Jesse Woodson James was born on September 5, 1847. He grew up in Kearney, Missouri about 38 miles from Lexington Missouri. Jesse was educated and was raised into a family of very great farmers. Jesse’s father Reverend Robert James was a Baptist minister who married Zerelda Cole James Jesse’s mom. Reverend and Zerelda moved from Kentucky to Missouri in 1842. In the summer of 1863, Jesse’s farm was attacked by Union soldiers. Jesse James grew up with both his parents Zerelda and Robert James. Jesse had seven siblings, four brothers and three sisters. Frank Jesse’s older and most famous sibling was a confederate soldier. Franks real name was Alexander they call him Frank because of his middle name Franklin. Frank and Jesse were both guerrilla’s and outlaws. Jesse founded a gang of outlaws and they called themselves the James Younger Gang. Frank Jesse’s older was in Jesse’s gang. The James Younger Gang was very popular in the late part of the 1860’s. They were located in Missouri. Most of their actions were based on robberies. The gang had Frank, Jim, John, Bob and Cole Younger would join the gang sometimes. Other members would be part of the gang at one time or another. This included John Jarrette who was Jesse’s …show more content…
The crime while far from James’ first act of violence led him to be labeled an outlaw for the first time in newspapers and prompted the state’s governor to offer rewards for the capture of James and his older brother Frank who was believed to have taken part in the holdup. Joining a gang of ex-soldiers and thieves Jesse and Frank staged the first daylight bank robbery in U.S. history on Valentine’s Day in 1866, making off with $57,000 of the hard-earned cash of the citizens of Liberty, Missouri. For the next ten years the James Gang would steal many thousands more from banks, stores, stagecoaches, and