Old West Bank Robbery Foiled by Citizens! Meeker, Colorado!

Most of us have heard the song “Try that in a small town” by Jason Aldean, and this story is a perfect example of the wrong town that outlaws picked for their mischief. The quote that has been used for this event is “This is what happens when citizens preserve law and order in their town”. In the Old West town of Meeker, Colorado, three Outlaws robbed the bank and then had to face the wrath of the local armed citizens who were very eager to defend their town. In this video, I’ll show you the sights, and tell you the story of this wild event of some unlucky outlaws that tried it in the wrong small town.

Before I begin the story, I should mention that there are slightly differing accounts of what happened that day, and even the names of some of the characters differ. Like so many other events in history, overtime the story gets clouded. We have tried our best to compare the accounts and streamline the details here in this video.

It was 3 October 1896, about 3 o’clock in the afternoon when three outlaws rode into town from the south down by the White River. They tied their horses at the freight wagon corral behind the J.W. Hugus & Company building which was being used as a general store and housed the Bank of Meeker. They entered the building and took positions at the front and side doors. Outlaw “The Kid” Pierce covered the front door, and outlaw Jim Shirley covered the side door. A Mrs. Wildhack tried to come in the front door to do some shopping, but The Kid told her that she couldn’t go in.

Joe Rooney, a clerk at the Meeker Hotel was making a deposit. When Rooney finished his business, the action was on. Outlaw Jim Shirley shouted from the side door for everyone to get their hands in the air. The leader George Bain stuck his pistol between the brass railing and fired a shot near the head of the assistant cashier David Smith, and when he didn’t move fast enough he fired a second shot. This may not have been the smartest thing to do because the town heard the shots. A.C. Moulton, the manager of the J.W. Hugus and Company came out from the back room. Robber Jim Shirly then pointed his barrel at Moulton, who later stated that the gun barrel was big enough for him to sleep in!

At this same time outside, a man named Phil Barnhart was about to enter the bank when he saw a man in front of him throw up his hands. Barnhart then ran down the street sounding the alarm, “get your guns, the bank is being robbed!”. Another man, Tom Shervin from the Meeker Hotel heard the shots and informed a passerby C.J. Duffy, and the two of them ran throughout the town to give the alarm.

Bain tried to force the bank door open but when he realized that it was locked, he grabbed Mr. Rooney, held him at gunpoint and marched him to the bank office door. He told the Manager Mr. Moulton “Here, Mr. Cashier, we want you!” and then told them to unlock the door. Bain went inside and asked Mouton where the money was. The cashier pointed to the cash drawer and told him to help himself. Bain shoved an estimated $600 to $1,600 into an old sugar sack and then told the staff to get with the other hostages.

The outlaws marched the captives out the side door and started to the alley where their horses were tied. As soon as they got outside, they saw the armed townsfolk and used the hostages as a shield to get to the corral. The Deputy Game Warden William H. “Bill” Clark was also a teacher and heard the shots in his classroom. He told the children to stay put and went to investigate. He took a position near the grain warehouse, and when the robbers and hostages came out, he was spotted by one of the robbers and was shot in the right side of his chest.

The outlaws made it to their horses and while two of the outlaws attempted to untie them, The Kid stood guard on the hostages. One of the hostages Victor Dykeman, took off and ran. The kid fired and shot Dykeman in the right arm and put three shots in his hat. That’s when the townsfolk unloaded.

A citizen named Ben Nichols was credited with shooting The Kid who died instantly with five bullets in him. Citizen Simp Harp shot Shirly through the heart critically wounding him. While Shirly went down he unloaded his six gun at the townsfolk. So many bullets flew that one of the outlaws horses was killed. Seeing both of his partners shot, Bain made a run for it to the river but was shot in the back by Simp Harp.

They took the outlaws across the street to the mill and put them on display for the townsfolk to see. The next day they were buried in Highland Cemetery, and they are among the first people buried here. Sixty-nine years later, in 1965, the town put grave markers down for the bank robbers.

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#old_west #bank_robbery #robbery #outlaws #meeker #colorado #old_west_history #history #colorado_history #us_history #american_history #try_that_in_a_small_town #jason_aldean #ancestry #genealogy #family_tree #family_tree_nuts #Russ_Carson_Jr #Colonel_Carson #Col_Russ_Carson_Jr #small_town #cowboys #gunslinger #shootout #shooting #white_river_museum #white_river #hotel_meeker #meeker_cafe #yellow_footprints #meeker_massacre #ute #utes #ute_indians #ute_tribe #native_americans #indians

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