Marion Hedgepeth
Encyclopedia
Marion Hedgepeth – also known as the Handsome Bandit, the Debonair Bandit, the Derby Kid and the Montana Bandit – was a famous Wild West
outlaw
.
on April 14, 1856. Running away from home at the age of 15, he was an outlaw by the time he was 20, having killed in Colorado
and Wyoming
, as well as robbing trains.
In November, 1883, Hedgepeth was sentenced to serve a term of seven years in the Missouri penitentiary on the charge of larceny and jail breaking. He was discharged on February 16, 1889.
Hedgepeth lived for awhile in a lawless region of Kansas City
, Missouri, known as "Seldom Seen" because the police were seldom seen there. He became a member of the "famous Slye-Wilson gang of safe blowers and highwaymen".
On November 30, 1891 Hedgepeth and the other members of Slye-Wilson gang (Adelbert Slye, "Jim" Francis and "Dink" Wilson) robbed a train of $40,000 in Glendale, Missouri
near St. Louis, Missouri
personally escaping with some $10,000. The gang fled to Salt Lake city and disbanded. After being relentlessly pursued by the Pinkertons, he was finally arrested on February 10, 1892 in San Francisco, along with Slye, and brought back to Missouri for trial. Convicted, he was sentenced in 1893 to twenty-five years in the Missouri State Penitentiary
. Hedgepath informed on a former cell-mate, whom he knew as "H.M. Howard" but was really H H Holmes, which eventually resulted in the notorious killer's unmasking, conviction and execution in 1896. For this Hedgepeth was pardoned by Missouri state governor
Joseph W. Folk
14 years into his 25-year term.
He was arrested in 1907 in Omaha, for the burglary of a storage house at Council Bluffs, Iowa
. He was convicted and sent to an Iowa state prison in March, 1908, and was released after serving one year.
He was shot and killed by Edward Jaburek, a police officer on December 31, 1909 during a botched Chicago
saloon robbery at 18th and Avers Avenue. He died at St. Anthony's Hospital and was buried in the Cook County Cemetery on the grounds of the Cook County Poor Farm at Dunning.
American Old West
The American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
outlaw
Outlaw
In historical legal systems, an outlaw is declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, this takes the burden of active prosecution of a criminal from the authorities. Instead, the criminal is withdrawn all legal protection, so that anyone is legally empowered to persecute...
.
History
Hedgepeth was born in Prairie Home, MissouriPrairie Home, Missouri
Prairie Home is a town, with legal status as a city, in Cooper County, Missouri, United States. The population was 220 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
on April 14, 1856. Running away from home at the age of 15, he was an outlaw by the time he was 20, having killed in Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
and Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
, as well as robbing trains.
In November, 1883, Hedgepeth was sentenced to serve a term of seven years in the Missouri penitentiary on the charge of larceny and jail breaking. He was discharged on February 16, 1889.
Hedgepeth lived for awhile in a lawless region of Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, Missouri, known as "Seldom Seen" because the police were seldom seen there. He became a member of the "famous Slye-Wilson gang of safe blowers and highwaymen".
On November 30, 1891 Hedgepeth and the other members of Slye-Wilson gang (Adelbert Slye, "Jim" Francis and "Dink" Wilson) robbed a train of $40,000 in Glendale, Missouri
Glendale, Missouri
Glendale is a city in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 5,925 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Glendale is located at ....
near St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
personally escaping with some $10,000. The gang fled to Salt Lake city and disbanded. After being relentlessly pursued by the Pinkertons, he was finally arrested on February 10, 1892 in San Francisco, along with Slye, and brought back to Missouri for trial. Convicted, he was sentenced in 1893 to twenty-five years in the Missouri State Penitentiary
Missouri State Penitentiary
The Missouri State Penitentiary, also known as "The Walls", was a prison in Jefferson City, Missouri that operated from 1836-2004. It was a prison of the Missouri Department of Corrections. Before its closure it was named the Jefferson City Correctional Center . Before its closure it was the oldest...
. Hedgepath informed on a former cell-mate, whom he knew as "H.M. Howard" but was really H H Holmes, which eventually resulted in the notorious killer's unmasking, conviction and execution in 1896. For this Hedgepeth was pardoned by Missouri state governor
Governor (United States)
In the United States, the title governor refers to the chief executive of each state or insular territory, not directly subordinate to the federal authorities, but the political and ceremonial head of the state.-Role and powers:...
Joseph W. Folk
Joseph W. Folk
Joseph "Holy Joe" Wingate Folk was an American lawyer, reformer, and politician from St. Louis, Missouri.Raised in a strict Baptist household in Brownsville, Tennessee, Folk first made his reputation as a lawyer for transit workers in the St. Louis Streetcar Strike of 1900...
14 years into his 25-year term.
He was arrested in 1907 in Omaha, for the burglary of a storage house at Council Bluffs, Iowa
Council Bluffs, Iowa
Council Bluffs, known until 1852 as Kanesville, Iowathe historic starting point of the Mormon Trail and eventual northernmost anchor town of the other emigrant trailsis a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States and is on the east bank of the Missouri River across...
. He was convicted and sent to an Iowa state prison in March, 1908, and was released after serving one year.
He was shot and killed by Edward Jaburek, a police officer on December 31, 1909 during a botched Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
saloon robbery at 18th and Avers Avenue. He died at St. Anthony's Hospital and was buried in the Cook County Cemetery on the grounds of the Cook County Poor Farm at Dunning.
External links
- Marion Hedgepeth jailbreak attempt foiled NY Times, December 17, 1893, Wednesday. Full story
- Bookrags entry for Marion Hedgepeth