Good Research Book for western stage, train robbery caches

[Tuberale]

Just found this source, printed last year. If you are serious about robbery or cache hunting involving the Wells Fargo Company, this is a book you MUST have, as it documents who, when and where better than another other source I've found.

"Wells, Fargo & Co. stagecoach and train robberies, 1870-1884: the corporate ..." by James B. Hume, John N. Thacker, R. Michael Wilson; c. 2010 by R. Michael Wilson.

The importance here is that James B. Hume and John N. Thacker were both detectives for the Wells Fargo Company in that period. They wrote a "report" on losses for W F & Co. which Wilson then expanded with local newspaper data, which is also cited. Great read!!!!!

 

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[cw0909]

hi have you read this book,and are the reports detailed, $ amount,suspect, ect.
could you post a snip of a report thanks

a look inside
http://www.amazon.com/Wells-Fargo-Stagecoach-Robberies-1870-1884/dp/0786448555#reader_0786448555

 

[Tuberale]

hi have you read this book,and are the reports detailed, $ amount,suspect, ect.
could you post a snip of a report thanks

a look inside
http://www.amazon.com/Wells-Fargo-Stagecoach-Robberies-1870-1884/dp/0786448555#reader_0786448555

I cannot. The only portion I have read to date are what is allowed online. However, it is far more detailed, has voluminous citations, and detailed information from investigators attempting to retrieve lost chatels.

A small portion of the book involved the 1875 Pendleton (OR) stage robbery by 2 "road agents". The interesting thing for me was that the date of the robbery is given, the location of the robbery, and the approximate location near Meacham where Sheriff Lot Livermore and another agent of W. F. & Co. recovered some $7,000 in mostly gold coin at a site given by one of the captured "road agents". I suspect this is the "Stage Gulch" robbery reported elsewhere, but without any mention of the cache(s) being recovered afterwards, nor the 2 robbers being caught, sentensed, and even their prisoner numbers at the Oregon State Prison.

Book gives names of robberies; names of W. F. & Co. agents killed, total number of goods taken from 1870-1884, and a lot of other important information for any serious researcher of stage or rail robberies in the period named. While W. F. & Co. was not the only freight company at that time, it was among the most highly thought of.

 

[auferret]

Nice find. I will have to get a copy of that one. I don't know how long it will last but I found what appears to be the whole book at Google books.
http://books.google.com/books?id=oT...&resnum=3&ved=0CCMQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

[Old Bookaroo]

Howdy!

Wasn't there a TNF post a while back that a copy of the original Wells, Fargo & Co. report was sold on eBay?

This edition would be more useful for today's researcher because the editor added so much additional information. It goes to show there are still untold stories out there - if the author is willing to complete original research to gather and then present them. Writers don't have to simply copy the work of previous scribes, althought that is considerably less work.

This is a reprint edition. The original appears to have been issued in very limited numbers, and is rather pricey today.

Good luck to all,

~The Old Bookaroo

 

[Tuberale]

As I understand it, the original report was published in 1885 by Hume and Thacker for select people within Wells, Fargo and Co. Additional research was added by R. Michael Wilson. He accumulated the additional data, often from local newspaper sources. The newspaper articles often gave much greater details of both the robberies, hold-ups and burglaries than the original Report did.

As interesting as the stories are the totals that Hume and Thacker arrived at, plus how much it cost W.F.&Co. to track and find the perps. It also verifies that sometimes the robber wasn't apprehended, such as the Corrine, Utah stage robbery.

The portions of the book on Google Books is a teaser IMO, but certainly makes my mouth water a little.

 

[Old Bookaroo]

Here’s the same information (twice) straight from the horse’s mouth.

It makes sense that Wells Fargo kept track of robberies in a “brief and business-like” manner. The company had a form to fill out after each one. Modern researchers (such as Mr. Wilson) have taken those records and expanded on them using contemporary news accounts.

It should be noted that this is a somewhat touchy subject for Wells Fargo. They don’t think Black Bart (The Po8) was such a great guy. After all, he used a shotgun to rob them.

6. How do I find more information on stagecoach robberies?

First check for information in state and county historical societies and special libraries. Contemporary newspaper accounts of robberies were often very detailed, in contrast to Wells Fargo’s brief and business-like notes.
https://www.wellsfargo.com/about/history/faqs#Q6

How can I find more information on a stagecoach robbery?

We are often contacted for information about robberies, legendary and factual. But we do not answer questions relating to historic robberies.

Robberies were attempted when money or treasure was transported: Numerous incidents were reported in Western states. Local newspapers of the time have the best accounts of robberies. These are found through local historical societies and libraries.

We do not have any statistics on stagecoach robberies prior to 1870 or otherwise. The most complete record we have is that published by our special agents James B. Hume and John N. Thacker. Author John Boessenecker has written about a number of robberies in Badge and Buckshot.(University of Oklahoma Press, 1988.) Wells Fargo Detective (University of Nevada Press, 1986), Dick Dillon's biography of James B. Hume, also has information.

http://www.wellsfargohistory.com/resources/faqs.htm#robbery

Good Luck to All,

~The Old Bookaroo

 

[Tuberale]

This book mentions the first stage holdup was in 1854 in CA. So within 16 years the practice became so common and commonplace that it made sense to publish the losses for W.F.&Co. And even this book only covers the period between 1870 and 1884, or 14 years.

By the roaring '20's, there are far more robberies and bank holdups. And robbers are taking more money. But there is no single book detailling all of those heists that I know of.

Keep in mind, as well, that while the robbery may have taken place over 100 years ago, if W.F.&Co. paid on the loss, the material lost became their property. That ownership continues today.

Also, thanks Bookaroo for the citations. I will have to look those up as well.