5. The Northfield, Minnesota raid ended the career of the James – Younger Gang
The gang of outlaws which included Jesse and Frank James and the Younger brothers robbed banks, trains, stagecoaches, at least one fair, stores, and other victims from around 1867 until 1876, when a bank robbery in Northfield, Minnesota went wrong for the criminals. The attempted robbery of the First National Bank of Northfield on September 7 was stopped when the clerk refused to open the safe, claiming that it was equipped with a time lock which prevented him from doing so, while another clerk fled out the back door, wounded in the shoulder. Townspeople raised the alarm and armed men were awaiting the robbers as they exited the bank. Shots were fired at the robbers outside while their three companions were still inside, who shot the clerk in the head and fled.
The failed robbery and the resulting pursuit brought all of the Younger gang to heel, except the James brothers, who separated from the rest and fled to Missouri. The pursuit included the local militia, who killed or captured the remaining members of the gang. The Youngers never admitted that Jesse and Frank James were part of the foiled robbery. The only money the gang managed to take during the robbery was a few bags of nickels. The surviving Youngers were imprisoned, Bob Younger died while in custody in 1889, from tuberculosis. By then Jesse James had been dead for seven years, but the two remaining Younger brothers, Jim and Cole, continued to maintain their silence over any crimes committed by the James brothers, including the Northfield robbery.