Black Bart Was Not As Ferocious As Ralphie Made Him Out To Be July 23, 2010

Ralphie on the prowl for Black Bart with his Daisy Red Ryder BB Gun

On This Date in Criminal History: Do you remember the movie A Christmas Story in which Ralphie wants a BB gun and has visions of shooting Black Bart? It leads one to believe that Bart was some desperado. Well, in the 1870′s there was a dime novel that was loosely based on a true story. The writer called his main character Bartholomew Graham who took the name of “Black Bart” because he wore black clothes, had black long curly hair and a dense black beard. In real life, there was a man named Charles Bowles  who was born in England in 1829 who immigrated to New York in the United States a few years later with his family.

Dapper Black Bart

As a young man, the real Charles Bowles changed his name to Charles Boles and, in 1849, he and his cousin went to California to seek their fortune in gold. They failed and, a few years later, came back. Charley Boles tried again with his cousin and his brother. Not only did they fail again, but the brother and cousin both died from an illness. Charley eventually returned and got married. After spending time in the Union Army and serving with distinction, Charley again went out west, this time to Montana where he set up a mining site that depended on water. Some men from Wells Fargo offered to buy his claim and he refused. The men reacted by cutting off his water and Charley had to abandon his mine but said in a letter to his wife,”I am going to take steps.” No one knew what he meant.  For quite some time, the last letter his wife received from him was in 1871.

Bart Often Left a Nasty Poem Behind For the Wells Fargo Boys

On this date in 1878 a Wells Fargo stagecoach was robbed of $400. It wasn’t the first time that a stagecoach from Wells Fargo had been robbed. It is believed that the culprit first began robbing stagecoaches in 1875 because, each time, a poem that intimated the perpetrator was going to strike again. It was signed “Black Bart”. Bart robbed Wells Fargo stage coaches numerous times throughout the late 1870′s and early 1880′s. He wore a flour sack on his head and never fired a shot, though on a few occasions, shots were fired at him. There was never any mayhem or extreme violence. On November 3 1883, Bart made a mistake when he left behind a handkerchief as he made his escape following what would be his last stagecoach robbery. The Pinkerton Detective Agency was able to track the hanky from a laundry mark to an elderly man in San Francisco named Charles Bolton. Bolton admitted that he indeed was Black Bart, but he disputed his reputation as being an outlaw by telling the Pinkertons. “I am a gentleman.” It was also learned that Bolton was really Charles Boles, who years before vowed to “take steps” against the company who forced him to abandon his mining claim. His wife, who had thought he was long since dead, found out that Boles was alive when she learned of his arrest.

Wanted Poster Promises $1000 in Gold For Bart

Just 18 days after his arrest, Black Bart found himself in California’s San Quentin Prison to begin serving his 6 year sentence.  His prison number was 11046.  But, he denied being Charles E. Boles or Black Bart.  Instead, he insisted his name was Charles E. Bolton.  The prevailing thought was that he was trying to protect the family that he had long since abandoned.  However, he wrote letters to his wife.  There is no record of his having received any visitors while he was in prison though rumors ran about, supposedly arising from a letter he wrote to his wife, that a wealthy man had become interested in his condition.  Speculation is that this mystery man, if he did exist, may have helped secure his early release.  Officially, he was released after 4 years and 2 months for good behavior which was a relatively new procedure.  Reporters came calling at his release and again he insisted his name was Charles Bolton and his life of crime was behind him, though reporters tried to get him to say something different.  I guess 19th century reporters did the same thing as today’s journalists when a subject doesn’t say what they want him to say. 

By This Time, Black Bart Insisted He Was Charles Bolton

Bart returned to San Francisco where officials of Wells Fargo kept close tabs on him. He wrote his wife that he was tired of being shadowed by the boys from the bank and felt demoralized.  He wanted to get away from everyone.  He never returned to his wife but in 1888 a man answering Bart’s description checked into a hotel in Visalia and then vanished.  In his room was found a can of tongue, a can of corned beef, coffee, crackers, sugar and a jar of jelly.  There were also two neckties and a set of cuffs that had a laundry mark that read F.X.O.7.   Speculation is that he was trying to throw up a smokescreen for the boys at Wells Fargo.  If he did, it worked.  The last time anyone saw him was February 28, 1888.  The 1892 city directory listed Mary Boles as the widow of Charles E. Boles, which may indicate that she knew something. Or maybe she just gave up.  If the 1917 obituary in a New York newspaper regarding Civil War Veteran Charles E. Boles was indeed that of Black Bart, he would have been 88 years old.  Either way he lives on each Christmas with Ralphie.

Bonnie Spaghetti Model Track 18Z 7.23.10

Weather Bottom Line:  Tropical Storm Bonnie (See satellite loop below)  is stirring up more in the media than it is in the Gulf or South Florida.  I got an email from my cousin’s husband in Fort Lauderdale, Fred Flintstone, who said they had about a half inch of rain…they get more than that in a run of the mill thunderstorm.  The problem for Bonnie is that there is a huge upper level low in the center of the Gulf and that is serving to just beat the crap out of the upper wind flow…its disrupting or shearing the winds aloft such that Bonnie cannot get any upper support and without that, you do not get a hurricane.  Centered over the northern part of the Dixie states is a big ridge.  It has expanded north and is why the Ohio Valley is so h0t today and will be in the upper 90′s with dewpoints in the low 70′s again on Saturday. 

Bonnie Spaghetti Intensity Model 18Z 7.23.10

Between the upper low with its counter clockwise flow and the clockwise flow of the area of high pressure will be the track of Bonnie.  It will be shot out like a cannon with the help of both of the other systems flow.  That is another reason why Bonnie will not be much of a storm.  It’s moving so fast, even if the upper conditions were good (they’re awful), it would not have time to develop. In fact, I bet it gets downgraded  to a depression as it comes off of Florida and then there is a fair chance that it will not reach tropical storm status again.   And with that speed, its not likely to produce any crippling rain when it does make landfall late Saturday night or early Sunday morning in the north central coast of the Gulf of Mexico.  Now, the flow around the high will break down with the advance of a cold front into the Ohio Valley.  That will raise the prosects for rain and t’storms in our area.  The moisture from Bonnie will then wrap around and move up the Mississippi and Ohio Valley and continue to bring us rain.  I suspect that the biggest threat for Bonnie will be the rainfall that it brings in, say the Tennessee Valley or perhaps the Ohio Valley early next week.  Our temperatures will be reduceds somewhat starting Sunday….so we only have to deal with a heat index of 105 to 110 for today and tomorrow.

Click image for Western Atlantic 2 day satellite loop

John Dillinger’s Infamy Lives With Rumors FBI Did NOT Get Their Man July 22, 2010

Dillinger's 1930 Ford Model A Sold for 165K in January 2010

On This Date in History: A funny thing about American history is that not only do we tend to celebrate heroes, but Americans also seem to celebrate the villains. George Washington was arguably the most important man in US history yet more people probably know about Billy the Kid than General Washington.   Movies are made about the exploits of Al Capone yet, the life of President US Grant, who shows up on the fifty dollar bill is either misrepresented or totally obscure to most Americans.  Some years ago, I had the opportunity to see the Bonnie and Clyde “death car”  though from the linked site, it may have been a fake. This guy  claimed it was the real thing and hauled it around in an 18-wheeler and charged people to come and look at it.   I didn’t pay but, since I was in the news, I got to see it up close, complete with bullet holes.  I was suprised at how small it was.  But, this guy got the tv station to give him free advertising as the tv station wanted to capitalize on viewers fascination with criminals of the past.  Of course, there was a famous movie with Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty about Bonnie and Clyde.  Also, there was a recent movie about John Dillinger starring Johnny Depp.  Like Billy the Kid and Bonnie and Clyde, Dillinger had a relatively short crime career yet he remains an icon in the international imagination.  Just this year, like the Bonnie and Clyde “death car” complete with bullet holes, a John Dillinger getaway car was sold at auction for $165,000.  July 22nd is a watershed day in the history of John Dillinger as it was supposedly the end of him.  But, there are those who think that it was only the end of his public life and not his real life.  Either way, as long as Hollywood and historians write about Dillinger and other criminal figures from the past, they will never die and their legends and myths may actually grow.

In the late 1920′s and 1930′s, lots of gangsters roamed the countryside. Public Enemy Number One was determined by the Bureau of Investigations, which in 1935 became the FBI. In 1934, the man who held the title was John Dillinger. While it didn’t take him long to top the list, he had to learn his trade through trial and error like any good craftsman. On June 10, 1933, Dillinger pulled his first bank job in Carlisle, IN. Two weeks later, he tried again but this one was botched in Monticello, Indiana. It is interesting that there is very little information available regarding the attempted hold up of a Marshall Fields in Monticello by Dillinger and William Shaw. I suppose its because it was a failed attempt and Americans only like to hear about wins, not losses.

McNutt had a bad feeling about Dillinger due to a harsh sentence

An interesting thing about Dillinger is that, even though he was Public Enemy Number 1, his career as a criminal didn’t really last all that long. He was put in jail in 1924 following the beating of Mooresville, IN grocer Frank Morgan by Dillinger and his good friend Edgar Singleton. They had been out boozing it up and jumped the guy. Dillinger got caught when, a few days after the assault on September 6, 1924, Dillinger brought attention to himself by inquiring as to the well being of Mr. Morgan. As it turns out, Morgan couldn’t identify his attackers, but Dillinger was tricked into confessing. Meanwhile, his buddy Ed pled not guilty. Ed was out of jail after a couple of years while Dillinger got 10-20 years for assault and 2-14 years for conspiracy to commit a felony. Some scholars think that the difference in sentences is what pissed off Dillinger and led him on a life of crime. Indiana Governor Paul McNutt thought that the sentence was so harsh that it might cause Dillinger to do anything once he was out of jail. Victim Morgan and the sentencing judge both thought that the sentence was pretty tough. By 1933, the pair joined 182 townfolk lobbying to let Dillinger loose and on May 22, 1933 John Dillinger was set free.

Some Hoosiers Made Certain that They Were Not Mistaken for Dillinger But Did the FBI Still Get the Right Man?

That’s the odd part. He was set free on May 22 1933 and within a few weeks, he was committing or at least trying to, commit worse crimes than he had done prior to his initial incarceration. Did prison create John Dillinger?  The fact that Dillinger failed in Monticello, IN was probably more associated with his lack of experience than anything else, but one can’t know for sure. Even Monticello doesn’t want to talk about it. In any event, Dillinger went on to amass some $359, 322 in loot taken and that made him the marked man at the top of the list.

Dillinger Death Made Headlines Nationwide

On This Date in 1934, the Bureau got their man when it gunned down Public Enemy Number 1, John Dillinger. Bureau agent Melvin Purvis got a tip from brothel operator Anna Sage who gave information concerning Dillinger’s whereabouts under the threat of deportation to her native Romania on morals charges. Sage is the original woman in red, which has been also called the lady in red. The story is that she attended the Biograph Theatre in Chicago and when she emerged, she was identified from her red dress and thus the man whom she was with was to be considered Dillinger. She came out and the agents promptly shot her date. That was that, the headlines were trumpeted across the nation and the photo above was circulated to prove that Dillinger was indeed dead.

But….a supposed authority on the history of American Crime, Jay Robert Nash, says the FBI got the wrong guy. Nash says the man who was killed outside of the theatre was really a patsy. James Lawrence was considered a low level thug who was used by Sage and a crooked Indiana detective to unwittingly stand in for Dillinger. If you notice, the dead guy looks similar to the Dillinger photo on the left, but to me he looks a bit more like Jackie Gleason than the lean looking photo of the alive version of Public Enemy Number 1. The FBI claimed that Dillinger had plastic surgery and that explains any discrepancies. But the Cook County autopsy report was supposedly lost for 30 years. After it was found, the claim is that the dead guy is not the same height or weight of Dillinger. Dillinger had blue eyes whereas the corpse had brown eyes. The corpse was missing a distinguishing birthmark and had more teeth than the notorious bank-robber. Evidence showed the dead guy had a rheumatic heart. Had Dillinger had such a condition, he would have been prevented from being in the Navy.

FBI stands by their story that this man in the Cook County morgue in 1934 was indeed John Dillinger

The FBI, of course, stands by their story and claims the record, including fingerprints, support the truth that the G-Man got his man!!! I dunno…but I do know that Dillinger was never spotted again. Seems to me that if he were alive, it would be unlikely that he “went straight.” But then again, the guy was dead, they couldn’t interrogate him to determine if he was in fact Dillinger and they certainly couldn’t read him his Miranda rights. Back in those days it was “shoot first and ask questions later”….kinda like that good neighbor in Texas. Anyway, if you see a very old man that looks like the alive version of Dillinger, call the authorities immediately.

Weather Bottom Line:  Today will be more of the same with scattered t’storms though I do not see any major features either in the minds of the computer models nor in the reality of the radar.  Friday and Saturday will be very hot…I saw the weather channel claiming 99 for one of the days but that will be tough with dewpoints in the low 70′s.  But, mid 90′s seems hot enough and with that type of moisture, it will feel even hotter.  Sunday, the ridge should break down to allow for an elevation in rain/t’storm chances perhaps as early as Saturday night and, if not, then certainly Sunday.  The boundary should come through sufficiently to catch a break from the heat on Monday but it may move back as a warm front on Tuesday bringing rain chances and a return to higher temps and humidity.

Pardoned Murderer Receives Justice February 16, 2010

Famous Photo of John Wesley Hardin

On this date in History:  These days, there are many who are upset with the criminal justice system in that violent offenders get released early or paroled for heinous crimes.  One young man was known to have killed several people.  He had a couple of arrests warrants for murder following him around as he went from state to state before he was apprehended.  However, he escaped from jail.  On his 21st birthday, he got into an altercation with another man who fired a shot at him.  The gunman missed but the birthday boy did not as he shot the man dead.  Afraid of being arrested again, the man fled.  A few years later, the fugitive was finally caught in Florida and brought to trial.  In this case, there was an argument for self defense so when he was sentenced he only received a life term instead of the death penalty.  15 years later, the man was given a pardon.  But, this is not a tale from the 21st Century or even the 20th Century.  No, the criminal justice system has had it’s flaws for a long time because the suspected multiple killer was pardoned on this date in 1894! 

"Gentleman" wanted for killing at least 40 men

John Wesley Hardin has been described by many as the “meanest man in the west.”   It is also said that Hardin was the “archetype of the shootist.” It all began when he was just 15 years old in 1868.  He killed a former slave and became a fugitive from the law.   A couple of years later, he was in Waco Texas when he was arrested for murder.  But, in this case, Hardin didn’t do the deed.  But, he didn’t like his chances with the jury so he escaped.  Of all places, he fled to Abilene, Kansas which was under the charge of the famous lawman Wild Bill Hickok.  As it turns out, Hickok was rather taken in by Hardin so he left him alone.  But, in one of the more famous incidents of the old west, Hardin became so agitated with snoring coming from the hotel room adjacent to his that he fired two shots through the wall.  Yup…he killed a man for snoring.  Well, old John Wesley knew that friendship only went so far and he figured that Wild Bill couldn’t stand for that so he fled before Hickok had a chance to confront him. 

Don't Mess with the Texas Rangers

It was on May 26, 1874 that Hardin celebrated his 21st birthday in Comanche, Texas and shot the man in self defense.  But, it wasn’t just any man.  It was the Brown County deputy sherrif.  And it wasn’t just some flatfoot who tracked him down in Florida.  It was the Texas Rangers who caught him in Pensacola in 1877.  During his 3 year flight, it is thought that Hardin was responsible for the death of 5 other men.  In a very ironic twist, after John Wesley Hardin received his pardon, he turned to the law instead  of running from it.  He became a lawyer.  Perhaps he finally grew up by the age of 41 and decided to follow the lead of his father, who had been a Methodist minister and an attorney.  But a man who is suspected of killing at least 40 men no doubt has a long list of enemies.  Someone finally caught old John Wesley Hardin when he was shot in the back and killed, most likely as revenge for someone he had killed in his short but eventful life.  This account claims that he was shot in the back of the head by a constable who’s son had gotten into an argument with Hardin over a game of dice.

John Wesley Hardin's Life Ended Like His 40 Victims

The tale of John Wesley Hardin now lives in the annals of history but he is not remembered for how he died.  Instead, he is known for those he killed.  It’s not a tall tale but a confusing one.  The outline of the story that I’ve provided is true but the order may be wrong.  This story says that he killed the man for snoring in El Paso, not Abilene, and has other different stories.   This one has many discrepencies though it tells of his killing the former slave but says he was a policeman, Hardin was 18 at the time and that his peace with Hickok was after he drew down on the fast draw marshal.   There are many other stories about Hardin but all of them are the narrative of a serial killer and at the end he gets legally released  from prison.  Perhaps the illustration of John Wesley Hardin is not his list of victims, but instead paints a picture of a criminal justice system that has been flawed for a very long time.

Better to Hang with Joe the Plumber Than Hang with This Plummer August 18, 2009

These Guys Caught the Plummer!

Plummer Had More Hair on his Chin than I have on my head

On This Date in History: Cyrus Skinner was released from San Quentin Prison in California for the first time on this date in 1853. Skinner isn’t a well known desperado from the old west but he certainly was notorious. He grew up in Ohio and began robbing people at an early age. He moved to California with the Gold Rush in 1850 where he continued his robbing ways. He was caught and went to San Quentin. After he got out on this date in 1853, he started robbing again and got caught and sent back again. This time he escaped, started robbing and was caught again and sentenced to 15 years in San Quentin. This time, he met up with a guy named Henry Plummer. Plummer was released and Skinner escaped again in 1860 and this time went to Idaho to meet up with Plummer.

Bannack 1881

Now, Plummer had actually been a sheriff in Nevada City, CA. But, he was having an affair with a miner’s wife and when confronted by the miner, Plummer shot him dead in a duel. Plummer was sent to prison where he met Skinner. Plummer got out due to tuberculosis or due to people asking for a pardon, depending on the source you believe. Anyway, when Plummer got out, he turned to the other side of the law and formed a gang that robbed and murdered about 100 people in Idaho and Montana.

Plummer's Gallows Today, Rebuilt Following Vandalism...maybe it was Plummer's Ghost!

When Plummer arrived in Bannack, Montana he killed the one man in town that was aware of his hoodlum past. Henry must have been quite the smooth talker because, not only was he acquitted of the murder, the town went and elected him Sherrif. By day he enforced the law and by night, he and his gang robbed and killed people at will. The gang became known as the Innocents because their not so secret password was “I am innocent.” Skinner was part of that group and was said to have been one of the worst offenders, killing people for no reason. The town folk got tired of it all and formed a vigilante group that one by one, rounded up the bad guys, held street trials and hung them. During this process, one of the bad guys ratted out Plummer.

The evidence mounted and the town vigilantes went after their two-timing sherrif and they eventually captured Plummer and two of his henchmen. With the winds howling on a bitter cold winter January 10, 1864, Plummer got hung on a gallows. The builder of the gallows that brought an end to Henry Plummer was none other than Henry Plummer himself. When confronted, Skinner tried to avoid the noose by running away, hoping to get shot….but the vigilante’s wouldn’t oblige. Nope, they caught him alive and then they hung him. It’s good for a rampaging vigilante mob to have principals. I suppose the lesson here is to not follow in the footsteps of a Plummer! Certainly not this one, whom you can read more about here. 

 

 

SPC Severe Threat 8am Thu to 8am Fri

SPC Severe Threat Wed 8am to Thu 8am

Weather Bottom Line:  The scenario is unfolding pretty much as expected.  The moisture from what was Tropical Storm Claudette is more residual than anything else but is adding to the overall moisture content adding to the area.  A front is trying to make its way down but will get held up by another advancing system.  So, it gets close enough to perhaps trigger off some t’storm activity this afternoon but it won’t move through.  It backs up a bit on Wednesday but there will still be some stuff around and about on Wednesday with afternoon heating and maybe a dying short wave coming through the flow.  I don’t really detect anything major in the way of shortwave swinging around on the 6Z model run but that does’t mean there may not be something there to help trigger some activity.  With the boundary to the west, the severe threat will be to our west.

The best chance for rain and t’storms comes on Thursday with the approach of a strong cold front.  With the abundant moisture in the air, there potential for heavy rain will be there.  That will be the case for the next couple of days with any storm that pops up but on Thursday the threat would be in a more generalized manner.  This front will be significant and lower the temperatures behind it to the low 80′s and possibly the upper 70′s in some spots through the weekend.  It will also be strong enough to get to the East Coast and keep Hurricane Bill out to sea.

DAY 3 CONVECTIVE OUTLOOK 
   NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
   0228 AM CDT TUE AUG 18 2009
  
   VALID 201200Z – 211200Z
  
   …THERE IS A SLGT RISK OF SVR TSTMS FROM THE CNTRL GRTLKS REGION
   SWWD TO THE SRN PLNS…
  
   …CNTRL/LWR GRTLKS TO THE SRN PLNS…
   UPR LOW POSITIONED OVER IA AT 12Z THURSDAY WILL MOVE SLOWLY ENE INTO
   THE CNTRL GRTLKS REGION BY EARLY FRIDAY WITH AN ASSOCD BELT OF 50-70
   KTS OF H5 FLOW FROM THE SRN PLNS TO THE MIDWEST.  SFC LOW SHOULD
   TRAVEL INTO LWR MI THURSDAY AFTN WITH A CDFNT SWEEPING SEWD THROUGH
   THE MIDWEST…MID-MS VLY AND SRN PLNS THROUGH THE END OF THE PD.
  
   TSTMS ARE EXPECTED TO BE ONGOING AT THE START OF THE PD ALONG THE
   CDFNT FROM THE UPR MS VLY SWWD TO NRN OK.  THESE STORMS WILL
   PROBABLY WEAKEN DURING THURSDAY MORNING…WITH MOST PERSISTENT
   STORMS TIED TO A 40-50 KT SWLY LLJ TRANSLATING FROM THE MID-MS VLY
   INTO LWR MI/ONT.  UPR CYCLONE WILL UNDERGO ADDITIONAL STRENGTHENING
   DURING THE AFTN AS THE NEXT MID-LVL IMPULSE BEGINS TO EJECT NEWD
   THROUGH THE MID-MS VLY.  EXPECT TSTMS TO DEVELOP AGAIN THURSDAY AFTN
   FROM PARTS OF SRN LWR MI SWWD INTO CNTRL IL.  THIS ACTIVITY WILL
   THEN MOVE ENE TOWARD WRN OH AND CNTRL KY DURING THE
   EVENING…POSSIBLY AS A SQUALL LINE WITH DMGG WINDS THE PRIMARY SVR
   THREAT.
  
   MEANWHILE…SRN FRINGE OF STRONGER HEIGHT FALLS WILL EVENTUALLY
   SKIRT LOCATIONS FARTHER SOUTH AND WEST.  TSTMS…BECOMING MORE ISOLD
   WITH WWD EXTENT…WILL DEVELOP DURING THE LATE AFTN/EVE FROM THE
   MID-SOUTH TO N TX.  HERE…AT LEAST 35 KT OF WLY MID-LVL FLOW WILL
   BOOST VERTICAL SHEAR SUFFICIENT FOR SUPERCELLS WITH LARGE HAIL AND
   DMGG WINDS.  ACTIVITY WILL PROBABLY GROW UPSCALE INTO A LOOSELY
   ORGANIZED MCS AND MOVE EWD INTO PARTS OF AR…NRN MS AND MIDDLE TN
   OVERNIGHT WITH AT LEAST ISOLD HAIL/HIGH WINDS.
  
   A SEPARATE AREA OF ISOLD SVR STORM POSSIBILITIES WILL DEVELOP INVOF
   THE RETREATING WRMFNT EWD ACROSS PORTIONS OF WRN/CNTRL PA AND WRN
   NY.  MID-LVL TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO WARM TO MINUS 6 DEG C WITH
   SOME RIDGING ALOFT AHEAD OF THE DIGGING UPSTREAM WAVE.
   HOWEVER…FAVORABLY MOIST LLVL AIR MASS…WSWLY MID-LVL FLOW OF
   30-35 KTS AND PERSISTENT LLVL CONVERGENCE ALONG THE FRONT MAY YIELD
   A COUPLE OF STORMS CAPABLE OF GUSTY WINDS AND PERHAPS AN ISOLD
   TORNADO.
  
   ..RACY.. 08/18/2009