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with turbo tax. Live. From.

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About ten forty five Pm. Do

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about Eleven forty five Pm on

1:32

September. Eighteen, Eighteen Seventy Seven. Same.

1:35

Bass and five other members of the

1:38

Black Hills Bay and It's Robbed a

1:40

train at the tiny Big Spring station

1:42

in Western Nebraska. It

1:45

was the Union Pacific number for

1:47

Express Train and it contained a

1:49

Wells Fargo safe that held two

1:51

hundred thousand dollars inside. With.

1:53

The bandits couldn't open the safe. By.

1:56

Eighteen Seventy seven. There had been so

1:58

many train robberies across the. Three,

2:00

The banks like Wells Fargo were

2:02

outfitting. They're safe with time lox,

2:05

The save couldn't be opened until the time of

2:07

release. The law. Baited. Could

2:09

try to smash it open for that. Took

2:11

time. They. Could try to blow

2:14

it open, but that was risky and dangerous.

2:16

He didn't do much good to blow open the

2:19

safe with dynamite. Only. To discover they

2:21

had destroyed most of the money. With

2:24

the Wells Fargo save securely locked,

2:27

The Black Hills bandits had turned their

2:29

attention to a smaller safe and the

2:31

passengers. For. Most of the

2:33

our of the robbery the outlaws

2:35

hadn't edited just seventeen hundred dollars.

2:38

That. Kept they're losing streak alive. The.

2:41

Six outlaws had been robbing stage coaches

2:43

in the Black Hills for two months

2:45

before writing down to Nebraska. And.

2:47

They had very little to show for their efforts.

2:50

But. Then add quite literally the last

2:53

minute. Sam. And a couple

2:55

other men had discovered three wooden crates in

2:57

a corner of the express card. They.

2:59

Have been about to jump out of the car and

3:01

make their escape. But. They paused just

3:04

long enough to crack open one of

3:06

the boxes. They. Discovered

3:08

that each box contained twenty

3:10

thousand dollars in freshly minted

3:12

gold coins. Sixty. Thousand

3:15

dollars in gold would be worth more

3:17

than two million dollars today. Split.

3:19

Six Ways. Each man would

3:21

take home the modern equivalent of more

3:24

than three hundred thousand dollars. A.

3:26

Bomb, kills bandits and finally struck it

3:28

Lucky. They were rich. That.

3:31

Was retirement money and eighteen seventy seven

3:33

if they wanted it to be. But.

3:35

Now they had to go. It. Was

3:38

about ten minutes to midnight and they had

3:40

douse the fire in the engine that produce

3:42

the steam that was needed to power

3:44

the locomotive. The. Number for

3:46

express train was stalled on the

3:48

tracks at Big Springs. And. In

3:50

the distance they could hear the rumble of

3:53

the midnight freight train. The

3:55

freight train would arrive right on

3:57

time see the stalled express train.

4:00

The No. There was a problem. The.

4:02

Outlaws pack the gold coins on the

4:04

their horses and galloped into the night.

4:07

With. The outlaws don't George Barnhart, the

4:09

station master it Big Springs waved

4:11

his red lantern to signal to

4:13

the freight train that it needed

4:15

to stand. Thankfully.

4:18

The train was able to grind to a

4:20

hold of for it slammed into the express

4:22

train. The bandits had destroyed

4:24

the telegraph at the station, so George

4:26

and the true of the express train

4:28

rushed to the freight train and reported

4:30

the robbery. After

4:33

the crew of the freight train determined there

4:35

were no serious injuries on the express train,

4:38

They charged up the express train and

4:40

completed their run to the next station

4:42

on the line Oglala. Within.

4:44

Hours heavily armed posses formed in

4:47

Oglala and headed off to Big

4:49

Springs in pursuit of the bandits.

4:52

Once. Word of the robbery was out. Sheriffs,

4:55

In neighboring counties form their own policies

4:57

and join the hunt. By

4:59

sunrise, the bandits had dozens of

5:01

deputies and volunteers on their trail.

5:05

The following morning, Wells Fargo posted a

5:07

ten thousand dollar reward for the capture

5:09

of the bandits who were responsible for

5:12

robbing the Union Pacific number for express

5:14

train. And. Or the return of

5:16

the gold coins. Overnight.

5:19

Sam Bass and Company became the

5:21

most wanted fugitives west of the

5:23

Mississippi, at least partially because they

5:25

had made history. They. Had

5:28

committed the richest train robbery in the

5:30

west of the that time. And

5:32

now they just had to get away with it. From.

5:42

black barrel media of this is

5:44

legends of the old west i'm

5:46

your host chris swimmer and this

5:49

season were telling the stories of

5:51

to outlaws stagecoach and free robber

5:53

same bass and controversial fugitive ned

5:55

christie mrs episode three sam bass

5:58

part three of three Texas

6:00

Outlaw While

6:08

the train crews sorted out the situation

6:10

at Big Springs Station, the

6:13

Outlaws rode south toward the South Platte

6:15

River. The river was only

6:17

a couple miles from the station and

6:19

the Outlaws quickly realized they had a problem.

6:22

Their haul was incredible, but

6:24

the gold coins were really heavy on the

6:26

horses. Ironically, they had

6:28

stolen so much money that it was

6:30

now hurting their ability to escape. They

6:34

rode a few miles along the banks of the

6:36

river and then they stopped and buried the treasure

6:38

in the sand. They had

6:40

been wearing red bandanas over their faces

6:42

during the escape, so no one

6:44

at the scene of the crime knew their identity, or

6:47

so they thought at the time. In

6:49

theory, they could wait a little while, let the

6:51

heat cool down, and then return to dig up

6:53

the gold. With the

6:56

loot safely buried, Sam and

6:58

his cohorts rode east toward Ogallala and

7:00

set up camp outside town. The

7:03

bandits lazed around for a few days

7:05

and watched all the excitement of the

7:07

posses rushing around the countryside. Since

7:10

the Outlaws were right there to witness the action,

7:13

they knew better than anyone that the lawmen

7:15

had come up empty on all accounts. The

7:18

bandits figured it was safe to go back and dig

7:20

up their treasure. The

7:25

money was still safe in its hiding spot.

7:28

The Outlaws divided it equally, which gave $10,000 in

7:30

gold to each man. With

7:34

that, the six men rode off

7:36

in different directions, parrying more money in

7:38

their saddlebags than any of them had

7:40

ever seen. On the

7:42

trail, Sam Bass and Jack

7:44

Davis paired up as they both rode

7:47

toward Texas. When they

7:49

crossed the Nebraska border into Kansas, they

7:51

made a smart move and sold their

7:53

horses. Then they bought a

7:55

beat-up two-man buggy and an old mare

7:58

to pull it. With

8:00

their $20,000 in gold stashed under the

8:02

seat, they resumed their travels looking

8:05

like a couple of down and out farmers.

8:08

If they came across any lawmen, they

8:10

would look too pathetic to be taken

8:12

for newly rich outlaws. The

8:15

other four Black Hills bandits also ended

8:17

up partnering as they traveled. Jim

8:20

Berry and Tom Nixon took off for

8:22

Kansas City, where they could spend some

8:24

of their gold and get lost in the crowd,

8:26

or so they hoped. Joel

8:29

Collins and Bill Hefridge stayed in their

8:31

saddles and bought a pack horse to

8:33

haul their gold. They

8:35

were also headed to Texas. Before

8:37

they separated for an unknown length of time,

8:40

all of them vowed to meet up again when they

8:42

felt it was safe. And they

8:44

made a pact. If cornered

8:47

by the law, they would not be

8:49

taken alive. Within

8:51

a few days, they learned they might

8:53

seriously have to confront that reality. A

8:56

historic heist prompted a historic

8:58

manhunt. Hundreds of

9:00

lawmen and volunteers were scouring

9:03

Nebraska and Kansas. In

9:05

addition to sheriffs, posses, there

9:07

were bounty hunters, railroad detectives,

9:09

and the Pinkertons. The

9:12

powers that be enlisted the U.S. cavalry

9:14

to track down the six outlaws. Indian

9:17

Territory, modern day Oklahoma, was home

9:19

to some of the most well-respected

9:21

U.S. marshals in the country. And

9:24

if some or all of the outlaws made it to

9:26

Texas, the Texas Rangers were poised

9:29

to enter the fray. The

9:31

bandits would have to run a gauntlet just to make

9:33

it that far. And even if they did,

9:35

it certainly didn't mean they were

9:37

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11:03

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11:06

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is a registered trademark. Bass

11:22

and Davis moseyed along in their

11:24

buggy for several days until somewhere

11:27

in Kansas, a squad of

11:29

soldiers rode up behind them. The

11:31

leader of the squad asked if they had

11:33

seen two men traveling south with a pack

11:35

horse. The outlaw said they had

11:37

not. The squad leader informed

11:40

them that the two in question were two

11:42

of the men who had robbed a Union

11:44

Pacific train. Sam

11:46

with an impressive show of hubris told

11:49

the squad leader that they had heard about the

11:51

robbery and the $10,000 reward

11:53

and they were looking for the bandits themselves. The

11:57

cover story worked And Sam and Jack followed

11:59

the line. The soldiers for a few days.

12:02

They. Camped nearby and even chatted with the

12:04

soldiers from time to time. Which.

12:06

Was how they learn something? shocking? The

12:09

soldiers new the names of the men they were

12:11

after. Sam. Bass and Jack

12:13

Davis. The. Outlaws had

12:16

well practiced poker faces and they didn't

12:18

reveal their surprise right there on the

12:20

spot. But. It was clear that some

12:22

of their luck with still with them. The.

12:25

Soldiers new the names of the men they

12:27

were tracking, but they obviously didn't have good

12:29

descriptions of them. Otherwise,

12:31

The to travelers who looked like pathetic

12:33

farmers would be in chains right now.

12:36

But. That was the end of the good news. The.

12:39

Rest of the news they learned from the

12:41

soldiers was bad. Joke

12:46

Collins had been same bass his partner

12:48

in their one and only cattle drive

12:50

from Texas to Kansas a year earlier

12:52

in the summer of eighteen. Seventy six.

12:55

Collins and Bass had partner data mining

12:58

venture in a freight business in Deadwood

13:00

before giving up on attempts to make

13:02

legitimate money and embracing the outlaw life.

13:05

They. Had formed a gang known as the

13:07

Black Hills Bandits. And. Now their crimes

13:09

in the hills are coming back to haunt them.

13:13

Collins had somehow been recognized by a

13:15

passenger on the express train. And.

13:17

Gym Barry had been recognized by a

13:20

shopkeeper in Oglala. Barry

13:22

had an unpaid bill to the shopkeeper

13:24

and when Collins and Bury went to

13:26

the store before the robbery, the by

13:29

boots for Collins and Six read Bandana

13:31

the shopkeeper refused to let them by

13:33

the items on credit. The

13:36

episode further cemented Barry and then Collins

13:38

in the mind of the shopkeeper. And

13:41

now detectives worried that the red bandana

13:43

as have been purchased for use in

13:45

a robbery. Detectives

13:47

traveled up to Deadwood and learned about

13:50

the exploits of the Black Hills bandits.

13:53

It now seems likely that law I'm

13:55

in new the names of all six

13:57

outlaws. And then came the icing on

13:59

top. Joan Collins and Bill

14:01

Have fridge had been cornered one hundred

14:03

miles east of Big Springs. More.

14:06

Than a dozen soldiers were aiming rifles

14:08

at the to outlaws and the outlaws

14:10

stayed true to their path. collins and

14:13

have reached drew their pistols and opened

14:15

fire and were cut down in seconds.

14:18

They were probably dead before they hit the ground.

14:21

To of the six were now gone,

14:24

and if there was any good news

14:26

in the report it was of the

14:28

soldiers made no mention of Jim Buried

14:30

or Tom Nixon. Presumably they were still

14:32

alive and on the run. Bass.

14:36

And Davis parted ways with the soldiers

14:39

the next day and continued their journey.

14:42

They. Made it through the rest of Kansas

14:44

and an Indian Territory without trouble. They.

14:47

Crossed into Texas and arrived in

14:49

Den County on November first. Eighteen,

14:51

Seventy Seven. Forty. Four days

14:53

after the robbery. They.

14:55

Set up camp in a corner of the

14:57

county called Cove Hollow. A. Gold There

15:00

was so thick with trees it was

15:02

nearly impossible to find them. Word.

15:04

Was spreading through Denton County that Sam

15:07

Bass might be involved in the Big

15:09

Springs robbery. The. Local Sheriff

15:11

William Eden had been a father figure

15:13

to Sam for five years after. Same

15:15

finally made it to Texas from Indiana

15:17

in pursuit of his dream of being

15:19

a cowboy. Sam. Had

15:22

worked for Sheriff Eden as an assistant

15:24

in town and a ranch hand at

15:26

Eden spread outside town. Now

15:29

Sam needed to lay low. If.

15:31

There was one person in den county who

15:33

would recognize him. It was Share of Eden.

15:36

Jag Davis when into town and kept

15:38

them supplied and Sam was able to

15:40

sneak out at night to see old

15:42

friends who remained loyal. One.

15:45

Of those friends with Jim Murphy who lived

15:47

in a house next to Cove hello. Sam.

15:50

Had known gym for years and trusted

15:52

him. Through. Jim. Sam.

15:55

and jack learned the fate of another

15:57

of their partners Detectives

16:03

tracked Jim Berry to his home in

16:05

Missouri where he had rejoined his family.

16:09

At 3am one morning, lawmen

16:11

surrounded his home but refused to

16:13

open fire with Berry's wife and

16:15

kids inside. To

16:17

deflect from the potential danger to his family,

16:20

Berry made a break for it and ran to

16:22

some nearby woods. He was

16:24

shot in the leg and fell. To

16:27

honor the outlaw pact, he asked the deputy

16:29

who fired the shot to finish him off,

16:32

but the request was denied. Berry

16:34

was taken to a doctor where his leg wound

16:36

was treated. Detectives

16:39

interrogated Berry relentlessly but learned

16:41

very little. Berry

16:43

would only admit that he had been traveling

16:45

with a companion and the man had taken

16:47

a train to Chicago. Berry

16:50

wouldn't name the companion, but

16:52

by process of elimination and a small

16:54

piece of circumstantial evidence, the

16:57

detectives believed the man was Tom Nixon.

17:01

Nixon had stolen a train ticket to

17:03

Chicago from one of the passengers during

17:05

the Big Springs robbery. From

17:07

Chicago, it would have been a relatively easy

17:09

trip to his home in Canada. A

17:13

few days after Jim Berry was captured, gangrene

17:15

set into his leg wound and ended

17:17

up killing him. He

17:19

was defiant to the end and never gave

17:22

up the identities of his friends. But

17:24

with his death, three of the six

17:27

Black Hills bandits and robbers of the express

17:29

train were now in the ground. A

17:32

fourth was almost certainly out of reach in

17:34

Canada, so that left two, Sam

17:36

Bass and Jack Davis. With

17:39

the bad news mounting, Davis took

17:41

his gold, said goodbye to Bass, and

17:43

hopped a train to New Orleans. And

17:46

then there was one. Sam

17:52

Bass was one of, if not the, most

17:54

wanted man in the West. Jesse

17:57

James and his brother Frank were still wanted.

18:00

men of course, but they had been out

18:02

of sight for more than a year after

18:04

the disastrous Northfield raid. So

18:06

it was Sam Bass's turn in the

18:08

spotlight. He was now alone

18:10

in the wooded Gulch of Cove Hollow and

18:12

sitting on a fortune in gold, but

18:15

he apparently wanted more. With

18:17

all of the Black Hills bandits gone, he

18:20

started putting together a new gang. Henry

18:23

Underwood and Frank Jackson were old

18:25

friends from Denton. Henry

18:27

was a habitual criminal who was more

18:29

than happy to join Sam and start

18:31

planning some robberies. Sam

18:33

had known Frank since he was a teenager, and

18:36

Frank resisted the temptation to join the gang

18:38

as long as he could, but

18:40

Sam finally lured him in with the

18:43

shiny gold coins. On

18:45

December 21st, 1877, the

18:48

three men were returning from a pleasure

18:50

trip to San Antonio when they decided

18:52

to rob a stagecoach outside Fort Worth.

18:55

The robbery was uneventful and their

18:57

take was just $43 from the

18:59

passengers. Henry

19:01

Underwood was disappointed with the outcome and

19:04

left to spend Christmas with his family

19:06

in Denton, where he ended up getting

19:08

arrested for a different crime. The

19:11

new Sam Bass gang was down to just

19:13

two members. A couple

19:15

weeks passed and Sam and Frank were

19:17

restless. They had been bunking

19:19

at Jim Murphy's place for the winter, and

19:22

Sam decided the remedy for their

19:24

cabin fever was to rob another

19:26

stage. That robbery was more successful.

19:29

Their haul was four gold watches and $400 cash.

19:34

Sam bragged it was his ninth stagecoach robbery

19:36

and his best one yet, but

19:39

now he was ready to get back to robbing trains.

19:42

To do that, they would need more men. Sam

19:45

easily recruited a couple local

19:47

outlaws named Seaborn Barnes and

19:49

Tom Spotswood. On

19:52

February 22, 1878, the four

19:55

men held up a Texas-based train

19:57

that passed near Denton County. 10

20:00

o'clock at night and the robbery was more

20:02

complicated than the Big Springs job. The

20:05

train was bigger, there were more crew

20:07

members and more passengers. The

20:10

robbers quickly realized the job was too

20:12

big for a four-man gang and they

20:14

escaped with just $1,280. In strict financial

20:19

terms it wasn't a bad heist, each man had $320

20:21

in his pocket. But the Big Springs job had

20:26

set the bar pretty high for Sam and he

20:28

had hoped for more. The

20:31

morning after the Texas train robbery, the governor

20:33

of Texas offered $500 for the capture of

20:35

each robber. The

20:38

railroad added another $500, followed by

20:40

another $500 from the Texas Express

20:42

Company which had guarded the money

20:44

that had been stolen. Sam

20:47

and his three gang members had $1,500

20:50

bounties on their heads and

20:52

since they were now wanted men in Texas, the

20:55

governor called in the Texas Rangers to bring

20:57

them to justice, dead or alive.

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22:09

the gang planned its next robbery at their

22:11

camp in Cove Hollow, Sam learned

22:13

that Tom Spotswood had been arrested. Tom's

22:16

mask had fallen during the robbery. He

22:19

had a unique issue where one eye was bigger

22:21

than the other. Because of

22:24

his distinctive features, a member

22:26

of the train crew easily identified him.

22:29

But that served as no deterrent for Sam

22:31

and company. On March 17, less

22:34

than a month after their last robbery, the

22:36

Sam Bass gang robbed the same railroad,

22:39

the Houston and Texas Central. This

22:42

time, the train crew and some

22:44

well-armed passengers were fed up. The

22:46

crew and the passengers opened fire on

22:48

the outlaws and the outlaws returned fire.

22:52

Two crew members suffered minor injuries,

22:54

but nobody was killed. The

22:56

gang escaped unharmed and managed to steal

22:59

about $500. But it

23:01

wasn't the amount that mattered anymore. The

23:04

public was outraged. Elected

23:06

officials, business executives, and rich ranchers

23:08

were concerned that the robberies were

23:11

putting a stain on Texas. The

23:14

governor called in more Texas Rangers to rid

23:16

the state of the Sam Bass gang once

23:18

and for all. Lawmen

23:24

caught Tom Spotswood and he was

23:26

quick to name his accomplices in

23:28

the first Texas train robbery. Now

23:31

law enforcement knew exactly who they were looking

23:33

for and where to find them. Armed

23:36

with the new information, Texas

23:38

Ranger Lieutenant Junius Peek and 27

23:40

Rangers under his command

23:42

began searching for the bandits around

23:44

Cove Hollow. But it was

23:46

the outlaws who spotted the Rangers. Sam

23:49

saw the Rangers when he and his

23:51

men were leaving Murphy's house with supplies.

23:54

Sam fired the first shot and

23:56

seconds later bullets began to fly.

24:00

amidst the chaos, Sam Bass, Frank

24:02

Jackson, and Seaborn Barnes were able

24:04

to escape back into the Hollow.

24:07

That night, they packed up and rode

24:09

to another hideout. The

24:11

next morning, Rangers came across the

24:14

bandits eating breakfast. The parties

24:16

exchanged gunfire, but again the bandits

24:18

escaped. Over the next

24:20

two weeks, the outlaws and

24:22

the lawmen skirmished repeatedly, but

24:25

Sam and his gang always avoided

24:27

capture. The potentially deadly

24:29

game of cat and mouse became known

24:31

as the Bass War, and it just

24:33

kept going. After

24:35

weeks of failing to capture the bandits, the

24:38

Rangers adopted a new strategy. They

24:41

arrested Jim Murphy and charged him with

24:43

harboring fugitives, though they quickly offered him

24:45

a way out. If

24:47

he would join up with Sam and become

24:49

a spy, the charges would be dropped. Murphy

24:52

was facing 10 years in prison if

24:54

he didn't cooperate, so he took the

24:56

deal. By mid-June,

25:00

1878, after nearly two months of being chased

25:02

by Rangers and local lawmen, Sam

25:05

and his men decided they needed to leave

25:07

Denton County. They were going to

25:09

head south, and just before they left,

25:12

Jim Murphy caught up with them and asked to

25:14

join the gang. Sam

25:17

trusted Jim and was happy to have

25:19

the extra manpower. Almost

25:21

immediately, Jim learned his first

25:23

piece of valuable intelligence. Sam

25:26

had decided to switch things up and rob

25:29

a bank. Jim needed

25:31

to get word to the Rangers, but it

25:33

was impossible to break away to send a message.

25:36

Days later, the outlaws rode into Waco,

25:39

where Sam saw a bank that he

25:41

thought needed robbing. Out

25:44

of desperation, Jim tried to convince Sam

25:46

to bypass the Waco bank and ride

25:48

another 100 miles south to

25:50

Round Rock. Jim reasoned

25:53

that Round Rock, just north of Austin,

25:55

was a more prosperous town. It

25:57

only made sense that their bank would have more money. money.

26:01

Sam agreed, and this time Jim

26:03

was able to sneak away and send a letter

26:05

with the news. As

26:08

Sam Bass and his gang rode toward Round Rock,

26:10

he had no idea he was walking into a trap.

26:18

In Round Rock, Texas, about 20

26:21

miles north of Austin, undercover

26:23

Rangers and Sheriff's deputies stationed

26:25

themselves in town. Some

26:28

stories say the gang arrived in town

26:30

as early as Sunday, July 14th. They

26:33

scouted the town and the bank and were

26:35

ready to commit the robbery, but Jim

26:37

Murphy convinced them to wait a few days. They

26:40

could do a more thorough scout and

26:42

rest their horses in advance of the

26:44

upcoming fast getaway. According

26:46

to the story, the robbery was scheduled

26:49

for the following Saturday, July 20th. By

26:53

the way, on the afternoon of July 19th,

26:55

the beginning of the end arrived for the

26:57

Sam Bass gang. That

27:00

day, Jim Murphy found an excuse to

27:02

separate himself from the gang. The

27:05

other three bandits walked into a

27:07

general store to buy tobacco. Two

27:09

lawmen, Deputy Sheriff Moore and

27:11

Deputy Sheriff Grimes, watched the

27:13

strangers with interest. The

27:16

deputies didn't yet recognize the strangers

27:18

as wanted outlaws, but Deputy

27:20

Grimes was suspicious of the man who

27:22

would later be identified as Sam Bass.

27:26

The deputies followed the outlaws into the

27:28

general store. Moore stood

27:31

in the doorway while Grimes walked up

27:33

behind Sam Bass. Grimes'

27:35

intent seemed to have been something to

27:37

do with Sam Bass' pistol. Either

27:40

it was illegal to carry a gun in town,

27:42

like it was in lots of towns in those

27:44

days, or it was illegal to

27:46

carry two guns, and Sam might

27:48

have been wearing two. Regardless,

27:51

Grimes walked up behind Sam

27:53

and asked about Sam's gun

27:55

or guns. Sam

27:57

spun around and all three outlaws

27:59

opened. opened fire. Deputy

28:05

Grimes had no time to draw his pistol.

28:08

He was killed instantly, and

28:10

Deputy Moore was badly injured, though he

28:12

was able to return fire before the

28:14

outlaws rushed outside. Some

28:17

of Moore's shots shattered Sam's right hand

28:19

and blew off two of his fingers.

28:22

Sam was bleeding badly as he and the

28:24

others ran for their horses. As

28:27

soon as they hit the street, the Texas

28:29

Rangers in town opened fire. Seaborn

28:32

Barnes was shot in the head and killed.

28:35

Frank Jackson helped Sam onto his horse

28:37

and the two galloped toward the edge

28:39

of town. During

28:41

the escape, Sam was shot in the

28:43

spine and was now gravely wounded. The

28:46

outlaws cleared the town and Frank led them

28:48

to a thicket of oak brush to pause

28:50

and catch their breath. As

28:53

dusk fell, Sam Bass was in

28:55

bad shape. He had lost a

28:57

lot of blood and he was too weak to ride

28:59

any longer. He told Frank

29:01

to save himself and keep riding. Frank

29:04

refused, but Sam convinced him to go.

29:08

Before leaving, Frank tore up some cloth

29:10

and bandaged Sam as best he could.

29:14

Sam made it through the night. In

29:16

the next morning, a contingent of Rangers

29:18

found him lying in the grass, barely

29:20

alive, but able to identify

29:23

himself as the outlaw Sam Bass. Sam

29:26

was taken into custody and examined by a

29:29

doctor in Round Rock who didn't think he'd

29:31

live long. On

29:33

Sam's deathbed, he admitted he

29:35

had been part of the Big Springs robbery

29:38

and named his accomplices. Three

29:40

of them were dead and two were long

29:42

gone, but he wouldn't give up Frank Jackson.

29:45

The Rangers tried to pry more information

29:47

from the dying outlaw, but it proved

29:50

fruitless. Sam told

29:52

his interrogators he believed a man should take

29:54

what he knew to his grave, and

29:56

he did. Sam Bass survived

29:58

long enough to save himself. to die on

30:00

July 21st, 1878, his 27th birthday. And

30:06

so the life and career of Sam

30:08

Bass passed into legend. The

30:11

Bass War and the Round Rock shootout

30:13

are ingrained in Texas Rangers lore. And

30:16

Sam Bass secured a place in American history

30:18

as a kind of folk hero. Many

30:21

saw him as a symbol of grit and courage.

30:24

In the space of just two years, the

30:26

Indiana farm boy went from Texas

30:29

cowboy to Black Hills prospector, to

30:31

Black Hills freight driver, to Black

30:33

Hills stage robber, to Nebraska train

30:36

robber, and then Texas train robber.

30:39

After the Big Springs heist, he

30:41

had enough money to retire, but he couldn't

30:43

walk away. And

30:46

his story ended with an enticing

30:48

mystery. No one knows what

30:50

happened to the $10,000 in gold coins. That

30:54

was his share of the Big Springs robbery. Next

31:03

time on Legends of the Old West, it's

31:05

the beginning of the life of Ned Christie.

31:08

He was a Cherokee statesman and a

31:10

hero to his people. And he was labeled

31:12

an outlaw by the federal government. But

31:15

was he really an outlaw or

31:17

was he misunderstood, misjudged, and set

31:19

up by his enemies? We'll

31:22

see next week on Legends of the

31:24

Old West. Members

31:27

of our Black Barrel Plus program don't have

31:29

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31:31

episodes. They receive the entire

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31:38

receive exclusive bonus episodes. Sign

31:40

up now through the link in the

31:42

show notes or on our website, blackbarrelmedia.com.

31:46

Memberships are just $5 per month. This

31:49

series was researched and written by Michael

31:51

Byrne, original music by Rob

31:53

Valier. I'm your host and producer,

31:55

Chris Wimmer. If you enjoyed

31:57

the show, please leave us a rating and a

31:59

review. on Apple Podcasts or wherever you're

32:02

listening. Check out our

32:04

website, blackbarrelmedia.com for more details and

32:06

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