Black Sheep Sunday: No New Clue Of Value On The Robbery

Source: Marion Leader-Tribune, Marion, Indiana, November 28, 1924, p. 1.


No New Clue Of Value On The Robbery


Authorities at This Time Are Devoting Much Time to the Bank Case.


IS LITTLE TO WORK ON


Fairmount Couple Believe They Saw Bandit Machine at Hackleman.


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No new developments occurred yesterday in the hunt for the bank robbers who held up the bank officers and secured about $4,000 from the South Marion State Bank late Wednesday afternoon, but further information was secured which leads to the belief that the bandits, after leaving Marion passed through Hackleman west of Fairmount on west through Greentown.


Otis Wilburn, Fairmount business man who with his wife, were in the vicinity of Hackleman a few minutes after three o'clock Wednesday afternoon, is of the opinion that they saw the fleeing bandits.


Was Traveling Fast


The car, which answered the description of the one used by the robbers, approached from the north and the excessive speed of the machine attracted the attention of Mr. and Mrs. Wilburn.  They watched the machine as long as it remained in view, thinking every second that it would overturn, so fast was it traveling.  The car, which approached from the north went straight through Hackleman in the direction of Elwood.  Mr. and Mrs. Wilburn knew nothing of the robber until they returned to Fairmount later in the evening.


No reports have come from Elwood that the car was seen there, but Greentown reported that a Nash car of the same description used by the bandits passed west through that town at a high rate of speed Wednesday evening.


Jail Receives Call


A call was sent to the county jail Wednesday night that a Nash car with wire wheels and a foreign license was headed west of Marion in the direction of Sweetser.  Sheriff Renbarger, together with Deputies John Schnell and Woody Smith, responded to a hurry call and overtook the car near Sweetser and found the car tallied in every description to the robbers' car.  They got out of the machine after stopping the Nash and surrounded the car, ordering the occupants to get out.  The occupants were much frightened, but obeyed.  They were found to be men well known in Marion en route from Toledo to Peru, and were at once released.  


A representative from the Indiana Bankers' Association, of which the South Marion State bank is a member, arrived late Wednesday night and secured information concerning the robbery and returned to Indianapolis after getting all of the facts in the case.


Chief of Police Frank Brandon, Caption Jake Campbell and Detectives Humble and Andrews were working on a few clues yesterday, but nothing new developed.  Chief Brandon and Captain Campbell returned from Muncie early Thursday morning, but reported nothing new.


Sheriff Has Clues


Sheriff Bert Renbarger said that he had a few clues on the case, but that nothing had yet developed.  In the opinion of Sheriff Renbarger, the robbers are from South Bend, Terre Haute, Chicago or Logansport, and he believes they are the same gang who robbed the Converse bank last week.  After they committed the robbery at that bank, they circled around and came back within a short distance of Converse and then headed west, while it appears that the men, after robbing the Marion Bank, also drove west after getting outside of the city for several miles.


A few hours after the Marion robbery took place the grocery store of Kenneth Johnson, in the suburbs of Anderson, was held up and robbed of $285.  Two men, who were unmasked, appearing to be about thirty-five years old entered the store and pointed revolvers at Johnson and demanded the money.


Run Into Fresh Gravel


A report from Converse concerning the bank robbery at that place states that the robbers ran into some fresh gravel a short distance west of Converse after the robbery and that they asked the assistance of a crew of telephone lineman working in that vicinity to help them out which request was complied with.  The linemen had not heard of the robbery, but were of the opinion that the men in the machine were bootleggers.


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This article is a follow-up account of the robbery of the South Marion State Bank in Marion, Indiana.  The bank was held up by the gang lead by my cousin, Harry PIERPONT (1902-1934).  In late 1924 and early 1925, Harry led a group of ex-cons in terrorizing a number of banks around Indiana.  The South Marion State Bank job, and others like it, laid the ground work for the later robberies of the Dillinger "Terror Gang."  The robbery and subsequent capture of members of the gang, generated a lot of ink in the Marion newspapers.


Black Sheep Sunday – create a post with the main focus being an ancestor with a “shaded past.” Bring out your ne’er-do-wells, your cads, your black widows, your horse thieves and tell their stories. And don’t forget to check out the International Black Sheep Society of Genealogists (IBSSG). This is an ongoing series at GeneaBloggers.

Luman C. & Barbara I. (Wehrly) LeMasters: Are There Other Surviving Photos?

Luman Cooper and Barbara Isabel (Wehrly) LeMasters, my great-grandparents

While working on updating my LeMaster family tree at Ancestry.com, I noticed that the above cropped photo is the only one I have of my paternal great-grandparents, Luman Cooper and Barbara Isabel (WEHRLY) LeMASTERS.  The photo is from a larger one taken at a family reunion:

I don't have the date of the photo, but Luman died in 1933 and Barbara in 1930, so the photo must have been taken before then.  Was it a family reunion, a holiday, or some other event?  It is likely that the photo was taken at Salamonia, Jay County, Indiana.


My hope is that other LeMaster cousins out there might have other photos of either Luman or Barbara that they would be willing to share.  If so, please contact me.

Family Recipe Friday: Italian Chicken Pasta Toss

Ashley Honeycutt, my niece

Another recipe suggested by mom:

Ashley showed zucchini at the county 4-H fair this year and won a blue ribbon.   Every year I always like to put out zucchini plants are different intervals so I don't have it coming on at the same time.   Of course, I make bread and chocolate cake with them but I started looking for recipes that I could use zucchini in the main course.   I found this recipe in a Pampered Chef cookbook and I try to fix it at least once each season.

Italian Chicken Pasta Toss

    3 cups bow tie pasta                                           
    2 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced                              
    1 small onion, chopped                                         
    1 medium zucchini, sliced                                      
    1 small  yellow pepper or red pepper, cut into thin slices     
    1/2 pound boneless skinless chicken breast halves,cut into 1-inch slices
    2 teaspoons olive oil                                          
    2 larges garlic cloves                                         
    1/2 cup frozen green peas                                      
    1 teaspoon Italian seasoning                                   
    1 teaspoon salt                                                
    1/4 cup Parmesan cheese            

                            

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and keep warm.   Meanwhile, dice tomatoes and chop onion.   Slice zucchini and cut bell pepper into thin strips and chicken crosswise into 1-inch strips.


Heat oil in stir-fry skillet over medium-high heat until hot.   Press garlic into skillet.   Add chicken; stir fry 5 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink.   Reduce heat to medium.   Add onion, zucchini, bell pepper, peas, seasoning and salt; stir-fry 2 minutes.   Add tomatoes; heat 1-2 minutes, stirring gently until heated through.   Remove from heat.   Stir in warm pasta.   Sprinkle cheese over pasta; serve immediately.



Family Recipe Friday – is an opportunity to share your family recipes with fellow bloggers and foodies alike. Whether it’s an old-fashioned recipe passed down through generations, a recipe uncovered through your family history research, or a discovered recipe that embraces your ancestral heritage share them on Family Recipe Friday. This series was suggested by Lynn Palermo of The Armchair Genealogist.