Today’s page looks at Jesse James, one of the most infamous outlaws in American history, yet one whose life has been romanticized in folklore.
JESSE James is one of few criminals seen as a both a hero and a villain. He was quick to help someone down on his luck, and it was this characteristic – amid a 16-year robbery and murder spree – that made him a legend.
JesseWoodson James was born on Sept. 5, 1847, in Clay County, Mo., to Robert and Zerelda James.
His dad was a farmer and preacher; his mom was nicknamed Zee. Jesse had an older brother, Alexander Franklin, whom everyone called Frank, and a younger sister, Susan. Robert James died while in California during the Gold Rush.
In 1855, Zee married a wealthy doctor, Reuben Samuel. The family grew with the births of Fannie Quantrill, Sarah Louisa, John Thomas and Archie Peyton.
At the start of the CivilWar, 18-yearold Frank James joined the Confederate Army. Jesse’s hatred for the North boiled over when Union soldiers burned the family’s farmhouse to the ground and hanged Dr. Samuel – who miraculously survived. The soldiers also gave Jesse a severe beating. Jesse joined his brother, who was a member ofWilliam Quantrill’s notorious Raiders, a renegade group of thieves and murderers who did their dirty deeds under the guise of defending the Confederacy. Union soldiers caught up with Quantrill and mortally wounded him.With his death, the Raiders disbanded.
The James brothers’ association with the Raiders brought retaliation from Union soldiers, who again destroyed the Samuel farm. The family escaped to Nebraska.
After the war ended, the James boys were on their way to surrender when Jesse was shot and seriously wounded by a Union soldier. He was taken to his uncle’s home, where his surgeon stepfather and cousin Zerelda nursed him back to health. Jesse and his cousin later married and had two children, Jesse Edward and Susan.
The brothers began robbing banks. They rationalized it by blaming Yankee bankers for the financial troubles of Southern farmers. The gang, which included several members of Quantrill’s old crew, robbed the Clay County Savings Bank, pulling off the first daytime bank robbery in history. The heist netted $60,000. During their escape, a teenage bystander stared at them and was shot dead. The authorities posted a reward for their capture – dead or alive.
The gang robbed several banks a year, sometimes with the help of farmers and former Confederate solders who wanted a bit of the booty.
Jesse was charismatic even in the midst of his crimes. He was known to smile at his victims and even stuff cash into women’s purses and men’s pockets while escaping.
Jesse became a folk hero, and the locals helped his mother maintain the farm after Dr. Samuel’s death.
By the 1870s, bank robbing had become increasingly dangerous, and the gang switched to robbing stage coaches and trains.
In 1875, the family farm was firebombed, seriously wounding Zee and killing 8-year-old Archie.
A year later, the gang met its match in Northfield, Minn., when they robbed the First National Bank. An army of townspeople fought against them. Most members of the gang were either severely wounded or killed. Jesse and Frank escaped to Nashville, Tenn., to look for new recruits. Bob and Charley Ford joined them.
The gang’s last robbery was aboard a Chicago Rock Island and Pacific train. Jesse proudly introduced himself to the stunned passengers. Missouri Gov. Thomas Crittenden put a $10,000 bounty on his head.
Frank returned to Tennessee and the gang separated. The only ones still with Jesse were Bob and Charley Ford.
On April 3, 1882, the Fords were at Jesse’s house planning their next heist when Bob Ford, anxious to claim the reward money, shot Jesse James as he stood on a chair to straighten a picture. The 34-year-old renegade died on the spot.
Kearney, Mo., still profits from its most infamous resident. The James farmhouse, cabin and family graves draw more than 20,000 visitors annually.
NEW YORK POST ACTIVITIES
USE the Internet to learn more about the life and times of Jesse James.
WHILE keeping in mind that there is never a good excuse for criminal behavior, why do you think the James Gang became so popular in the midst of the crimes that they committed?
JESSE James was a hero and villain at the same time. Have a class discussion on the power of the press – good and bad – and how you think the media of the day might have influenced public opinion about him.
USE a map or globe to locate Kearney, Mo.
Today’s lesson fulfills the following New York standards: ELA 1c, 3c, 3d, 5a Social Studies StandardS 1 and 3