Bank Robbery
In August 13, 1896, not long after his release from prison, Cassidy (born Robert Leroy Parker) and two other men stuck up the bank in Montpelier, Idaho, scooping up cash and gold and silver coins that may have been worth as much as $16,500 (more than $500,000 today).
Montpelier Examiner, Saturday, 15 August 1896, page 1
On Thursday afternoon at 3:20 pm while the citizens of Montpelier were quietly engaged in their usual daily avocations, three men, none of them masked, rode quietly down Washington street to the Bank of Montpelier and dismounted. Cashier Gray and Ed Hoover were standing in front of the building talking. One of the men invited them inside at the same time drawing a six shooter. They did as directed and when inside were told to stand with their faces to the wall and hands up. Two more men who happened to pass the bank door were also ordered in. Then one of the robbers went around behind the counter and held up Bud McIntosh, the assistant cashier, taking all of the money in sight and dumping it into a sack. Bud refused to tell where the greenbacks were and the man inside hit him over the eye with a gun.
After ransacking the bank vault they went out mounted their horses and rode off. The alarm spread quickly and Deputy Cruikshank and Attorney Bagley were soon on the trail followed closely by Sheriff Davis, who was in Paris when the robbery occurred and a large posse. The robbers took the canyon road leading to Thomas Fork. When several miles away they changed horses and crossing Thomas' creek took to the mountains.
Telegrams were immediately sent to all points along the railway and to Lander, Wyoming and a reward of $500 offered for their capture by Mr. Gray. Yesterday morning Deputy Cruikshank returned from the chase, leaving Sheriff Davis and his men still in pursuit. The banks loss will be about $5000, but it is fully insured against daylight robberies. Mr. Gray, will therefore lose little, if anything by the occurrence. It was rumored last yesterday afternoon that the fugitives had outfitted themselves with three fresh horses eight miles from Cokeville.
It was a regular Kansas holdup. Councilman Perkins came along just as the robbers were finishing up and they made up come in and hold up his hands. The streets had few people on them and no teams. It was some time before horses could be secured for pursuit. The bank will be open for business as if nothing had happened. Assistant Cashier McIntosh lays the robbery to the fatal number of 13. Orson Pendry came over from Paris with $50 to help the bank if it was needed.
The Montpelier Bank is protected by five thousand dollars insurance and this will cover nearly if not all of the loss sustained by the robbery. the bank will be open this morning with plenty of money for business. Many merchants yesterday tendered Mr. Gray all the currency they had to allow him to open if he so desired, but the cashier refused, saying that he would have plenty of money here this morning.
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Montpelier Examiner, Saturday, 22 August 1896, page 4
It is now definitely known that the bank robbers were not headed by Tom McCarthy as many at first had believed. They were all young men probably not over thirty while McCarthy is known to be at least forty years old. Sheriff Davis and deputies Ridd and Malone have returned from their chase of the bank robbers. The thieves were tracked as far as Snyders basin, where all signs were lost. The pursued had changed horses several times and made long hard rides. It is now believed that two of them are wanted in Utah for the murder of two men there some years ago. A very good description has been obtained of the robbers and they may yet be caught.
The officers made a hard ride over rough country in their effort to overtake the lawbreakers. It is hard to tell just which way the gang was headed, but presumably to Colorado. The morning papers contained the following dispatch today:
"Salt Lake, Utah, Aug 13-A special to the Herald says: At 3:30 this afternoon, three masked men armed to the teeth, entered the Bank of Montpelier, Idaho and covering Cashier Gray and his two assistants with pistols, emptied the safe of about 46000. Teller McIntosh was struck over the head with a pistol and one of the robbers carried off the plunder in a sack.
The second man left shortly afterwards leaving the third on guard. As soon as he left the bank, officials gave the alarm and the sheriff with a strong posse was quickly on the trail of the party, but at last reports they had not been seen. Later reports from Montpelier, Idaho, place the amount taken from the bank by the three robbers at $10,000. The outlaws struck out for the Jackson Hole country, with the sheriff and a posse of thirty men in pursuit, but Jackson Hole is a tough country and if they once get there, there is little prospect of their being captured.
Mr. Gray is well known in this city and was here on a visit during the summer. While here he took out a policy in the Banker's Mutual Casualty company Bank organization formed here following the Adel bank robbery. The policy was for $5000 and he will therefore not be a very heavy loser. President Rounds says the loss will be promptly paid."
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Montpelier Examiner, Thursday, 27 August 1896, page 4
It is now general supposed that the bank robbery at this place was perpetuated by no other than Tom McCarthy and Odell, who was suspected, has been in jail at Lander for some time past. One of McCarthy's pals is in jail at Ogden on a charge of murder and it is supposed that the money taken from the Montpelier bank will be used to help clear him of the charge.
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Montpelier Examiner, Thursday, 3 September 1896, page 1
Mrs. J M Johnston received a paper from Ireland dated August 15th, two days after the Montpelier bank robbery with an account of this incident in it. Verily, news makes rapid strides these days.
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Montpelier Examiner, Friday, 11 September 1896, page 4
G C Gray was in Salt Lake this week on business. He is confident that the robbers would have been captured shortly except for the write up in the Herald Wednesday morning. They had been located by detectives and officers from Ogden, but now they may get away. The money from the bank is to be used to clear one of the gang, now held in Ogden for murder.
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Montpelier Examiner, Friday, 18 September 1896, page 1
The Montpelier Bank Robbers have not been caught!
J M Woodworth, representing the Bankers Mutual Casualty Company of Des Moines Iowa, was in town yesterday to pay the insurance Mr. Gray had on the Bank of Montpelier against robberies. Before leaving he drew a check for $5000 payable to the bank for the amount for which it was insured.
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Montpelier Examiner, Wednesday, 1 September 1897, page 2
MEEKS CONVICTED
Bud Meeks was put on trial Monday for complicity in the
Montpelier bank robbery one year ago, which time the bank was robbed of $7200 by
three men. Attorneys R S Spence and T L Glenn were appointed by the Court to
defend Meeks. Alf Budge was assisted by John A Bagley in prosecuting.
The trial lasted most of the day and the attorneys arguments took up the courts time in the evening. The case was given to the jury last Monday night and in a short space of time they returned a verdict of guilty. Meeks will be sentenced tomorrow morning by Judge Standrod. The maximum penalty is life and the minimum is five years. Meek's chances for spending the next few Christmas days outside of the Boise penitentiary are evidently pretty slim.
During the trial several witnesses who met the trio the day of the robbery swore positively that Meeks was one of the three men who had entered the bank One of these witnesses was the man they stopped and took a sack away from, in which to put the money. Another man swore that Meeks and Cassidy worked for him. the defense offered no evidence to speak of relying on the inability of the prosecution to positively identify the man.
It seems there is no question but what Cassidy helped do the bank job, as he and Meeks were together just before the occurrence.
Page 3-Bert Cassidy, the famous outlaw, sent his best wishes to Cashier Gray a few days ago, by a man with whom he had stopped one night.
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Montpelier Examiner, Wednesday, 8 September 1897, page 3
Meeks was taken to the penitentiary Monday night by Warden Van Dorn, accompanied by Deputy Ridd. He wore an Oregon boot. Meeks stoutly maintains his innocence saying that those who identified him are mistaken in the man. His attorneys, Spence and Glenn have applied fro a writ of habeas corpus to Judge Standrod. The grounds for this are that the law of persecuting on information was not passed according to the requirements of the state constitution and is therefore null and void.