Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Jesse James Conspiracy Theories by Samuel Ware


            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 Jamesmother 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 husbands 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 Franks 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 Jamespassing, there was lingering speculation hed 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)?
                                                                         Works Cited 
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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