Butch Cassidy (13 page)

Some have advanced the notion that Lillie Davis from Palestine, Texas, married Will Carver in Fort Worth, though no record of the union has ever been located. Most simply regard Davis as Carver’s common-law wife. According to the Pinkertons, Davis was later instrumental in providing important information on the operations of the Wild Bunch to the Pinkertons, including information on Cassidy’s description and his aliases.

Maud Walker, whose real name was Beulah Phinburg, was reportedly married to Harvey Logan in spite of Logan’s relationship with Annie Rogers. Walker’s relationship with Logan lasted only a few weeks, and no proof of a marriage has ever been found.

Before leaving San Antonio, it is believed Cassidy and Longabaugh converted all of their stolen bank notes to cash. Sometime in late December 1900, they separated. Longabaugh and Etta Place traveled to New Orleans where it is believed they were married, although no marriage license has ever been located. No one is entirely certain of what Butch Cassidy did during this time, but prior to Longabaugh’s departure to New Orleans, the two friends agreed to meet in New York City during the first week of February.

After spending time in New Orleans, Longabaugh and Place then traveled to Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, where they visited his brother Harvey and his sisters Emma and Samanna. He told them he and his partner Cassidy were planning to travel to South America and purchase a ranch. It is uncertain whether or not Longabaugh was aware of it, but Pinkerton agents had been staking out the homes of his relatives. Longabaugh’s visit, however, went undetected.

From Phoenixville, the couple traveled to Buffalo, checking into Dr. Pierce’s Invalids Hotel and Surgical Institute. Some have speculated Longabaugh was seeking medical treatment for a bullet wound in his left leg, while others have suggested he may have been in search of relief from a serious sinus infection, catarrh, or perhaps even tuberculosis. Still others advance the notion that either Longabaugh or Etta, or both, sought treatment for venereal disease. Unfortunately, no records from the hospital exist.

Following a few days at Dr. Pierce’s institute, the couple traveled to Niagara Falls. By the first week of February, they had arrived in New York City and checked into a boarding house using the names Mr. and Mrs. Harry A. Place. Place, it will be recalled, was the maiden name of Longabaugh’s mother. Here, they found Butch Cassidy waiting for them. It has been reported that Cassidy was not happy to learn that Etta Place was going to accompany them to South America but eventually grew accustomed to the idea. In New York, Cassidy was going by the name James Ryan and was introduced as Mrs. Place’s brother. The two men posed as Western cattle buyers.

While staying in New York for the next three weeks, the trio availed themselves of the culture the city had to offer, often dining in fine restaurants, going to the theater, and purchasing fine jewelry and clothes. Longabaugh and Etta Place visited DeYoung’s Photography Studio and sat for a portrait. Most Longabaugh scholars are convinced this was intended to be a wedding portrait of the couple. Somehow, a copy of this photograph fell into the hands of Pinkerton agents, and the images of the Sundance Kid and Etta Place were eventually attached to wanted posters.

Meanwhile, Pinkerton detectives continued their search for members of the Wild Bunch and eventually discovered Cassidy and Longabaugh were in New York. Determined to capture the outlaw, the Pinkertons doubled their efforts, and during their investigation even learned the exact address of Longabaugh’s temporary residence.

On learning that the Pinkertons were closing in once again, Cassidy and Longabaugh decided it was time to move on. Using their aliases, the Sundance Kid and Etta Place booked passage on the SS
Herminius
on 20 February 1901. The pair was bound for Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Here the record grows spotty and sparse. Several researchers are convinced Cassidy traveled to Argentina with Longabaugh and Etta Place. A few suggest he returned to the West to visit with and say goodbye to friends before making the journey to Argentina. A great many researchers are convinced Cassidy returned to the American West because he wanted to rob one more train, perhaps to acquire funding for the voyage and to purchase a ranch. Or maybe the outlaw merely desired to rob the train as a parting gesture directed to his long-time nemesis, the railroads.

Like many robberies perpetrated by the Wild Bunch, there is little agreement on which members of the gang participated in what has come to be called the Wagner train robbery. While controversial, most historians appear to agree that the gang included Cassidy, Harvey Logan, and Ben Kilpatrick. Other members were involved, but it is unclear who they were. The names most commonly mentioned are O. C. Hanks, Will Carver, and perhaps even a woman, Laura Bullion. A man named Jim Thornhill has also been mentioned. Some accounts list the Sundance Kid as one of the participants, but prevailing evidence suggests he was well on his way to Argentina at the time of the holdup.

The target was the Great Northern Express Number 3, called the Coast Flyer, and the plan was to attack the westbound train at Exeter Switch, some two to three miles east of Wagner, in northern Montana, not far from the Canadian border. While historians like to believe that Cassidy masterminded this robbery, it is more likely that Harvey Logan directed the operation alone, or perhaps in collaboration with Cassidy. Many lean toward Logan as the brains behind this holdup since he was quite familiar with the geography of the region and the schedules of the railroad. Wagner was located in a remote section of Montana near the Canadian border and far from major law enforcement agencies, so the likelihood of being pursued by a large posse was not great.

Reminiscent of the Tipton holdup, one of the gang members positioned himself on board the train. Some accounts claim Harvey Logan purchased a passenger ticket on the Coast Flyer, probably at Malta, on the afternoon of July 3, 1901. Others say it was more likely Ben Kilpatrick. When it was time, Logan, or Kilpatrick, left the passenger car, climbed across the coal tender, entered the engine compartment, pointed two revolvers at the engineer Tom Jones and his coworker Mike O’Neill, and ordered them to pull to a stop at a prearranged location.

When the train was halted, gang members ordered employees to uncouple the express car from the passenger cars and then instructed Jones to pull the train some distance ahead.

Entering the express car was not difficult, but once inside the robbers were faced with another locked safe. Using dynamite, they attempted to blow it open. When the first charge was unsuccessful, they tried another. Finally, after four attempts, the safe was opened and the contents, some $40,000, was scooped up and stuffed into canvas ore bags.

Nervous gang members, stationed outside the express car, were fired upon by a Montana sheriff who happened to be a passenger on the train. Wielding a pistol, the sheriff climbed out of a passenger car and began shooting at the outlaws. Immediate return fire from several rifles forced him back into the car, and he was not heard from again. One of the nervous outlaws, seeing someone lean out of a passenger car window, raised his rifle and fired, wounding a curious eighteen-year-old girl in the shoulder. If Cassidy were indeed present at this holdup, the shooter would likely have been rebuked for his action.

After all the money had been gathered, the robbers ran to where their horses were tied not far away, mounted up, and, firing their pistols into the air, rode away.

After considerable delay, several posses went in pursuit of the train robbers but never had any chance of catching them. If Butch Cassidy had been a member of this group of robbers, as most believe he was, he must have been anticipating his trip to South America where he would join his friends and buy some land.

The Wagner robbery is believed to be the last train holdup ever conducted by the Wild Bunch.