The great Winnemucca bank robbery of 1900 March 3, 2017 By Dennis Cassinelli Leave a Comment History records that on Wednesday, Sept. 19, 1900, the First National Bank of Winnemucca at the northwest corner of Fourth Street and Bridge Street in Winnemucca, Nevada. Winnemucca became a major distribution point for the Central Pacific Railroad, established itself as the center of commerce in north-central Nevada, and was the site of a major bank robbery that remains controversial to this day. On September 19 1900, the story goes, Butch Cassidy rode into Winnemucca and robbed the local bank. Young Button had admired the horse while on the way to school. The road they traveled veered away from the railroad track, so the locomotive proved useless to the chase. Winnemucca celebrated “Butch Cassidy Days” every year for several years in remembrance of the now infamous men who they believed committed the Great Bank Robbery. Along the way, the citizen posse gave up the chase. The robbers made a clean getaway and no one even sustained a scratch in the robbery or the following shootout. Winnemucca was the scene of one of the last Western style bank holdups back in 1900. This was more of a tourist attraction than anything else. It was part of the transcontinental line. Posted by Dennis Cassinelli | Mar 29, 2019 | History | 0 |. Winnemucca celebrated “Butch Cassidy Days” every year for several years in remembrance of the now infamous men who they believed committed the Great Bank Robbery. Winnemucca became a major distribution point for the Central Pacific Railroad, established itself as the center of commerce in north-central Nevada. Bystanders at the Reception Saloon heard the shooting and fired a few shots at the escaping bandits but missed. The estimated amount taken in the holdup was $32,640.00. Your email address will not be published. The robbers were able to stay ahead of the posse since they had staged fresh horses about every ten miles in order to make a speedy departure. The robbers circled around toward the east and when they crossed the White’s Creek Bridge, they dropped a sack of gold and lost some time retrieving it. One of the robbers held a gun on part owner and cashier at the bank, George S. Nixon. Your email address will not be published. In researching the bank robbery back in the 1980s, Berk even interviewed Vic Button, then a Winnemucca resident in his 90s, who as a 10-year-old boy had been given a white horse by the fleeing Wild Bunch. He later was elected a United States Senator and kept a complete file of all the events surrounding the bank robbery. State History: Stagecoach Travel in Nevada. 1905. On September 19, 1900, the Sundance Kid and two other members of the Wild Bunch robbed the First National Bank, galloping away with about $32,000 in gold coin (see p.92). The Sundance Kid and perhaps two of the other members of the Wild Bunch may have participated in the robbery. They were followed as far as Clover Valley, where they had another set of fresh mounts, then on to Tuscarora. Whether they did it with elaborate planning or simply went in all guns blazing, the following bank robbers have earned enough notoriety and fame (as well as cold hard cash) to land themselves in the history books. Citizens in Winnemucca quickly organized a posse and even fired up a yard locomotive to follow along in an attempt to capture the group. A lot of kids hung around the stockyards whenever we shipped. Allen Pace – Dunbar Armored Robbery George Nixon went back into the bank and came out with a revolver as did bank stenographer Calhoun. On September 19, 1900, Butch Cassidy's gang robbed the First National Bank of Winnemucca of $32,640. Trappers and Basque sheepherders arrived in today’s Winnemucca, Nevada, in the 1830s, but a Wild Bunch robbery put it on the Old West map. Courtesy | History records on Wednesday, Sept. 19, 1900, the First National Bank of Winnemucca at the northwest corner of Fourth Street and Bridge Street in Winnemucca, was held up by three unmasked men. But wait, the town's big claim to fame (which has recently been debunked) is the Winnemucca Bank Robbery which occurred on September 19, 1900. There is still a bronze plaque by the utility pole at the old Winnemucca Bank that proclaims that Butch Cassidy robbed the bank on September 19, 1900. On September 19, 1900, Butch Cassidy's gang robbed the First National Bank of Winnemucca of $32,640. Winnemucca's brothel district , while smaller now than in the 1980s, is known as "The Line" or "The Ring Circle", based on the layout of the street where the brothels are located. They are all grown now and have kids of their own. In 1868, Winnemucca became a major distribution point for the Central Pacific Railroad. was held up by three unmasked men. A bank robbery that took place in Winnemucca on September 19, 1900 would go down in history as one of the town’s most well-known historic incidents. Robert LeRoy Parker (April 13, 1866 – November 7, 1908), better known as Butch Cassidy, was an American train and bank robber and the leader of a gang of criminal outlaws known as the "Wild Bunch" in the Old West.. Parker engaged in criminal activity for more than a decade at the end of the 19th century, but the pressures of being pursued by law enforcement, notably the Pinkerton … This documentation was used to confirm that Butch Cassidy could not have been one of the people who robbed the Winnemucca Bank on September 19, 1900. This also happened in Lovelock. In fact, the identity of the robbers was never confirmed beyond a reasonable doubt. Every year lots of people roll through town on their way to Burning Man. 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