Editor’s note: 2022-01-11. Every January, the Hotel Congress stages a reenactment of the capture of the Dillinger gang. Be sure to visit the courtroom where Dillenger was arraigned in the old courthouse, which is now open again as the Visitor’s Center, Heritage & Mineral Museum.
Part1 of 3: The Dillinger Phenomenon
John Dillinger robbed banks. To many, he became a popular folk hero, not unlike train robber Jessie James back in the 1880’s. In the Great Depression, banks were extremely unpopular with the American public. Banks foreclosed on poor farmers and homeowners. Even worse, banks went belly-up, taking their depositors’ savings down the tubes with them. My grandfather lost all his life’s savings when a bank in San Bernardino, CA failed.
In a Letter To The Editor, one citizen of the Depression wrote:
“I am for Dillinger. Not that I am upholding him in any of his crimes; that is, if he did any. Why should the law have wanted John Dillinger for bank robbing? He wasn’t any worse than bankers and politicians who took the poor people’s money. Dillinger did not rob poor people. He robbed those who became rich by robbing the poor. I am for Johnnie.”
Millions of Americans felt the same.
Celebrity Status
John Dillinger was a celebrity bank robber. Whether or not people approved of bank robbing, they liked reading about his exploits; his amazing getaways and unbelievable prison escapes. They wanted to believe that he never hurt anyone who was not shooting at him. He was handsome and possessed a quick wit; whether he was being interviewed by the press or robbing a bank.
During one robbery, Dillinger saw a poor farmer near some bills on the bank counter. Dillinger asked the farmer if that money was his. “Yes sir”, came the reply. To which Dillinger told him to keep it. “We don’t want your money … only the bank’s money.” From that exchange, the public began to think of him as a kind of Robin Hood. (He was fairly generous with his father and family, and more so with his girlfriends. But it was not like Dillinger to give generously to strangers.)
He wore fine clothes and drove high-powered automobiles; luxuries hardly anyone could afford back then. In his dashing way, he continually outsmarted the law. After a successful robbery, he and his gang lived life large … all-night parties, theaters, ballrooms, horse races, expensive accommodations. These outlaws were envied, even admired. Their lives were exciting at a time when almost every American was experiencing humiliating poverty, mind-numbing boredom, and a sense of foreboding or failure. The public lived vicariously through John Dillinger’s exploits.
Women liked him. He was unfailingly polite, never using foul language in their presence. Evelyn “Billy” Frechette, told True Confessions Magazine about her first meeting with Dillinger. She had been a hat-check girl and waitress. “I was 25-years-old. When I met John everything changed. He looked at me, smiled, and said, ‘Where have you been all my life?’ There was something in those eyes that I will never forget. They were piercing and electric … with a carefree twinkle in them. They met my eyes and held me hypnotized. All I wanted to do was follow Dillinger.”
Another lady who was with Dillinger for a time said, “We had fun. It’s amazing how much fun we had.”
Key Events In The Life Of John Dillinger
• September 1924: John Dillinger, age 21, is arrested and sentenced to 10 years for armed robbery and assault on an elderly grocery store owner. His farmer father blames himself for advising his son to plead guilty, without the advantages of an attorney. The judge makes an example of the young man.
He will attempt to escape several times; then decides that good behavior is the fastest way out of prison.
• Over the next 9 years, older inmates, including Harry Pierpont, Charles Makley, Russell Clark, and John “Red” Hamilton, tutor Dillinger in a life of crime. They will become members of the notorious Dillinger Gang.
(Note: Pierpont was as much the leader as Dillinger. They were co-leaders and good friends. But Pierpont is much more violent than Dillinger.On many occasions, they will risk their lives for each other.)
• May 1933: A bitter John Dillinger is paroled from a prison in which he had been badly mistreated. Leaving prison he said, “I’d rather be dead than ever go back in there.” During his 9 years in prison, the joyous prosperity of the 1920’s has morphed into the misery of the Great Depression.
The unemployment rate is now officially 25%, but in fact much higher. It will be almost impossible for any ex-con to land a decent-paying job. Dillinger leaves prison a bitter 30-year-old, but well-schooled by professionals in the dangerous, but potentially lucrative skills of bank robbery.
• For 14 months, from June 1933 and July 1934, Dillinger and his gang will rob 12 banks in 6 mid-Western states. They will also rob 2 state police arsenals for high-powered weapons, ammunition and bulletproof vests. Their “forced withdrawals” usually range from $5,000 to $50,000 (In 1933, $1,000 was worth about $18,000 in 2014 buying power. So, a $50,000 heist would be worth approximately $900,000 today.) In that 14 months, the gang kills 13 law enforcement officers.
• September 22, 1933. Dillinger is captured in Dayton, OH.
• September 26, 1933. Using guns supplied by Dillinger several days earlier, 10 highly dangerous convicts break out of the State Prison at Michigan City. They include Pierpont, Makley and Clark.
• October 12, 1933. Five gang members, including Pierpont, Makley, Clark, and Hamilton, break into the Lima, OH jail and free Dillinger.
(Such loyalty! Within the Dillinger gang, “Honor among thieves” is alive and well.)
In one jail escape, the gang kills Sheriff Sarber. In a robbery getaway, one of the gang, probably Dillinger, kills Police Officer O’Malley.
In addition to bank robbery, they are now wanted for murder.
(Note: Dillinger went to his grave claiming he did not shoot O’Malley. However many witnesses were willing to testify that they saw Dillinger shoot and kill O’Malley (43), father of 3 daughters. Firing at Dillinger, O’Malley hit Dillinger in the chest 4 or 5 times, but Dillinger survived because he is wearing a bullet-proof vest. Dillinger returned fire, hitting the officer in the chest several times. O’Malley was not wearing a bullet-proof vest.)
• By the fall of 1933, the gang has faster cars and superior weapons than police officers. Most police departments do not even have two-way radios.
At the Federal level, the Department of Justice Bureau of Investigation will soon become the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI is just beginning to get established as a part of FDR’s New Deal. FBI agents are not yet armed. Nor do they have the authority to arrest anyone. Early on, getaways are fairly easy for the gang. This will soon change.
• In December 1933, the state of Illinois posts a list of 21 “public enemies”. FBI Director Hoover would soon have his own list of Public Enemies. Dillinger becomes Public Enemy #1. Few people know that the next three on the list were members of the Dillinger Gang: Pierpont, Hamilton, and Makley. Two Dillinger Gang molls, Pearl Elliot and Mary Kinder, were Public Enemies #8 & #9.
COMING NEXT: Part 2, The Dillinger Gang Arrives in Tucson.
