Bob Dalton

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Bob Dalton

Born Robert Rennick Dalton

May 13, 1869[1]

Cass County, Missouri, United States

Died October 5, 1892 (aged 23)

Coffeyville, Kansas, United States

Cause of death Gunshot wound

Nationality American

Parent(s) James Lewis Dalton; Adeline Lee

Younger

Allegiance Dalton Gang

 Criminal Bank robbery, train robbery
charge

Robert Rennick Dalton (May 13, 1869 – October 5, 1892), better known as Bob Dalton, was an
American outlaw in the American Old West. Beginning in 1891, he led the Dalton Gang, whose
varying members included three of his brothers. They were known for robbing banks,
stagecoaches and trains, primarily in Kansas and Oklahoma Territory, quickly attracting pursuit
by lawmen.

On October 5, 1892 the gang attempted to rob two banks the same day in Coffeyville, Kansas,
hoping to gain enough loot to leave the country. Attacked by civilians and law enforcement
officers, Bob and Grat Dalton, Bill Power, and Richard L. "Dick" Broadwell were all killed.
Younger brother Emmett Dalton was severely wounded, but survived. He was tried and
convicted, and served 14 years in prison before being pardoned. Bill Dalton was not part of this
heist.

Contents

• 1Early life

• 2Lawman career

• 3Outlaw career

• 4Coffeyville raid

• 5Representation in other media

• 6References

• 7External links

Early life[edit]

Born in 1869 in Cass County, Missouri, Bob was one of nine sons of Lewis Dalton, from
Kentucky and Jackson County, Missouri, and his wife Adeline Lee (née Younger). They also had
three daughters. His siblings were:

• Charles Benjamin "Ben" Dalton (1852–1936)

• Henry Coleman "Cole" Dalton (1853–1920)

• Littleton "Lit" Lee Dalton (1857–1942)

• Franklin "Frank" Dalton (1859–1887)

• Gratton Hanley "Grat" Dalton (1861–1892)

• William Marion "Bill" Dalton (1863–1894)

• Eva May Dalton (1867–1939)

• Emmett Dalton (1871–1937)

• Leona Randolph Dalton (1875–1964)

 • Nancy May Dalton (1876–1901)

• Simon Noel "Si" Dalton (1878–1928)

Brothers who became members of the Dalton Gang were: Bob, Grat, Emmett, and Bill, who
was the least involved.[2] After the disaster at Coffeyville in 1892, Bill later joined with Bill
Doolin to form the Dalton-Doolin Gang, also known as the Wild Bunch.

Their father Lewis Dalton bred and trained race horses, and bet on them, mostly
unsuccessfully. By 1870 he began traveling to California to enter in the race circuits. Starting
with his oldest son Ben, he eventually brought the others with him to help. In 1877, while their
father was running horses in Visalia, California, the oldest sons were offered steady work but
refused at the time.

After returning to Missouri, Ben, Frank, and Littleton (known as Lit) decided to take up the
offer and returned to California to work as muleskinners. Grat and Cole eventually followed in
1880. Grat quickly made a reputation as a bar fighter in the many saloons up and down the San
Joaquin Valley.

That same year Frank Dalton was offered a job in the Indian Territory (now the state
of Oklahoma). He was appointed as a Deputy U.S. Marshal out of Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Bill joined his brothers in California in 1884, where he started a family and settled in San Luis
Obispo County. Their father gambled outside of horse racing, and lost the family home
in Belton, Missouri as a result. In 1890 their mother Adeline bought a piece of land
near Kingfisher, when the Oklahoma Territory was opened for white settlement.[3]

Lawman career[edit]

Frank Dalton established a good reputation as a deputy marshal, and was the most noted of
the Dalton brothers to be engaged in lawful work. But on Nov 27, 1887 Frank was killed by
whiskey bootleggers when he and another deputy attempted to apprehend them. Frank
Dalton is buried in Coffeyville, Kansas.

After Frank's death, his brothers Grat and Bob were given his job as Deputy U.S. Marshal at
Fort Smith. Bob soon hired Emmett to guard prisoners at the fort's jail. Bob killed a man in the
line of duty, which he claimed was in self defense. Drinking heavily, he began to be restless. He
was hired by the Osage Nation to organize its police force; he took Emmett with him as a
deputy. Grat meanwhile continued to work at Fort Smith.

Bob and Emmett initially established good reputations in the Osage Nation. But in July 1890,
they began stealing horses to make more money. Eventually stockmen organized to capture
them, and the Daltons fled the Nation. They hid out in the bluffs on the Canadian River about
seventy miles southwest of Kingfisher, Oklahoma, and sent for Grat for help. In trying to get
them food, horses, and ammunition, Grat was caught and jailed at Fort Smith. After two weeks
Grat was released; lawmen hoped he would lead them to his brothers. Bob and Emmett
escaped by train to California, where they stayed with their brother Bill at his ranch near San
Miguel.[4]

Outlaw career[edit]

Grat Dalton returned to California to meet Emmett and Bob at their brother Bill's ranch in
January 1891. They worked there for about a month, but also played poker and regularly got
into bar fights in San Luis Obispo County. They spent most of the money they had made from
horse stealing. Bob began to make plans to rob a train with the help of Emmett and Grat. Their
brothers Cole, Lit, and Bill unsuccessfully tried to dissuade them.

On the night of February 6, 1891, two masked men held up a Southern Pacific
Railroad passenger train near the town of Alila (present day Earlimart, California). They were
reportedly carrying 44-caliber pistols and did not succeed in taking any money. The
expressman accidentally killed the fireman during crossfire with the robbers.

Years later, Littleton Dalton said that his brothers, Bob and Emmett, had told him many times
that they had robbed the Alila train. Grat had not joined them as he had spent all his money on
drinking and gambling in Tulare, California, and could not even rent a horse.

Sheriff Gene Kay of Tulare County tracked the outlaws with his posse to San Luis Obispo
County, near San Miguel. Eventually the party found the remnants of a saddle that was missing
a leather strap which had been found at the scene of the hold up. It was found at Bill Dalton's
ranch. Asking around about the Dalton brothers, Sheriff Kay's posse learned that Bob, Emmett
and Grat had spent the past few days drinking heavily, gambling, and following the Southern
Pacific pay car as it made its monthly journey down the San Joaquin Valley. By this time their
reputation as horse thieves in Indian Territory had followed them to California.

Photo of Robert "Bob" Dalton c. 1889

On March 17, 1891 the Tulare County Grand Jury indicted brothers Bob, Emmett, Grat, and Bill
Dalton for the Alila robbery. A few days later, Grat and Bill were arrested and jailed in Tulare
County. A $3000 bounty was announced for the capture of Bob and Emmett. Bill had already
helped them escape California, and the pair were on their way back to Oklahoma Territory. Bill
secured bondsmen and gained release, then hired attorneys to defend Grat, who was jailed
in Visalia.

Bob and Emmett had borrowed money and supplies from their brothers, Cole and Lit; they
crossed the Mojave Desert. After their horses were discovered at Ludlow, California, Sheriff
Kay decided to pursue them with his deputy, Jim Ford. He discovered that the brothers were
actually making their way to Utah to throw him off, tracking them to the town of Ogden, Utah.
After some close encounters Bob and Emmett escaped capture by train. Sheriff Kay continued
to track them throughout the Southwest for several months, even at one point
entering Mexico, but with no success. Eventually they ending up at the Dalton home
near Kingfisher, Oklahoma. The Daltons had many friends in Oklahoma willing to hide them,
and Sheriff Kay gave up the chase to return to California for Grat's trial.
Bob and Emmett robbed a train at Whorton, now Perry, Oklahoma, May 1891. They began
forming what would be known as the Dalton Gang.

Even though much of the evidence showed that Grat was in Fresno, California the night of the
Alila robbery, including the testimony of several witnesses, the influence of the
powerful Southern Pacific Railroad resulted in his having an unfair trail.[citation needed] Grat's
lawyer was corrupt. Neither the defense nor the prosecution noted the fact that the fireman
had been killed accidentally by the expressman. Grat did not know this either; he and his
brothers assumed that Emmett had killed the fireman.[citation needed] Grat was convicted on
murder charges and sentenced to life imprisonment.

On September 3, 1891 a train was stopped and robbed near Ceres, California, but the
perpetrators did not get any money. As the circumstances were similar to the Alila robbery,
Sheriff Kay suspected Bill Dalton, and arrested him and an associate named Riley Dean. Kay
found the two at an abandoned overland stage station. He believed they were preparing a
robbery or to break Grat out of jail.[citation needed] Both Bill and Dean had alibis for the Ceres
robbery, but Kay held Bill in Tulare County Jail to await trial for the Alila robbery.

On September 21, Grat was brought into court to face sentencing, but this was instead
postponed to October 6. On September 27, Grat and two other men escaped from the Tulare
County Jail. Sheriff Kay was in San Francisco. Someone from outside slipped the men a saw and
they got through the bars. Bill was in a separate cell and, in the morning he was found playing
a guitar, joking about how the boys had left him. Bill was acquitted and released on October
15. He sold the lease to his ranch in San Luis Obispo County, moved his family to his wife's
parents in Livingston, California and left for Kingfisher, Oklahoma. After arresting the two
other men who escaped with Grat, Sheriff Kay learned that Grat was helped by Riley Dean and
that they were both hiding on the summit of a steep mountain close to the Kings River
near Sanger, California. This would be known as Dalton Mountain. On Christmas Eve 1891, the
posses of both Sheriff Kay of Tulare County and Sheriff Hensley of Fresno County ascended the
mountain to Daltons' camp. They ambushed the outlaws on their way back from a boar hunt.
Grat managed to escape, firing at the lawmen with his Winchester rifle and stealing a horse
from a nearby ranch, but Riley Dean was captured. Grat rode to a friends near Livingston,
California and stayed for several weeks before escaping back to Oklahoma with the help of his
brother Cole.[citation needed]

In Oklahoma Territory, Bob and Emmett began carefully planning their robberies. With Bob as
the leader they recruited mostly men who had grown up with them in that region. These
included George "Bitter Creek" Newcomb and "Blackfaced" Charlie Bryant. Bryant was
nicknamed because of a gunpowder burn on one cheek.

The gang's first robbery took place at Whorton, May 1891, where they stole $1200. They were
later joined by Bill Doolin, Dick Broadwell, Bill Powers, and Charley Pierce. The gang was
assisted by Dalton's lover Eugenia Moore, known by her aliases "Tom King" and "Miss
Mundays." She informed on law enforcement and also was a notorious horse thief and outlaw.

In August 1891, Bryant was spotted in Hennessey, Oklahoma after leaving the gang's hideout
to visit his mother. The locals notified Deputy Marshal Ed Short. He arrested Bryant and took
him by train to jail at Wichita, Kansas. He did not have a guard or did not inform US Marshal
Grimes at Fort Smith. After the train left Hennessey and was approaching the stop
at Waukomis, Oklahoma, Short noticed a group of mounted men that looked as if they were
trying to beat the train and feared it was the Dalton Gang coming to free Bryant. Short put the
baggage man in charge of Bryant giving him his revolver while he went to the rear platform
with his rifle. The baggageman carelessly stuck the revolver into a Pigeon-hole
messagebox and went to work at the other end of the car. Bryant secured the revolver and
ordered the baggageman to go back to work. He opened the door to the rear platform and,
while Short had his attention to the mounted men, shot him in the back. Short turned and they
both shot each other to death.

The second train robbery by the Dalton Gang in Oklahoma was at a small station called Lelietta
on September 15, 1891, about four miles north of Wagoner, Oklahoma. Here they secured
$19,000. Bill Doolin complained that he was not dividing the money fairly and quit the gang
along with Newcomb and Pierce. Grat returned to Oklahoma in the spring of 1892. The three
dissatisfied members also returned and new plans began to formulate. Bill had also returned
several months earlier living at his mothers near Kingsfisher. Even though he did not
participate in any of the hold ups with his brothers he acted as a spy and advisor.

On June 1, 1892, the gang robbed the Santa Fe train at Red Rock, Oklahoma securing about
$50,000. Here the Santa Fe had found out about the Daltons plans and attempted to set up a
trap for the gang filling the train with heavily armed officers. However they made the mistake
of leaving the train dark which made Bob suspicious and the gang allowed the train to go by
robbing the next train a few minutes later. The $50,000 however came out to only $1800 after
draft and securities had been thrown out. It was soon necessary to rob another train.[5]

The next robbery was at Adair, Oklahoma, near the Arkansas border on July 14. At the station
the gang took what they could find in the express and baggage rooms. They sat to wait for the
next train on a bench on the platform, talking and smoking, with their Winchester rifles across
their knees. When the train came in at 9:45 p.m., they backed a wagon up to the express car
and unloaded all the contents. The eight armed guards on the train all happened to be at the
back of the train when it pulled in. They fired at the bandits through the car windows and from
behind the train. In the gun fight, 200 shots were fired. None of the Dalton gang was hit.
Doctors W. L. Goff and Youngblood were sitting on the porch of the drug store near the depot.
Both men were hit several times by stray shots; Dr Goff was fatally wounded. Also wounded
were captains Kinney and LaFlore, but they recovered.[6] The gang secured about $18,000.
They were also accused of robbing a bank in El Reno, Oklahoma on July 28, however this was
based on little evidence as no one saw any members of the gang.

Coffeyville raid[edit]
Law enforcement officers hold up the bodies of Bob and Grat Dalton after they were killed
during two attempted bank robberies in Coffeyville, Kansas

Bob and his brothers were deeply concerned with the pressure put upon them by the law.
They decided to make one last robbery to earn enough money to leave the country. Their plan
was to rob two banks in the same town at the same time to get the money and to also make
history for accomplishing something that no other outlaw gang had attempted. Their target
was their old hometown of Coffeyville, Kansas.[7]

Early on Oct. 5 1892, Bob, Grat, and Emmett Dalton, with Powers and Broadwell, entered
Coffeyville. They tied their horses in an alley across from the banks, and walked across,
dividing into two groups before entering the Condon National Bank and First National Bank.
Well known by the townspeople, they were recognized and an alarm went out. Civilians
quickly armed themselves with guns from the local hardware stores and took positions with
law enforcement to defend their town. As the Dalton Gang began their escape, a gun battle
erupted that killed gang members and four town residents.[7] Emmett, the lone survivor among
the gang, was seriously wounded, receiving 23 gunshot wounds.[8] After he recovered, he
stood trial for the bank robberies. He was sentenced to life in prison but was granted a pardon
by the governor after 14 years.[7]

Deputy US Marshal Heck Thomas remembered Bob Dalton as the most accurate shot he had
ever seen. Dalton is buried at the Coffeyville, Kansas Cemetery under a group marker for
himself, his brother Grat, and Bill Power.[8]

Grat Dalton

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Gratton Dalton
 Born March 30, 1861

Lawrence, Kansas, United States[1]

Died October 5, 1892 (aged 31)

Coffeyville, Kansas, United States

Cause of death Gunshot wound

Nationality American

Occupation Farmer, marshal, cattle rustler

Allegiance Dalton Gang

Criminal charge cattle rustling, Bank and train robbery

Gratton Hanley "Grat" Dalton (March 30, 1861 – October 5, 1892) was an American outlaw in
the American Old West. He was one of three brothers in the Dalton Gang, led by his younger
brother Bob Dalton. Both brothers were killed during a shootout in an ill-fated raid on two
banks in Coffeyville, Kansas. Their brother Emmett Dalton survived to be convicted and
imprisoned for fourteen years.

Contents

• 1Short career as lawman

• 2Organizing the Dalton Gang

 • 3Downfall of the gang

• 4In popular culture

• 5References

• 6External links

Short career as lawman[edit]

Their older brother Frank Dalton served as a Deputy US Marshal. By all accounts the strongest
of the brothers, he always kept his brothers in line. Grat and his younger brothers idolized
Frank. On Nov 27, 1887 Frank and another deputy marshal, Jim Cole, went across the river
from their base at Fort Smith to arrest three whiskey bootleggers. As they approached the
camp, the bootleggers began to shoot at them. After Dalton shot and killed two, his gun
jammed, and he was killed by the remaining bootlegger. His deputy abandoned him after
being shot. Frank Dalton is buried in Coffeyville, Kansas.

After Frank's death, brothers Grat and Bob took over his job as Deputy U.S. Marshal at Fort
Smith, Arkansas. Bob soon hired Emmett under him to guard prisoners. After Bob killed a man
in the line of duty, which he claimed was in self defense, he began to drink heavily and become
restless.

He was assigned to organize a police force in the Osage Nation, Indian Territory, and took
Emmett with him as a deputy. Grat stayed at Fort Smith. Emmett and Bob kept good
reputations in the Osage Nation until July 1890, when they began stealing horses. Eventually
stockmen organized to capture them, forcing the Daltons to flee. Hiding out in the bluffs on
the Canadian River about seventy miles southwest of Kingfisher, Oklahoma, they sent to Grat
for help.

Grat tried to get them food, horses, and ammunition but was caught and jailed at Fort Smith,
where he had formerly worked. After two weeks Grat was released, as lawmen hoped he
would lead them to his brothers. Bob and Emmett took a train to California, and stayed with
their brother William "Bill" Dalton at his ranch near San Miguel, San Luis Obispo County,
California.[2]

Discredited as lawmen, the Daltons would soon form their first gang.

Organizing the Dalton Gang[edit]

Grat returned to California to meet Emmett and Bob at their brother Bill's ranch in January
1891. They worked there for about a month while playing poker games and getting in bar
fights in San Luis Obispo County, spending most of the money they had made from horse
stealing. At this time Bob Dalton began making plans to rob a train with the help of Emmett
and Grat. Their brothers Cole, Littleton (Lit), and Bill unsuccessfully tried to dissuade them.

On the night of February 6, 1891 a Southern Pacific Railroad passenger train was held up by
two masked men carrying only 44-calibre revolvers near the town of Alila (present
day Earlimart, California). No money was taken; however, during the crossfire the expressman
accidentally killed the fireman. The outlaws wore masks during the Alila robbery.

Many years later, Littleton Dalton said that his brothers, Bob and Emmett, had told him many
times that they robbed that train. Grat had not joined the heist as he had spent all his money
on drinking and gambling in Tulare, California, and did not have a horse.
Sheriff Gene Kay of Tulare County and his posse tracked the outlaws to San Luis Obispo
County, near San Miguel, California. They found the remnants of a saddle at the ranch of Bill
Dalton; it was missing a leather strap that had been found at the scene of the hold up. Finding
out what they could about the brothers, Sheriff Kay's posse learned that Bob, Emmett and Grat
had spent the past few days drinking, gambling, and following the Southern Pacific pay car as it
made its monthly journey down the San Joaquin Valley. By this time their reputation as horse
thieves in Oklahoma was also known in California.

On March 17, 1891 the Tulare County Grand Jury indicted brothers Bob, Emmett, Grat, and Bill
Dalton for the Alila robbery. A few days later Grat and Bill were arrested and placed in the
Tulare County jail. A $3000 bounty was placed for the capture of Bob and Emmett, but Bill had
already helped them escape from California before he was arrested. The two were on their
way back to Oklahoma Territory. Bill soon secured bondsmen and was released. He quickly
hired attorneys to defend Grat. Grat was held in jail in Visalia.

Bob and Emmett borrowed money and supplies from brothers Cole and Lit, and made their
way east across the Mojave Desert. After their horses were discovered at Ludlow, Sheriff Kay
pursued them with his deputy, Jim Ford. He discovered that the brothers were making their
way to Utah to throw him off, and tracked them to the town of Ogden. Bob and Emmett
escaped again by train. Sheriff Kay continued to track them throughout the Southwest for
several months, but never caught up.

Eventually the brothers returned to the Dalton home near Kingfisher, Oklahoma, where the
family had many friends willing to hide them. Sheriff Kay returned to California for Grat's trial.
Realizing they were no longer being pursued, Bob and Emmett robbed a train at Whorton,
now Perry, Oklahoma, in May 1891. They began forming what would be known as the Dalton
Gang.

Even though much of the evidence showed that Grat was in Fresno, California the night of the
Alila robbery, including the testimony of several witnesses, the influence of the
powerful Southern Pacific Railroad resulted in his having an unfair trail.[citation needed] Grat's
lawyer was corrupt. Neither the defense nor prosecution noted that the fireman had been
killed accidentally by the expressman. The Dalton brothers had thought that Emmett had killed
the fireman. Grat was convicted on murder charges and sentenced to life imprisonment.

On September 3, 1891 a train was robbed near Ceres, California, but the attempt was
unsuccessful and no money was lost. The elements were similar to the robbery at Alila. Sheriff
Kay suspected Bill Dalton, and arrested him and an associate, named Riley Dean. Kay found
Dalton and Dean at an abandoned overland stage station where they looked as if they were
either planning a robbery or to break Grat from jail. Both Dalton and Dean had a clear alibi but
Kay held Bill in the Tulare County Jail to await trial for his part in the Alila robbery.

On September 21, Grat was brought into court to face sentencing, but this was instead
postponed to October 6. On the night of September 27th, Grat and two other men escaped
from the County Jail in Visalia while Sheriff Kay was in San Francisco, California. Someone on
the outside gave them a saw, and they got through the bars. Bill Dalton had remained in his
cell and was found in the morning, playing a guitar, joking about how the boys had left him. Bill
was acquitted and released on October 15. He sold the lease to his ranch in San Luis Obispo
County, moved his family to his wife's parents in Livingston, California, and left for Kingfisher.
After arresting the two other men that had escaped with Grat, Sheriff Kay learned that Grat
was helped by Riley Dean and that they were both hiding on the summit of a steep mountain
close to the Kings River near Sanger, California. This would be known as Dalton Mountain.

On Christmas Eve 1891, the posses of both Sheriff Kay of Tulare County and Sheriff Hensley of
Fresno County ascended the mountain to Daltons camp. They ambushed the outlaws on their
way back from a boar hunt. Grat managed to escape, firing at the lawmen with his Winchester
rifle and stealing a horse from a nearby ranch, but Riley Dean was captured. Grat rode to a
friends near Livingston, California and stayed for several weeks before escaping back to
Oklahoma with the help of his brother Cole.

Bob and Emmett had meanwhile been busy in Oklahoma forming their gang. After their
unsuccessful career in California they decided they could do much better in their home
country and, unlike their first attempts, they began carefully planning their robberies. With
Bob as the leader they recruited mostly men who had grown up with them in Oklahoma. First
recruited were George "Bitter Creek" Newcomb and "Blackfaced" Charlie Bryant, Bryant
received his nickname because of a gunpowder burn on one cheek. This resulted in the first
robbery at Whorton, May 1891, where the gang stole $1200. Joined afterwards were Bill
Doolin, Dick Broadwell, Bill Powers, and Charley Pierce. The gang was also assisted by Bob's
lover Eugenia Moore, known by her aliases "Tom King" and "Miss Mundays", who acted as
their informant but was also a notorious horse thief and outlaw.

In August 1891, Bryant was spotted in Hennessey, Oklahoma after leaving the gangs hideout to
visit his mother. The locals who identified him notified a Deputy Marshal named Ed Short. He
arrested Bryant and took him on a train to be committed to the jail at Wichita, Kansas without
a guard or notifying Marshal Grimes at Fort Smith. After the train left Hennessey and was
approaching the stop at Waukomis, Oklahoma, Short noticed a group of mounted men that
looked as if they were trying to beat the train and feared it was the Dalton Gang coming to
free Bryant. Short put the baggage man in charge of Bryant giving him his revolver while he
went to the rear platform with his rifle. The baggageman carelessly stuck the revolver into
a Pigeon-hole messagebox and went to work at the other end of the car. Bryant secured the
revolver and ordered the baggageman to go back to work. He opened the door to the rear
platform and, while Short had his attention to the mounted men, shot him in the back. Short
turned and they both shot each other to death.

The second train robbery by the Dalton Gang in Oklahoma was at a small station called Lelietta
on September 15, 1891, about four miles north of Wagoner, Oklahoma. Here they secured
$19,000, which Bob spent mostly on women and gambling. Bill Doolin complained that he was
not dividing the money fairly and quit the gang along with Newcomb and Pierce. Grat returned
to Oklahoma in the spring of 1892. The three dissatisfied members also returned and new
plans began to formulate. Bill had also returned several months earlier living at his mothers
near Kingsfisher. Even though he did not participate in any of the hold ups with his brothers he
acted as a spy and advisor.

On June 1, 1892, the gang robbed the Santa Fe train at Red Rock, Oklahoma securing about
$50,000. Here the Santa Fe had found out about the Daltons plans and attempted to set up a
trap for the gang filling the train with heavily armed officers. However they made the mistake
of leaving the train dark which made Bob suspicious and the gang allowed the train to go by
robbing the next train a few minutes later. The $50,000 however came out to only $1800 after
draft and securities had been thrown out. It was soon necessary to rob another train.[3]
The next robbery was at Adair, Oklahoma, near the Arkansas border on July 14. At the station
the gang took what they could find in the express and baggage rooms. They sat to wait for the
next train on a bench on the platform, talking and smoking, with their Winchester rifles across
their knees. When the train came in at 9:45 p.m., they backed a wagon up to the express car
and unloaded all the contents. The eight armed guards on the train all happened to be at the
back of the train when it pulled in. They fired at the bandits through the car windows and from
behind the train. In the gun fight, 200 shots were fired. None of the Dalton gang was hit.
Doctors W. L. Goff and Youngblood were sitting on the porch of the drug store near the depot.
Both men were hit several times by stray shots; Dr Goff was fatally wounded. Also wounded
were captains Kinney and LaFlore, but they recovered.[4] The gang secured about $18,000.
They were also accused of robbing a bank in El Reno, Oklahoma on July 28, however this was
based on little evidence as no one saw any members of the gang.

Downfall of the gang[edit]

Law enforcement officers hold up the bodies of Bob and Grat Dalton after the attempted Bank
Robbery in Coffeyville, Kansas

By that time, by later accounts from Emmett Dalton, Deputy US Marshal Heck Thomas was on
the trail of the Dalton Gang. His relentless pursuit had pushed them to make one large score,
then lie low for a time. Grat Dalton thought Coffeyville would be an excellent opportunity for
that score. For reasons unknown, Grat Dalton dismissed gang members "Bittercreek"
Newcomb and Charley Pierce, telling them their services were no longer needed. It would
prove to be a blessing in disguise for Pierce and Newcomb.

The robbery attempts would be a colossal mistake. On October 5, 1892, the gang entered
Coffeyville, simply riding in, then splitting into two teams. The brothers were recognized as
soon as they rode into town. They entered the two banks in two separate teams, intent on
having only so much time to finish the robberies and flee. By the time they were ready to make
their escape, the townspeople had armed themselves and set up to cover all escape routes
from the town. A fierce shootout erupted, and by the time it was over, gang members Grat
Dalton, Bob Dalton, Dick Broadwell, alias "Texas Jack" Moore, and Bill Power, alias Joseph
Evans, were dead, and Emmett Dalton had been shot 23 times, but would survive. Four
townspeople, Town Marshal Charles T. Connelly,[5] bank clerk Lucius M.
Baldwin, cobbler Charles J. Brown, and merchant George W. Cubine were dead. Bank cashier
Thomas G. Ayers was shot in the groin; although seriously wounded, he survived,[6] while
townspeople T.A. Reynolds and Louis Dietz were wounded, but not seriously.

The gun-battle ended the Dalton Gang. Their outlaw career would prove to have been short
and ultimately non productive[peacock prose]. However, the legend of the gang and the notoriety
they received due to the Coffeyville shootout made them famous. That fame helped drive their
brother Bill Dalton in efforts to become more famous than his brothers, and helped spawn the
Doolin Dalton Gang, with Bill Dalton, Bill Doolin, "Bittercreek" Newcomb, and Charley Pierce all
having their start with the Dalton Gang.

Emmett Dalton

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Emmett Dalton

Información personal

Nacimiento 3 de mayo de 18711

Belton (Misuri), Estados Unidos

Fallecimiento 13 de julio de 1937 (66 años)

Los Ángeles, California, Estados Unidos

Nacionalidad Estadounidense

Lengua
Inglés
materna
 Familia

Padres Lewis Dalton

Adeline Lee Dalton

Información profesional

Ocupación Agente de bienes raíces, autor y actor

Miembro de • Banda de James-Younger

• Banda de los Dalton

Información criminal

Cargos
Robo de bancos
criminales

Condena Cadena perpetua. Perdonado tras 14 años

cumplidos

[editar datos en Wikidata]

Emmett Dalton (3 de mayo de 1871 – 13 de julio de 1937) era un forajido

estadounidense, ladrón de bancos y trenes, miembro de la Banda de los Dalton en el Viejo
Oeste. Como parte del asalto malogrado de los Dalton a dos bancos en Coffeyville (Kansas),
sobrevivió a pesar de recibir 23 balazos. Después de servir 14 años en la cárcel por el delito,
Dalton aprovechó su notoriedad para escribir libros y convertirse en actor en Hollywood.

Índice

• 1Primeros años y carrera

• 2En la cultura popular

• 3Referencias

• 4Enlaces externos

Primeros años y carrera[editar]

Dalton nació de Lewis (16 de Feb. de 1826-16 de Jul. de 1890) y Adeline Dalton (15 de Sep. de
1835-24 de En. de 1925) y era el más joven de los hermanos Dalton.2Sus hermanos:

• Charles Benjamin "Ben" Dalton (1852-1936)

• Henry Coleman Dalton (1853-1920)

• Littleton Lee Dalton (1857-1942)

• Franklin "Frank" Dalton (1859-1887)

 • Gratton "Grat" Hanley Dalton (1861-1892)

• William "Bill" Marion Dalton (1863-1894)

• Eva May Dalton (1867-1939)

• Robert "Bob" Rennick Dalton (1869-1892)

• Leona Randolph Dalton (1875-1964)

• Nancy May Dalton (1876-1901)

• Simon "Si" Noel Dalton (1878-1928)3

La empresa criminal de la Banda de los Dalton fue terminada el 5 de octubre de 1892, cuando
intentaban robar dos bancos a la vez en Coffeyville (Kansas). Cuatro de la banda fueron
asesinados en el tiroteo subsiguiente. Emmett Dalton sobrevivió al ataque pero recibió 23
balazos. Fue condenado a cadena perpetua en la penitenciaría de Lansing (Kansas) e indultado
después de catorce años. Se trasladó a California, donde incursionó en la actuación antes de
involucrarse en bienes raíces, muriendo a la edad de sesenta y seis. Estaba casado con Julia
Johnson Dalton, quien le sobrevivió. En 1918, se interpretó a sí mismo en la versión
cinematográfica de su libro Beyond the Law.4

En 1931, publicó When the Daltons Rode, que más tarde se convirtió en una película de
1940 protagonizada por Randolph Scott. Emmett Dalton fue interpretado por Frank Albertson.4

Banda de los Dalton

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La Banda de los Dalton (o Los Hermanos Dalton) fue un célebre grupo de forajidos del Viejo
Oeste durante 1890-1892. Se especializaron en el robo de bancos y trenes. Estaban
emparentados con los hermanos Younger, que cabalgaban a las órdenes de Jesse James,
aunque sus actuaciones fueron independientes y más tardías que las de la banda de James-
Younger.

Índice

• 1Comienzos

• 2Representantes de la ley

• 3Forajidos

• 4Robo de bancos
 • 5En el cine

• 6Véase también

• 7Referencias

• 8Enlaces externos

o 8.1En inglés

Comienzos[editar]

La familia Dalton procedía del condado de Jackson, en Misuri. Lewis Dalton era un tabernero
en Kansas City, Kansas, cuando se casó con Adeline Younger, la tía de Cole y Jim Younger.
Hacia 1882, la familia vivía al noroeste de Oklahoma, conocido entonces como el Territorio
Indio, y sobre 1886 se mudaron a Coffeyville, al sudeste de Kansas. Trece de los quince hijos de
la pareja sobrevivieron hasta la madurez.

Representantes de la ley[editar]

Uno de los hijos de Lewis Dalton, llamado Frank Dalton, era un ayudante del alguacil que murió
en acto de servicio en 1888. Frank había sido el más estable de los hermanos, con una sólida
base y madurez. Él, según todas las versiones, mantuvo a sus hermanos por el buen camino. Lo
respetaban, y en ocasiones habían cabalgado con él en partidas. Cuando lo asesinaron, Frank
había estado siguiendo la pista de un ladrón de caballos en el territorio de Oklahoma. Tras
localizar al sospechoso el 27 de noviembre de 1888, se produjo un enfrentamiento con
revólveres, resultando Dalton y dos de los forajidos muertos y el alguacil herido. Una semana
más tarde, el 3 de diciembre de 1888, el sospechoso fue seguido por otros representantes de
la ley y se produjo otro tiroteo. En ese segundo enfrentamiento, el ayudante del alguacil Ed
Stokley disparó y mató al sospechoso, pero también resultó muerto él mismo. Sam Wingo era
un antiguo alguacil que se ocupó de los robos de la banda después de que él disparase al
hombre equivocado en Arkansas, y escapase de la ley tras un subsiguiente tiroteo con otros
alguaciles.[1]

Tal vez con el deseo de vengar la muerte de su hermano, los tres jóvenes Dalton —Grattan
«Grat» Dalton (n. 1861), Bob Dalton (n. 1869) y Emmett Dalton (n. 1871)— se convirtieron en
defensores de la ley. Pero en 1890 los jóvenes pasaron al otro lado de la misma. Bob fue
siempre el más alocado. Mató a un hombre por primera vez cuando tenía sólo 19 años. Era
ayudante del alguacil en aquella época y alegó que la muerte se produjo en cumplimiento del
deber. Algunos sospecharon, no obstante, que la víctima había intentado robarle la novia a
Bob. En marzo de 1890, Bob fue acusado de introducir licor en el Territorio Indio, pero huyó
tras depositar una fianza y no apareció en el juicio. En septiembre de 1890, Grat fue arrestado
por robo de caballos —un delito pagado con la pena capital— pero, bien los cargos fueron
retirados, o él fue puesto en libertad. Desacreditados como defensores de la ley, los Dalton
pronto formaron su primera banda.

Forajidos[editar]

Bob Dalton reclutó a George «Bitter Creek» Newcomb, Charley Pierce y «Blackfaced» Charlie
Bryant para cabalgar con él y con su hermano Emmett. Bryant recibió su apodo, "Caranegra",
como consecuencia de una quemadura de pólvora en una de sus mejillas. Grat estaba
visitando a su hermano Bill en California cuando se formó la banda, pero más tarde se unió a
ella, al igual que Bill Doolin, Dick Broadwell y Bill Powers. Su primer objetivo de robo fue una
casa de juego en Silver City, Nuevo México.

El 6 de febrero de 1891, después de que Jack Dalton se uniese a sus hermanos en California,
atracaron a un pasajero del ferrocarril Southern Pacific. Los Dalton fueron acusados del robo,
basándose en pequeñas pruebas. Jack escapó y Bill fue absuelto, pero Grat fue arrestado,
encarcelado y sentenciado a 20 años de prisión. Según una versión, Grat fue esposado a un
alguacil y acompañado por otro mientras era trasladado en tren. Después de que el tren
hubiese recorrido una cierta distancia, un alguacil cayó dormido y el otro se entretuvo
hablando con otros pasajeros. Era un día caluroso, y todas las ventanillas estaban abiertas. De
repente, Grat saltó de cabeza por la ventanilla del tren, cayó al río San Joaquín, desapareció
bajo el agua, y fue llevado río abajo por la corriente. Los alguaciles se quedaron atónitos. Grat
debió de haber tomado la llave de las esposas del bolsillo del primer alguacil mientras dormía y
luego esperó para huir hasta el momento en que sabía que el tren estaría en un puente. Si
hubiese caído a tierra, habría muerto casi con total seguridad. Grat encontró a sus hermanos, y
luego volvieron al Territorio de Oklahoma.

Entre mayo de 1891 y julio de 1892, los hermanos Dalton robaron cuatro trenes en el
Territorio Indio. El 9 de mayo de 1891, los hombres atracaron un tren de la compañía Santa
Fe en Wharton (ahora Perry, Oklahoma). Se marcharon con varios cientos de dólares
solamente, pero habían trabajado bien en equipo. Cuando pasaron por Orlando, robaron ocho
de nueve caballos. Una partida les persiguió, pero la banda escapó. Charley Bryant y Dick
Broadwell mantuvieron al maquinista y al fogonero en la locomotora. Mientras, Bob y Emmett
Dalton y Bill Powers recorrieron los vagones, robando a los pasajeros a su paso. Bill Doolin y
Grat Dalton se encargaron del vagón expreso. Lanzaron la caja fuerte fuera del tren. Ganaron
poco en comparación con sus esfuerzos —unos pocos cientos de dólares y algunos relojes y
joyas de los pasajeros. La banda se dispersó después del robo de Red Rock, pero no mucho
después «Blackfaced» Charley fue capturado por el Alguacil Ed Short. Mientras estaban de
camino a ser encarcelados en Wichita, Kansas, Bryant se apropió de un revólver de un
trabajador del ferrocarril que ayudaba al Alguacil Short, y en el consiguiente tiroteo Bryant y
Short se mataron mutuamente.

La banda atacó de nuevo el mes de julio en Adair, Oklahoma, cerca de la frontera

con Arkansas. Fueron directamente a la estación de tren y tomaron lo que pudieron encontrar
en el expreso y en las habitaciones del equipaje. Luego se sentaron en un banco del andén,
hablando y fumando, con sus rifles Winchester entre las rodillas. Cuando el tren llegó a las
9:45 p.m., dieron marcha atrás a un vagón hasta el expreso y descargaron todo su contenido.
Había varios guardias armados en el tren, pero por alguna razón todos y cada uno de los 11
hombres estaban a la espalda del mismo. Los guardias hicieron fuego contra los bandidos a
través de las ventanillas del vagón y desde detrás del tren. En el enfrentamiento se hicieron
200 disparos. Ninguno de los componentes de la banda de los Dalton fue alcanzado. Tres
guardias fueron heridos, y un médico del pueblo murió como consecuencia de una bala
perdida. Los ladrones desaparecieron de la vista, probablemente escondiéndose en una de las
varias cuevas que hay cerca de Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Robo de bancos[editar]

La banda podría haberse mantenido ocupada con los robos a trenes, pero Bob Dalton quería
asegurarse de que su nombre fuera recordado por largo tiempo. Según declaraba, «superaría
cualquier cosa que Jesse James hubiese hecho jamás —robar dos bancos a la vez, a la luz del
día». El 5 de octubre de 1892, la banda de los Dalton intentó esa hazaña cuando se dispusieron
a robar el C.M. Condon & Company's Bank y el First National Bank en Coffeyville, Kansas. Ya
que los lugareños estaban al tanto de su aspecto físico, llevaron barbas postizas. Pero aun así
fueron identificados por la gente del pueblo.

Mientras la banda estaba ocupada intentando atracar los bancos, la gente se armó y se
preparó para la lucha. Cuando la banda salió de los bancos, comenzó un tiroteo. Tres personas
del pueblo fueron alcanzadas, y el alguacil del pueblo Charles Connelly fue abatido cuando
salió a la calle tras escuchar los disparos, no sin antes devolver el fuego y matar a un miembro
de la banda. Grat Dalton, Bob Dalton, Dick Broadwell y Bill Powers finalmente
murieron. Emmett Dalton recibió 23 heridas de bala pero sobrevivió. Se le condenó a cadena
perpetua en la penitenciaría de Lansing, en Kansas, de la que cumplió 14 años antes de ser
perdonado. Se mudó a California y se convirtió en un verdadero agente de pompas fúnebres,
autor y actor, y murió en 1937 a la edad de 66 años. Bill Doolin, «Bitter Creek» Newcomb y
Charlie Pierce fueron los únicos miembros de la banda que quedaron, aunque ninguno de ellos
estuvo presente en el tiroteo de Coffeyville. Especulaciones sugirieron más tarde que había
habido un «sexto hombre» que asía los caballos en un callejón y que había escapado, y que ese
hombre se creía que había sido Bill Doolin. Sin embargo, eso nunca fue confirmado.

Emmett Dalton diría, años después de los robos, y tras su salida de la prisión, que el
alguacil Heck Thomas fue un factor clave en su decisión de cometer los robos. Según Emmett,
Thomas era implacable en su persecución de la banda, manteniéndola constantemente en
movimiento. Con un gran botín de los dos bancos, la banda pretendía dejar el territorio
durante una temporada, con la esperanza de que los ánimos se calmasen.

De izquierda a derecha: Bill Powers, Bob Dalton, Grat Dalton y Dick Broadwell.