Post by diane9247 on Mar 28, 2015 6:06:02 GMT
The last great train robbery, as it has been known, took place in the Siskiyou Mountains of southern Oregon, USA. The Southern Pacific #13 train was robbed by three brothers in Tunnel 13 (no relationship with the train of the same number) on October 11, 1923, and was so brutal that it became a national outrage. Twins Roy and Ray d'Autremont, age 23, and Hugh, 19, had camped out on the mountain during the summer while they cased the passing trains and the geography of the area. A small shack near the south portal of the tunnel provided shelter. This shack happened to be near the property of my grandparents' homestead, whose house was in a canyon SW and around a bend from the tunnel less than 3/4 mi. away from the south portal.
Roy, Ray and Hugh d'Autremont
Train #13 was rumored to be carrying $500,000 in gold on October 11, so the brothers planned to blow it up with dynamite stolen from a construction site. Roy and Hugh jumped aboard the train north of the tunnel as it was stopped for a brake test. Ray waited with the dynamite inside the tunnel at the south end. As the train passed through, the dynamite was stuffed into the mail car. The blast immediately killed the mail clerk, blowing his charred remains and the contents of the mail car into the tunnel. In the ensuing chaos, the brakeman, engineer and fireman were shot as they emerged from the smoke. The train was not transporting gold, so the brothers escaped the scene with nothing. The blast had been heard several miles away in a RR camp and it was thought that the engine had exploded, so a Southern Pacific rescue team was on its way. The team was horrified to find the bodies of the crew of four: engineer Sidney Bates, brakeman Coyle Johnson, fireman Marvin Seng and mailman Elvyn Dougherty.
Destroyed mail car Photo from this website, contributed by Hill.
North portal as it looks today, with a memorial wreath to honor the four killed in the robbery.
The d'Autremonts hid out in the mountains, half-starved, then escaped to new lives with assumed names. The robbery became a national news item for many months and the intensive manhunt lasted 3 1/2 years and included federal marshals, the Oregon National Guard, local citizens and railroad workers. Hugh had enlisted in the Army and was finally arrested in the Pilippines in 1927. A corporal returning home from the Philippines saw a Wanted poster, recognized him, and collected his reward by leading authorities to the youngest of the gang. A few days later, Roy and Ray were found in Ohio. There was much jubilation over the arrests and the d'Autremonts were finally brought to justice. All three were given life sentences.
Jackson Co.Courthouse The twins on the right, looking confident, leaving the courthouse with their attorney.
Contemporary newspapers reported that none of the brothers were particularly remorseful, in fact treated their trial as a lark. While the d'Autremonts were fugitives, folk songs were written about the heinous crime in Tunnel 13, condemning the three heartless young men who killed four innocents. What became of the brothers in later years is told by JD Chandler, crime historian, of Portland Crime
So, the lobotomized Roy lived out his life in a state of half-awareness. Ray had a quiet, peaceful life, exactly what he denied to the four crewmen of Train #13. In an e-mail on 6/24/07, Harold Putnam wrote:
A second chapter to the story: Fire in Tunnel 13
Mail Tribune photo
On the night of November 13, 2003, a fire was set in the tunnel, allegedly by transients trying to stay warm.** The creosote-soaked timbers smoldered, then burned, for days. Rebuilding took 18 months and during that time freight trains had to be diverted, resulting in a 10-13 day trip to the California/Oregon border, rather than the usual 5 days. It was reopened in April of 2005. Harold Putnam, my father, took part in the opening ceremony, attended by railroad officials and local dignitaries. A historical plaque now sits near the entrance to the refurbished Tunnel 13.
**This is the reason given in all sources I've read. However, Harold Putnam has a different analysis:
There are two more markers in this folder. Two and a half miles north of Tunnel 13 is Horseshoe Tunnel. This tunnel has the unusual feature of completing a loop inside the knob of a mountaintop. Harold Putnam said he and his brother went through Horseshoe once, but Tunnel 13 was their daily route from their isolated homestead to school and sports in Ashland. The other marker is for the homestead.
Other sources:
Tunnel13.com
Portland Crime Blogspot
Ftp.wi.net
Harold L. Putnam, e-mails
____________________
Tunnel 13.kmz (655 B)
Roy, Ray and Hugh d'Autremont
Train #13 was rumored to be carrying $500,000 in gold on October 11, so the brothers planned to blow it up with dynamite stolen from a construction site. Roy and Hugh jumped aboard the train north of the tunnel as it was stopped for a brake test. Ray waited with the dynamite inside the tunnel at the south end. As the train passed through, the dynamite was stuffed into the mail car. The blast immediately killed the mail clerk, blowing his charred remains and the contents of the mail car into the tunnel. In the ensuing chaos, the brakeman, engineer and fireman were shot as they emerged from the smoke. The train was not transporting gold, so the brothers escaped the scene with nothing. The blast had been heard several miles away in a RR camp and it was thought that the engine had exploded, so a Southern Pacific rescue team was on its way. The team was horrified to find the bodies of the crew of four: engineer Sidney Bates, brakeman Coyle Johnson, fireman Marvin Seng and mailman Elvyn Dougherty.
Destroyed mail car Photo from this website, contributed by Hill.
North portal as it looks today, with a memorial wreath to honor the four killed in the robbery.
The d'Autremonts hid out in the mountains, half-starved, then escaped to new lives with assumed names. The robbery became a national news item for many months and the intensive manhunt lasted 3 1/2 years and included federal marshals, the Oregon National Guard, local citizens and railroad workers. Hugh had enlisted in the Army and was finally arrested in the Pilippines in 1927. A corporal returning home from the Philippines saw a Wanted poster, recognized him, and collected his reward by leading authorities to the youngest of the gang. A few days later, Roy and Ray were found in Ohio. There was much jubilation over the arrests and the d'Autremonts were finally brought to justice. All three were given life sentences.
Jackson Co.Courthouse The twins on the right, looking confident, leaving the courthouse with their attorney.
Contemporary newspapers reported that none of the brothers were particularly remorseful, in fact treated their trial as a lark. While the d'Autremonts were fugitives, folk songs were written about the heinous crime in Tunnel 13, condemning the three heartless young men who killed four innocents. What became of the brothers in later years is told by JD Chandler, crime historian, of Portland Crime
In 1949 Roy suffered a nervous breakdown in prison and was confined in the Oregon State Mental Hospital. He was lobotomized and spent the rest of his life under supervision. Hugh was paroled in 1958, but died a few months later of stomach cancer. The governor commuted Ray's sentence in 1972. He lived until 1984 writing and painting in Eugene, OR.
The 3 brothers had a younger baby brother. Too young to know anything about all of this. When he, Charlie d'Autremont, was attending Southern Oregon University, he and a few other baseball/basketball players came to Brookings [Oregon, where the Putnam family had relocated] to play summer ball. Charlie...actually had come to our house for dinner. It was strange to be sitting across the table from a d'Autremont. He was a great athlete and a great guy to know. When he was old enough he visited the older brothers in [prison], but they never really got to know each other.
A second chapter to the story: Fire in Tunnel 13
Mail Tribune photo
On the night of November 13, 2003, a fire was set in the tunnel, allegedly by transients trying to stay warm.** The creosote-soaked timbers smoldered, then burned, for days. Rebuilding took 18 months and during that time freight trains had to be diverted, resulting in a 10-13 day trip to the California/Oregon border, rather than the usual 5 days. It was reopened in April of 2005. Harold Putnam, my father, took part in the opening ceremony, attended by railroad officials and local dignitaries. A historical plaque now sits near the entrance to the refurbished Tunnel 13.
**This is the reason given in all sources I've read. However, Harold Putnam has a different analysis:
All articles about the tunnel fire assume the fire was set by some hippies because there were peace signs and other junk painted on the end of the tunnel. I don't agree. The fire started in the top of the tunnel and quite a way inside at the North end. The supporting timbers were huge, approx. 16x24 in. redwood treated by creosote with smaller timbers on top to keep dirt and rocks from falling on the tracks. The timbers were about 18 in. apart and about 20 feet tall. There was no way other than a flaming arrow to start that fire at the ceiling. I think the modern deisel engines which when pulling hard up the 4% grade blew off some "clinkers" that are almost red hot when blown out the stack, stuck in the upper timbers and smoldered for a long time, then ignited. The constant breeze started the flames and caused the fire.
Other sources:
Tunnel13.com
Portland Crime Blogspot
Ftp.wi.net
Harold L. Putnam, e-mails
____________________
Tunnel 13.kmz (655 B)