First Successful Daylight Bank Robbery (during peacetime) & a Dose of Dark Tourism with Good Coffee and Yoga

Main Street, town square. Terrific coffee shop called
Hammerhand and a yoga/massage studio, Serenity on the Square.
I took advantage of both.

A part of me has always liked dark tourist sites, before dark tourism even became a thing and Netflix made it into a series. One aspect that fascinates me is what motivates people to visit sites of death and destruction. There's not a simple answer, but a spectrum that ranges from a need to memorialize to prurient entertainment. Of course, proprietors of such venues are motivated by money.

While the majority of my stops were to places that did not recognize the James' brothers nefarious acts, a few did. The Clay County Savings Bank in Liberty, Missouri is now a museum dedicated to tours with the mission of "historical education." In Liberty's defense, the site does bring in a lot of tourist dollars, boosting the economy in this small mideastern town.

The booty gathered during the robbery including gold, silver, paper currency and government bonds totaled $60,000 would be worth over $1.8 million today. Not a bad take even divided by 12.

This is an account from the Tribune February 14, 1866.

Our usually quiet city was startled last Tuesday by one of the most cold-blooded murders and heavy robberies on record. It appears that in the afternoon some ten or twelve persons rode into town and 2 of them went into the Clay County Savings Bank, and asked the clerk, MR. WILLIAM BIRD, to change a 10 dollar bill, and as he started to do so, they drew their revolvers on him and his father, MR. GREENUP BIRD, the cashier, and made them stand quiet while they proceeded to rob the bank. 

After having obtained what they supposed was all, they put the clerk and cashier in the vault, and no doubt thought they had locked the door, and went out with their stolen treasure, mounted their horses and were joined by the balance of their gang and commenced shooting. MR. S. H. HOLMES had 2 shots fired at him and young GEORGE WYMORE, aged about 19 years, son of WM. H. WYMORE, one of the most peaceable and promising young men in the county was shot and killed while standing on the opposite side of the street at the corner of the old Green house. The killing was a deliberate murder without any provocation whatever.

The town was soon all excitement, and as many as could procure arms and horses, went in pursuit, but up to this writing, nothing is known of the result. Our citizens exhibited a commendable willingness to do all they could to assist in the capture of the robbers and their booty.

Thus has our city and people been grossly outraged by a band of thieves and murderers, and that, too, when the people thought they were in possession of permanent peace; and a worthy young man murdered, one of our most successful and ably managed monied institutions, and many private individuals, have been heavy losers. We hope to God, the villains may be overhauled, and brought to the end of a rope. Indeed, we can not believe they will escape.

An interesting tidbit is that a few days after the robbery, the family of George Wymore received a letter of apology from Jesse James saying that it was not the robbers' intention to kill anyone. Like that is supposed to bring grieving parents a modicum of comfort????



In all my excitement, I forgot to leave a hair offering. Such a shame, because it would have been perfect to leave it in the bank vault. I did pick up a copy of this book in the gift shop. It was a disappointing read, despite the feminine perspective.