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four feet of snow had fallen that day, so it was possible that Searcy could have slid down the grade into the
Jarbidge River. Fleming quickly formed a search party. Before leaving, he telephoned a woman named Rose Dexter, who lived about a half mile north of Jarbidge along the grade. According to Ken Weinman, Rose Dexter said that the stage had passed by her house earlier that day and that she waved to the driver. She also said that the driver was "huddled up on his seat with his collar pulled up over his face to form some protection from the blinding snow." The search party quickly found the mail wagon, less than a quarter of a mile from the town's main business district. The stage was pulled over on the side of the road and hidden behind a patch of willow trees. Fred Searcy was found "slumped in his seat and almost covered with snow." An unopened mail pouch was also uncovered, but the second pouch, containing $ 4,000 (approximately equivalent to $ 97,560 of 2019), was missing. Weinman says that at first the search party thought that Searcy had frozen to death in the extreme cold, but closer examination revealed that he had been shot in the head at a very close range. Powder burns in his hair and on his scalp were observed.
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mail pouch. The bottom was cut open and $ 4,000 in bills and gold coins was missing. The clue was an important find, but the fact that the dog had seemed to know its exact location raised suspicions that the animal tracks the group was following were made by the stray dog itself. The search party compared the dog's feet to the footprints in the snow and found a perfect match. Deciding that Ben Kuhl was the member of the group whom the dog was most attached to, they judged that the dog would have the greatest chance of following him through the storm.
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scene. According to
Weinman, it was determined that the assailant must have hidden in the sagebrush along the road and jumped aboard the wagon to kill Searcy and take control. However, Nevada State Archivist Guy Rocha claims that Ben Kuhl later confessed to the murder and said that he killed Searcy over a dispute about how to split the money, alleging that Searcy was in on the crime.
204:. Witnesses confirmed that they saw Kuhl in the saloon, but because they could not say at what time, their testimony was insignificant. Indeed, Kuhl could have left the bar, committed the crime, and then returned in a relatively short amount of time. After his arrest, a background check revealed that Kuhl had a long criminal record. In 1903, he served four months in jail at
113:. Kuhl would eventually become the first murderer in American history to be convicted and sent to prison by the use of palm print evidence. The stolen $ 4,000 was never recovered and is said to be buried somewhere in Jarbidge Canyon. According to author Ken Weinman, the Jarbidge Stage Robbery is one of the "best authenticated buried treasure stories in Nevada
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Kuhl, who robbed the
Rogerson-Jarbidge stage in December 1916, killing Fred Searcy the driver, the last mail stagecoach robbery in the U.S. and the first conviction based on a bloody palm print. It was last used about 1945. Dedicated June 13, 1998 by Lucinda Jane Saunders. Chapter 1881 E. Clampus Vitus.
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Scott
Fleming asked a man named Frank Leonard to ride up to the top of Crippen Grade, a 2,000 foot decline in the road that led down to the canyon floor and the town. Leonard returned a few hours later, saying he could not find Searcy or the wagon. Fleming and the others became very concerned: Over
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s home or Forest
Service cabin to restrain rowdy miners and hold suspects for arrival of a sheriff deputy. A colorful story tells of a burly miner frequently using the bunk to raise the roof to slip out and return to the saloon, climbing back in his cell before morning. Most noted prisoner was Ben
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After the re-enactment, another patrol around the area was made and the searchers found both human and dog footprints in the snow. The tracks led down to the river, where a blood-stained shirt was found lying on the bank. A stray dog that had been following the group happened to dig up the second
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Because the snow storm that was raging showed no sign of letting up, the search party returned to town with the intention of continuing the investigation of the area on the following morning. So, on the next day, the search party attempted to re-enact the crime using evidence found at the crime
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Kuhl spent almost twenty-eight years in prison before his release on May 16, 1945. At the time of his release, Kuhl had served more prison time in Nevada than anyone else in the state's history. Weinman says that the $ 4,000 was never recovered and that Kuhl never admitted to the crime or the
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Today, the town of
Jarbidge is still isolated and has a population of less than 100. Many of the old buildings that stood during the time of the robbery are still intact, including the jail house in which Kuhl was held. In 1998, a plaque was placed in front of the jail, reading:
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The robbery took place on
December 5, 1916. When Searcy failed to arrive in town at the expected time, a small group of men began to assemble at the post office, assuming that heavy snow was the cause of the delay. However, when Searcy still did not appear,
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Due to its isolated location, technological advancements in the broader world were slow to reach
Jarbridge. The only road into the town was a treacherous dirt road, and its only means of communication with the outside world was the
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could cut off the community for several weeks at a time. Automobiles had not yet made it to
Jarbidge, so riding horses and driving wagons were still the main modes of transportation. Because Rogerson, Idaho, was the closest
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from
California linked a bloody palm print on an envelope to Kuhl. For this, Judge Taber sentenced Kuhl to death and allowed him to choose the method of execution. Kuhl chose execution by
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for stealing horses. Furthermore, Kuhl had recently been released from jail on a $ 400 bond and had previously been arrested in Jarbidge for trespassing on private property.
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Kuhl and two of his associates, Ed Beck and William McGraw, were arrested at their cabin without any trouble. A .44 caliber ivory-handled
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Jarbidge Jail. Built after the town was removed from the U.S. Forest by a 1911 Presidential proclamation it replaced the constable
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431:"Reconnoitering in the Eastern Sierra Nevada & Great Basin by 4-Wheel-Drive: 4x4 Trails: Jarbidge, Nevada"
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was the prosecutor. The evidence gathered by the search party was all circumstantial, but two
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405:"Howard Hickson's Histories: Case Number 606 Makes History: A Murder in Jarbidge, 1916"
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4,000 was stolen. Three suspects were arrested shortly afterward, including a
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Roger Butterfield (1949). "Elko County: The Jarbridge Stage Robbery".
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381:"Calculate the value of $ 4,000 in 1916. How much is it worth today?"
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330:"America's Last State Robbery in 1916 in Jarbidge Nevada | PDF"
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227:. District Judge Errol J. L. Taber presided over the case, and
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stage. Furthermore, in winter, twenty to thirty foot
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16:Last stage robbery in the American Frontier
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538:Four Dead in Five Seconds Gunfight
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1219:1916 murders in the United States
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638:Big Fight at the Jenkins Saloon
357:. November 2003. Archived from
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1160:List of Old West gunfighters
1092:Baxter's Curve Train Robbery
1087:Overland Flyer Train Robbery
881:Enid–Pond Creek Railroad War
129:. The town was founded as a
101:. The driver was killed and
1057:Canyon Diablo Train Robbery
758:Long Branch Saloon gunfight
553:Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
305:(April 18, 1949). Time Inc.
278:List of homicides in Nevada
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1156:List of Old West gunfights
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1037:Jonathan R. Davis Gunfight
911:Placer County Railroad War
246:together in October 1917.
223:The trial was held in the
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1047:Skeleton Canyon massacres
733:Short–Courtright Shootout
563:Vaudeville Theater ambush
543:Guadalupe Canyon Massacre
518:Gunfight at Blazer's Mill
218:Oregon State Penitentiary
24:
896:McIntosh County Seat War
688:Skeleton Canyon shootout
618:Shootout at Wilson Ranch
608:Shootout on Juneau Wharf
523:Battle of Lincoln (1878)
1164:List of Old West lawmen
1042:Northfield Bank Robbery
821:Regulator–Moderator War
748:Anderson-McCluskie duel
1097:Jarbidge Stage Robbery
1072:Fairbank Train Robbery
1062:Wham Paymaster robbery
901:Deschutes Railroad War
876:Jaybird–Woodpecker War
783:Higgins–Standifer duel
683:Power's Cabin shootout
673:Shootout in Sonoratown
653:Canyon Diablo shootout
588:Battle of Tres Jacales
583:Battle of Stone Corral
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225:Elko County Courthouse
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79:Jarbidge Stage Robbery
20:Jarbidge Stage Robbery
1154:Further information:
1138:Rock Springs massacre
1052:Battle of Coffeyville
976:San Elizario Salt War
886:Brooks–McFarland feud
851:Colorado Railroad War
728:Duels of Tom Carberry
633:Chinese Massacre Cove
628:Battleground Gunfight
533:Mussel Slough Tragedy
528:Variety Hall shootout
513:Battle of Bates Point
503:Gunfight at Hide Park
260:
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1067:Black Bart Robberies
841:Horrell–Higgins feud
753:Canton–Dunn Shootout
718:Hickok–Tutt Shootout
708:Broderick–Terry duel
648:Gunfight at Spokogee
613:Hot Springs gunfight
361:on November 13, 2010
1209:Elko County, Nevada
1133:Hay Meadow massacre
1082:Big Springs Robbery
1006:Stuart's Stranglers
956:Pleasant Valley War
921:Colorado Labor Wars
891:Reese–Townsend feud
788:Western Code Duello
773:Burton Mossman duel
763:South Pass Shootout
598:Gunfight at Morenci
548:Battle of the Plaza
508:Goingsnake massacre
385:www.dollartimes.com
244:Nevada State Prison
236:forensic scientists
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1077:Gage Train Robbery
1016:Deep Creek murders
1001:Sheepshooters' War
991:Fence Cutting Wars
966:Colorado Range War
946:Johnson County War
926:Idaho labor strike
856:Earp Vendetta Ride
836:Sutton–Taylor feud
826:Lincoln County War
768:Walker–Graham duel
658:Shootout in Benson
643:Thibodaux massacre
603:Blackwell gunfight
578:Battle of Cimarron
568:Hunnewell gunfight
232:Edward P. Carville
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143:United States Mail
1204:American folklore
1189:Conflicts in 1916
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1143:Morewood massacre
1123:Lexington murders
1021:Spring Creek raid
971:Colfax County War
961:Castaic Range War
846:Brooks–Baxter War
778:Silks–Fultom duel
723:Duels of Jim Levy
668:Battle of Eufaula
593:Battle of Ingalls
558:Trinidad Gunfight
433:. August 24, 2010
411:. October 4, 1998
229:District Attorney
133:in 1909 due to a
117:s long history."
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1214:Crimes in Nevada
1184:Murder in Nevada
1011:Hashknife Outfit
951:Mason County War
906:Boyce–Sneed feud
866:Flynn–Doran feud
831:Lee–Peacock feud
816:Tutt–Everett War
743:Mart Duggan duel
678:Gleeson gunfight
623:Gunfight in Moab
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435:. Retrieved
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363:. Retrieved
359:the original
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252:buried money
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240:firing squad
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147:snow drifts
107:horse thief
1178:Categories
1113:Gunfighter
996:Sheep Wars
390:2019-02-10
283:Pearl Hart
210:California
206:Marysville
165:Postmaster
121:Background
91:mail wagon
1030:Robberies
981:Pecos War
700:showdowns
698:Duels and
495:Gunfights
479:Gunfights
355:Guy Rocha
180:Aftermath
135:gold rush
131:tent city
1106:See also
487:Old West
437:June 26,
415:June 26,
365:June 26,
272:See also
198:revolver
190:mug shot
111:Ben Kuhl
95:Jarbidge
87:Old West
42:Location
485:in the
158:Robbery
56:Outcome
1162:, and
1118:Cowboy
202:saloon
109:named
99:Nevada
68:Deaths
936:Range
798:Feuds
483:feuds
289:Notes
264:'
115:'
83:stage
63:4,000
938:wars
481:and
439:2012
417:2012
367:2012
212:for
77:The
34:Date
50:USA
1180::
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407:.
383:.
353:.
338:^
311:^
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188:A
103:$
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61:$
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369:.
332:.
71:1
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