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Throughout Jesse James’s lifetime he
was a criminal. But he mysteriously died on April 3, 1882. It is a
controversial topic on whether he actually died or he faked his death to escape
his criminal lifestyle.
1. What was the cause of Jesse James’s
lifestyle?
2. What made people believe he didn’t
actually die on April 3, 1882?
3. What evidence is there to prove that
he didn’t or did die?
Although there is some evidence that
he did indeed die on April 3, 1882, there will forever be questionable aspect
of the situation that will never be solved.
Introduction
Jesse James Conspiracy
Looks can be deceiving, because although
Jesse James seemed to be an innocent and respectable man, around 1864 his true
colors bled through. How, you may ask? Well, throughout his lifetime he
committed multiple, unforgettable crimes, such as being involved in atrocities
against Union soldiers, attempting to rob banks, and being part of a gang
who was seen as a threat to others. Following his death on April 3, 1882,
sprouted some controversial topics about how he may have died rather than just
getting shot. The most popular conspiracy theory concerning this believes that
the person that was shot was not actually Jesse James. What made people think
of this? What evidence is there to prove this theory?
Character
Analysis
Jesse James became widely famous in the 1860’s, but not for
the good. He was selfish, greedy, and dark. What makes him stand out from other
historical people is that he became known for robbing banks and trains and
being a part of the James-Younger gang. What were the highlights of his
lifetime? Following the previous question: “What caused him to do the horrible
things he did?”
The best
place to start is the beginning of his childhood. He grew up with two siblings
and a mother and father. The James family lived on a farm with over a hundred
acres, six slaves, and the father was a Baptist church minister. Within his
family, there are many factors that could have caused Jesse James to become
bitter later in his life. The most important thing that occurred was that his
father died when he was three years old. Subsequent to this tragedy, his
mother, who became a widow, became responsible for not only her three children,
but also the hundreds of acres of land that the family owned and their six
slaves (“Jesse James”).
After his
father died, this may have caused Jesse James to feel empty inside, so he
filled up his emptiness with hatred and anger against the world. Another factor
that could have caused him to turn out the way he did was the other men than
his mother remarried. She remarried twice, the first husband being Benjamin
Simms and the second being Dr. Reuben Samuel. Rumor had it that their
stepfathers treated Jesse and Frank poorly (“Outlaw Jesse James Is Born in Missouri.”).
This could have been a main factor of why they acted the way they did years
later.
Another
factor that may have contributed to his actions down the road was the Union
soldiers. In the summer of 1863 during the Civil War, Union soldiers raided the
James’s home attacking not only the family but also their land. Some historians
accuse Jesse and Frank of being cruel to Union soldiers, while others argue
that it was the brutal treatment the brothers received that turned them to a
life of crime (“Jesse James”).
Although he
had many weaknesses such as being angry, hateful, and unforgiving, there still
were some strengths that he showed. The most obvious characteristics that
showed as strengths were that he was very intelligent and energized. Jesse’s
brother-in-law, known as Bowling Browder, said,"I think Frank is the head
and brains of the whole gang,” (Rule). He has great ability to put thoughts
into action, and there is no wait once he sets his mind on something (Tommer). This leads to some of the “highlights” of his
life.
Throughout
his twenties he and his gang, called the James-Younger gang, robbed banks and
trains and was cruel to Union soldiers whenever he had the chance. This all
proves why he was bitter and unforgiving. Because of the wall he created
between him and his community, majority of people believe that he was shot, at
age 34, by one of his fellow gang members. Looking back on Jesse James’s life,
it was a depressing tragedy. Most of his childhood and lifetime was filled with
violence which made him despicable and mentally insane.
Conspiracy
Descriptions
Jesse James’s death was known to be
caused by the assassination by a firearm on April 3, 1882. Some believe they
have discovered that his death was a hoax (Etter). The first conspiracy theory
comes from Bud Hardcastle starting off with him saying, "He died of old
age. He was knocking on 104. That was kind of the goin' thing then, for outlaws
to fake their own deaths...People can say what they want to, but I know about
what I know, and I've checked it out. And I've probably put more research into
this than anybody else ever has. (Etter)”
Hardcastle
believes that Jesse James got away with his death by killing an enemy of his,
Charlie Bigelow, to make it appear that James was the victim himself (Etter).
He thinks that James lived past 1882 under the name and disguise of J. Frank Dalton. People of course have
questioned Hardcastle’s theory because there is supposedly already plenty of
evidence that James died on the exact day of April 3, 1882. Hardcastle has an
response to this questioning: "People can say what they want to, but I
know about what I know, and I've checked it out. And I've probably put more
research into this than anybody else ever has (Etter).
Which
leads to what kind of research Hardcastle has found. The first piece of
information he claims to be true is that after killing Charlie Bigelow to cover
up his death, he escaped to Granbury, Texas and lived there until he died of
old age on August 15, 1951 at the age of 104 (Etter). Hardcastle cites a
tombstone at Granbury bearing the outlaw's undisputed birth date of Sept. 5,
1847, and the 1951 death date as well as the name Jesse Woodson James (Etter).
And, he says people believed to be relatives of James, at Granbury as well as
in New Mexico, fully support his theory (Etter).
Some
historians, such as Carl Breihan and Glenn Shirley, laugh at Hardcastle’s
theory (Etter). Shirley says, "These guys are running out of years,
nobody's that old anymore (Etter)." Following, Carl Beihan even wrote a
full book about how Jesse James “no question” as killed in 1882 (Etter). So to
believe in Hardcastles theory or not to believe, is up to the reader.
The
next conspiracy theory comes from Neal Morris, who believes that history only
wants the public to believe that Robert Ford was the man who killed Jesse James
(Walker). He goes on to say, "Quantrill was the man that the Ford boys
killed” (Walker). Morris presumably
means the Confederate guerrilla William Quantrill, with the conclusion of the
belief that Quantrill didn't die in 1865, and then in 1882 he died in Jesse
James' place (Walker).
"That's the
story that's been told, don't you see," he says at the end, "but us
people, a lot of these people in the mountains, don't believe it"
(Walker). So to sum Morris’s theory, he believes that the gunman Robert Ford
shot a Quantrill, not Jesse James, means
he’s also saying that James did not actually die on the exact day of April 3,
1882.
Similar
to the first conspiracy theory, a lot of people have a hard time believing this
idea because there is more evidence proving that Jesse James was indeed shot on
April 3, 1882 (Mercer). “For those keeping score, that makes three bodies
needlessly exhumed, since DNA testing had proven years earlier that James was
never able to escape his Missouri home.” (Mercer).
According to a
recent survey, the majority of the people who voted think that Jesse James
faked his death (Bragg). This is rather surprising because there are a lot of
historians saying that there is more data that proves he indeed died on April
3, 1882, than there not being enough evidence. It is interesting to see the
majority of the public’s perspective.
The
final conspiracy theory that has been debated over quite a few times relates to
multiple men claiming to be Jesse James. One was J. Frank Dalton which was
mentioned earlier, but there was another man by the name of John James who also claimed to be Jesse
James. He had been away a long time, he said, and now wanted to return to his
home state to visit family and friends (Meyer). In fact he did his best to
avoid Jesse’s family and friends. He claimed the body at the James farm was
actually that of Charlie Bigelow, who looked like Jesse and had been killed to
fake Jesse’s death (Meyer).
Conclusion
There were multiple people to claimed to be Jesse James
after he supposedly died. This is the main source of why James’s death is so
controversial.
1. Who were the people who claimed to
be Jesse James?
2. Why did those people claim to be
Jesse James?
3. How have those people affected Jesse
James’s history, and history in general?
Although all of these questions are
trying to be answered, the world may never truly know when, how, and where
Jesse James died.
Works Cited
Bragg, Lexi. “Do you think Jesse James
faked his death, or do you think he actually died?” 30
Oct. 2018, https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/18-V8UHGdLOxVLDCAhSj8FscpkVDap5vOIkll7Bcl4dA/edit?usp=sharing
Etter, Jim. “If Jesse's Not Shot, What?
Theory Says Outlaw Died of Old Age.” NewsOK.com,
NewsOK, 25 Mar.
1991,
“Jesse James.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television,
28 Apr. 2017,
Mercer, Timothy. “The Stories Behind 5
Famous Exhumations.” Mental Floss, 16 Aug. 2008,
Meyer,
David. “Did Jesse James Fake His Own Death? - Guerrilla Explorer.” DAVID MEYER,
12 Nov. 2015,
“Outlaw Jesse James Is Born in Missouri.” History.com,
A&E Television Networks, 16
Owen,
Mark. “What You Didn't Know About John Wilkes Booth and Jesse James.” 19 Jan.
Rule, D. H. “Quotes.” James-Younger Gang: Quotes, 25 Jan.
2001,
Tommer, Shlomo. “Jesse James.” Celebrities Galore - The
Spiritual Encyclopaedia Of The
Walker, Jesse. “Robert Ford Killed Jesse
James-Or At Least That's What They Want You to
Believe.”
Reason.com, 2 Dec. 2016,
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