There
are conspiracy theories about Jesse James where he faked his death, and about a
photograph. He was known as and out law and participated in multiple robberies.
There are three conspiracy theories about Jesse James:
1.
“There
has been a recent debate over a photograph where Jesse James is next to his
eventual killer Robert Ford” (Baddour 1). Did he fake his death or was he
killed?
2.
Was
“someone else was buried in his grave” (Nix 1)?
3.
“scientists
exhume bones most people think belong to America's most famous bandit” (Morris
1). Could this be Jesse James bones?
What really
happened to Jesse James?
Jesse James
was orphaned at a young age when his mother remarried, which most likely caused
him to become a greatly known outlaw. Jesse James’ mother states, “In 1852, Zerelda married a wealthy, older man and
moved in with him, but he disliked the James children so they were made to live
with another family”
(Nix1). Since
Jesse James and his siblings were orphaned to another family may have caused
him to feel unwanted so he grew up to become the wanted crazy criminal. When
Jesse James was growing up his father died at a young age, so he and his
siblings lacked a father figure in their life which caused a lack of discipline
and structure in their life.
Jesse James
was crazy criminal but cared greatly for his family. After Jesse grew up, “ Zerelda soon left the marriage and returned to her
first husband’s farm with
her children. When she wed for a third time, in 1855, her husband, with whom
she would have four more children, moved onto the farm. After Frank and Jesse
grew up to become outlaws, Zerelda, who was known as iron-willed, remained
their staunch supporter”
(Nix1). While Jesse James was a criminal, he was
outrageously crazy but deep down he cared for his family. He greatly cared for
his brother Frank who was known as his partner in crime. When growing up “By age 16, Jesse followed in Frank’s footsteps and became a marauding bushwhacker” (Nix1).
Jesse James
was a fearless criminal he took part in many crimes as a “Confederate
guerillas, also known as bushwhackers”(Nix1). Jesse James committed many crimes and was a
crazy killer he committed a train robbery, bank robbery, and killed many
people. He was fearless when committing these crazy crimes.
Jesse James
was a smart man, but he used his smart for evil. Jesse James younger brothers
were not as smart, “The James
brothers, who had split off from the Youngers before the Madelia gunfight and
were the only gang members not caught or killed following the failed robbery,
laid low for the next few years, living in Tennessee under assumed names.
However, in 1879, Jesse recruited a new set of criminal associates and embarked
on a fresh crime spree”
(Nix1). Jesse
James and his brother Frank were smart enough to slit up with the younger
brothers right before they were caught which saved them a life in prison. Jesse
used his intelligence to commit crimes instead of getting a good job or going
to college. Jesse James younger brothers also used there smart for evil by
growing up to become outlaws.
Jesse James
was a mysterious person, his ending to his life just might be the most
mysterious ending of all time. There was no eye witness of his death. And many
theories began to spread around. One of the main conspiracy theories that began
to spread was, “Scientists
uncovered a deteriorated bone in a wooden casket” (Morris 1). Could these bones be Jesse James’?
Conspiracy
1: The first conspiracy idea comes from
Jesse James being a crazy outlaw. The theory reveals, “Following James’ passing, there was lingering speculation he’d faked his own death and someone else was buried in
his grave” (Nix1). Could
the great and successful outlaw have pulled this off? This would have been his
craziest crime yet. He was known for his success in crime, could he have
possibly faked his own death? In an article by Elizabeth Nix she states, “Rather than dying in a hail of gunfire while robbing a
bank or train, the legendary Jesse James was brought down while dusting a
picture on the wall of his rented home in St. Joseph, Missouri, on April 3,
1882” (Nix1). There
was not an eye witness of the killing of Jesse. The article also states, “His wife and two children were in another room at the
time” (Nix1). The
only question left was, did his family claim that it was Jesse James’ body?
Conspiracy 2:
This next conspiracy theory is a new one. This theory came from a photograph
that was recently discovered. This theory presents, “Lois Gibson, forensic artist and analyst for the
Houston Police Department, claims Wednesday she'd identified an image of one of
America's most notorious outlaws, Jesse James” (Baddour1). The photograph was from a family in
Washington; they have been holding on to this photograph for generations. The
article states, “Three years
before Isabell died in 2006 at age 85, she gave the photo to Mills and told her
to sell it and buy land. But there was a problem: for almost 13 years, no
collector believed the men in the photo were who Mills claimed they were,
mostly because they lacked any original paper documentation” (Baddour1). They had searched for thirteen years for a
collector to buy the photograph. They had finally found someone after thirteen
years of searching, “Gibson, 65,
put the image in Photoshop, sized it up to other known pictures of James and
tilted them all at the same angle. As a detective, she said, her mission was to
prove the photo wasn't James. But no matter how hard she tried, should couldn't
do it” (Baddour1).
Could this photograph have possibly been Jesse James’?
Conspiracy 3:
The last theory creates the big argument between the three theories. This
theory presents:
FRANK MORRIS, Reporter: A couple of
hundred people yesterday crowded around a grave site across the street from a
strip mall in Kearney, Missouri. It's a small town north of Kansas City. They'd
come to watch scientists exhume bones most people think belong to America's
most famous bandit. Many travelled hundreds of miles to see the dig, hardcore
Jesse James enthusiasts. Some showed up sporting Confederate Army gear, others
wore suits and ties. Many came in Jesse James hats or T-shirts, with slogans
like `I dig Jesse,' or `Jesse James gang member.' (Morris 1)
This theory
was built from the theory, was someone else buried in Jesse James grave? People
came from all over the United States to see the digging of the remains from his
grave. The grave stone had his name, the day they gathered to see the grave dug
was where all different theory believers came together to find the answer to
their theories. Could they possibly match the DNA to the bones that had been
there for many years? The picture theory brings the two theories together. Did
the photograph have Jesse James next to Robbert Ford? Did the bones in the
Grave belong to Jesse James? The article that presents the debatable question
might be answered by Lois Gibson:
She used the techniques she uses
for the Houston Police Department to create faces from skull fragments, to
identify grainy images, reconstruct portraits from witness memory and draw
children decades older. She inspected the hairline, the bone below the eyebrow,
the distance between the nose and upper lip, the size of the eyes and the shape
of the cheeks. (Baddour 1)
According to
Lois Gibson the bones match the picture that appears to be Jesse James. The craziest thing is how all three theories
make since in a way but somehow many years after his time of existence the two
theories of the photograph and the theory that his bones were in his grave both
come together. The grave which appears to be his bones and the photograph
match.
There are
conspiracy theories about Jesse James where he faked his death, and about a
photograph. He was known as and out law and participated in multiple robberies.
There are three conspiracy theories about Jesse James:
1.
“There
has been a recent debate over a photograph where Jesse James is next to his
eventual killer Robert Ford” (Baddour 1). Did he fake his death or was he
killed?
2.
Was
“someone else was buried in his grave” (Nix 1)?
3.
“scientists
exhume bones most people think belong to America's most famous bandit” (Morris
1). Could this be Jesse James bones?
What really happened to Jesse James? Research shows
how the discovery of his bones many years ago appeared to be Jesse James, but
no one was certain. There was a recent discovery of a photograph that matches
the bones that were found many years ago. Will this matching put an end to the
other theory, “someone else
was buried in his grave”
(Nix 1)?
Baddour, Dylan. "Lost Photo of Jesse James, Assassin
Robert Ford is Found, Authenticated." Houston Chronicle, www.chron.com/national/article/Lost-photo-of-Jesse-James-assassin-Robert-Ford-6540749.php.
Morris, Frank.Who Is Buried In Jesse
James' Grave? (1995). . Washington, D.C.: NPR. Retrieved from
https://ezproxy.com.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/189822210?accountid=7022
Nix, Elizabeth. "7 Things You May Not Know About Jesse
James." HISTORY, © 2019 A&E Television Networks, 8 Dec. 2014, www.history.com/news/7-things-you-might-not-know-about-jesse-james.
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