Jesse James Research Paper

An outlaw is someone who has broken the law but remains at large or a fugitive. Outlaws were a common occurrence in the nineteenth century. There were many outlaws who were known by many. However, there is one outlaw that seems to stand out. He was well known for his train and bank robberies. His name is one, that when said to a group of people, is commonly recognized. He is Jesse James. Jesse James was one of the most lucrative yet elusive outlaws of the nineteenth century. This was because of him making a large amount of money robbing trains, banks, and stagecoaches, and being very difficult for law enforcement to catch. There is a plethora of data available to prove this fact.
Background
Jesse James was born on September 15, 1847 in Clay

According to “Jesse James Bank Robberies”, it is believed Jesse took part in one of the first daytime bank robberies in history. (n.d.) Witnesses say Jesse and his ex-guerilla members committed the bank robbery of the Clay County Savings bank in 1866 (“Jesse James Bank robberies” n.d.). It is said by “Jesse James Bank Robberies”, that Jesse and his crew made off with nearly sixty thousand dollars (n.d.). In 1868, James made off with $4,000 form the Hughes and Wasson bank of Richmond (Jesse James Timeline 2015). Later on December 7, 1869 Jesse and his brother walked into the Daviess County Savings Association and asked to exchange a $100 dollar banknote and shot the clerk (“Jesse James Bank robberies” n.d.). While this was not as lucrative as the last, it is said that Jesse killed the clerk for revenge, as Jesse thought he was Bloody Bill’s Murderer. (“Jesse James Bank robberies” n.d.). James also robbed the Nimrod Long Banking Co. and made off with nearly $14,000 (Jesse James Timeline 2015). Later in 1869, there was a $3,000 reward offered for the capture of Jesse James after him and his crew stole $700 from the Davies County Savings Bank.(Jesse James Timeline 2015). Later in 1874 another major robbery committed by James and his crew, was the robbery of Kansa pacific railroad where James and his crew stole $55,000 from a train car (Jesse James Timeline 2015). Then, in 1875, on Jesse’s twenty

(Nix 2015) Through his entire career James eluded the lawmen, and avoided capture. He had been shot and injured minorly on a few occasions, however he was never captured by the law. Nix says James even avoided captured by the Pinkerton’s who were experts on capturing train robbers (2015). The crew was called in by Abraham Lincoln. However, one Pinkerton detective who was pursuing Jesse and his brother was killed (Nix 2015). It was now that capturing James became personal for Allan Pinkerton, the head detective. Pinkerton acted on a tip that James and his brother Frank would be at their mother’s house one night, and raided the house (Nix 2015). It was later determined, after bombing the house, that the brother’s were no longer at the house (Nix 2015). Jesse had once again eluded capture by the law, has he had done for years. The explosion, however, fatally injured Jesse’s eight year old brother and caused his mother to lose part of her arm. Jesse shot and killed one of his mother’s neighbors who had aided Pinkerton’s in the raid, and it was after this that Pinkerton quit his search for James (Nix 2015). Even after being sought after by the best detectives in the nation, Jesse James managed to elude the law for eighteen years. And, James was never captured by the law. According to Nix, he was shot in the back of the head by one of his own gang members while adjusting a picture on the wall in his home (2015). It is said