipment of

8648-631: Was not unusually rich. According to public reports, it was a perfectly ordinary rural bank, though rumors persisted that General Adelbert Ames , son of the owner of the Ames Mill in Northfield, had deposited $ 50,000 there. Shortly after the robbery, Bob Younger declared that they had selected it because of its connection to two Union generals and Radical Republican politicians: Benjamin Butler and his son-in-law Adelbert Ames. General Ames had just stepped down as Governor of Mississippi, where he had been strongly identified with civil rights for freedmen . He had recently moved to Northfield, where his father owned

8742-535: Was observed during this period by William Eleroy Curtis , a journalist-turned-hostage. Curtis interviewed his captors, who allowed him to send dispatches to the Chicago Inter-Ocean . The gang next robbed a train on the Kansas Pacific Railroad near Muncie, Kansas , on December 8, 1874. It was one of the outlaws' most successful robberies, gaining them $ 30,000. William "Bud" McDaniel was captured by

8836-534: Was shot down in a wild gunfight on the streets of Lexington. Despite the death of Clement, his old followers remained together, and robbed a bank across the Missouri River from Lexington in Richmond, Missouri , on May 22, 1867, in which the town mayor John B. Shaw and two lawmen [Barry and George Griffin] were killed. This was followed on March 20, 1868, by a raid on the Nimrod Long bank in Russellville, Kentucky . In

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