Butch Cassidy and the Bank of Montpelier
By Jake Putnam
Pistol whipped bank teller Bud Mackintosh testified in court that the number 13 was the cause of it all. “It was the 13th day of the month; after the 13th deposit of $13.00 at 3:13.” Mackintosh knew a thing or two about luck because he was robbed on the 13th day of August in 1896.
It was the most infamous bank robbery in Idaho history and it was masterminded by Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch in Montpelier, Idaho.
On a hot, cloudless August afternoon at 833 Washington Street in Montpelier; three strangers on horseback rode through dusty streets. That day only dogs and merchants stirred in the heat. Most everyone in Bear Lake County was putting up hay when the cowboys tied their horses to a hitching post near the bank.
Butch Cassidy, Elzy Lay and Bob Meeks spent weeks scouting the bank from Cokeville just east of Bear Lake across the Wyoming state line. For cover the three outlaws worked on the Emelle ranch operated by the wife of a prominent Montpelier jeweler.
She recalled later in court that the cowboys ran cattle at the ranch for about two weeks, and were the best ranch hands she’d ever had but were always heavily armed. She added that they made frequent trips into Cokeville and Montpelier at all hours of the day and night.
Later in court it all made sense, Cassidy was a detail man, his trips to town were recon missions for the bank job and in no time he learned that with the last cutting of the hay in Bear Lake County, farmers paid back loans to the bank and the cash drawers were full. That the Sheriff made rounds out in the county in the afternoons and that Thursday was one of the slowest days of the week. The outlaws also scouted escape routes and places to cache relay horses for the getaway.
Friends across the border in Star Valley said that Cassidy and the boys had wintered there after getting out of prison on January 20th. They said Cassidy was making an honest living working as a cowboy on nearby ranches. They described Cassidy as tough and hardened yet still kind despite two years in the Wyoming state pen.
In stories handed down many Star Valley residents recalled Cassidy living at the Morgan place in Auburn and when the worst part of winter hit and things got tough somehow Cassidy came up with a side of beef for starving families. Many a resident said that Cassidy was a loyal friend who prided himself on keeping promises.
Pearl Davis added that Cassidy loved music and went to the dances Saturday nights that winter at the Rock Church in Auburn. He often sat with his back against the wall so he could see people coming through the front door. Elzy Lay and Bob Meeks would listen to her father’s fiddle and watch the people dance. She said no one was more fun-loving and fond of practical jokes.
But Butch Cassidy had a dark side; stealing was his business and god help anyone that stepped in his way. He stood about 5 feet 10 and stocky, he had close- set, hazel eyes and weighed in at a slim 155 pounds. He was quick on his feet, always packed a six-shooter and it’s said he could drive nails at the pull of a trigger.
Cassidy’s horsemanship was legendary, his ability to meticulously plan and execute robberies unmatched. He also had the ability to vanish for months at a time and he had shrewd public relations skills. Borrowing from Robin Hood, he robbed rich ranchers, railroads and banks and gave generously to widows, friends, and children.
It was Cassidy’s promises that had painted him into a corner in August of 1896, his promise to go straight clashed with the promise to help a friend. Former Wild Bunch member Matt Warner was in an Ogden jail on murder charges and asked Cassidy for help. Butch promised the best lawyer money could buy; it was the least he could do to keep a friend from the gallows.
Cassidy had also made a promise to Wyoming Governor Bill Richards. Richards pardoned the outlaw and released him early from prison on a promise that he’d do his outlawing out of state and that’s what landed him in Montpelier, just a short ride from the border. He needed at least $3,000 to help pay for Warner’s attorneys.
The two weeks at the Emelle place flew past and on the 12th of August The Wild Bunch pulled up stakes and drew their pay, they spent the rest of that day cashing supplies and fresh horses outside of town. That night they camped in nearby Montpelier Canyon.
On August 13th they rode up to a saloon on Washington Street next to the bank while Butch kept a close eye on the bank. When he saw the banker out front talking to two men he saw his chance, knowing that there was just one employee in the cage and another at a desk. He told Bob Meeks to get the horses ready and gun down anyone that looked like trouble and then he and Elzy sprang into action.
Bank President G. C. Gray was out front talking city politics to Montpelier City Councilmen Bill Perkins and Ed Hoover when two men hit the boardwalk with guns drawn and bandana's over their faces. The outlaws quietly forced them inside the small bank building. Gray recalled later that the clock on the wall read 3:13.
Inside, Elzy Lay forced the stenographer, Bank President Gray, Perkins and Hoover against the wall at gunpoint while Cassidy jumped in the cage with a gunny sack in hand and emptied the cash drawers of silver and gold. Butch ordered McIntosh to give up the rest of the bills in the safe, when he protested cracked him on the head with the butt of his gun, bloodied and dazed McIntosh gave up the money.
Just inside the vault Cassidy found a fully loaded Winchester that McIntosh kept for situations like this, he took it as he backed out of the bank. The outlaw warned everyone there to stay quiet and not move for ten minutes. The bloodied McIntosh was seething but kept his head, as he looked out the window to the street he studied the face of the man holding the horses. In just 5 minutes the daring daylight robbery was over, the outlaws disappeared into a cloud of dust on Washington Street.
When it was safe Bank President G.C. Gray ran from the building yelling “Robbery, Robbery” Deputy Sheriff Fred Cruikshank was first on the scene but there wasn’t a horse in sight so he took off on a bicycle. City prosecutor John A. Bagley grabbed his horse and followed the Deputy. They closed in the outlaws just enough to determine their direction.
Bear Lake County Sheriff Jeff Davis got a posse together and in less than an hour were tracking the outlaws when they closed in on a narrow canyon then the posse fizzled out, they didn’t want ride into an ambush and many turned for home. But Sheriff Davis and Deputy Cruikshank drove on for another week until the trail went cold.
Back in Montpelier the investigation continued. Mrs. Emelle came forward and said three cowboys, George Ingerfield, Willie McGinnis and Marty Mackensie had worked for her and disappeared after the robbery, the outlaws had all used alias.
The robbery made national news and as word spread all they had was Bud McIntosh’s description of the man in the street. An artist was brought in, posters made and within a month they had an identity.
Henry Robert ‘Bob’ Meeks was arrested by the Lincoln County Sheriffs office in Wyoming and transported to the Bear Lake County Jail where for the next year he stood trial and was convicted for the crime. A jury of peers gave him 35 years in the Idaho Penitentiary for his part of the crime; he arrived at the Idaho State Penitentiary September 7th, 1897 but escaped seven years later.
Butch Cassidy and Ezra 'Elzy ' Lay were never identified by witnesses and never arrested for the robbery. Lay was later arrested for a train robbery in New Mexico and was in prison until 1906 when he turned his life around and died in Glendale, California in 1933. Cassidy continued his outlaw ways until disappearing in South America, some say he died in a shootout in San Vicente, others say he died in Spokane under an assumed name in the 30’s.
The outlaws got away with a thousand dollars in gold and silver coins and $6,100 in greenbacks. After the robbery Wyoming Attorney Douglas Preston was paid $3,000 in cash from an undisclosed third party to defend Matt Warner. The outlaw was convicted on manslaughter charges and served 4 years in jail. The Bank of Montpelier continued business until it failed in the mid 1920’s, the building still stands on Washington Street.
Sources: “The Outlaw Trail, Charles Kelly, Bonanza Books, 1938, “A History of Star Valley,” Forrest Kennington, Vally Graphics, Salt Lake, 1989. “A History of the Hub”, Allgara West, Gateway, 1998.
Michael Phelps used chocolate milk to recover during the Olympics--photo courtesy of Marco Pakoeningrat
