Newtown - Bank Robbery - 1911
1911 – thanks to Andy Rice -- note: Robbed March 3, 1911
The Newtown bank was entered by bank robbers who made an ineffectual attempt to rob the safe last Friday night shortly after midnight. They succeeded only in getting through the outer doors when discovered and frightened away about 1 o’clock by Raymond Hunnings and Hersey Wood who were returning from the home of Misses Ruby and Avis Martin whom they had accompanied home from the play given at the Newtown Hall Friday evening by the Hillsboro Dramatic Company. The two young men were in separate buggies, Hunnings in the lead and were coming in from the north west on the old shop a few minutes past 12 and saw a light flash in the shop like some one striking a match but paid no attention thinking some one connected with the shop was in there. The burglars entered the bank through one of the east windows. A burglars “jimmy” was used on the window. The sash lock was broken after which entrance was easy. Just how many charges the burglars used in their attempt to get into the safe is not certain, but it is safe to say there were at least three. Three distinct explosions were heard by Postmaster JC Witt, who lives but a short distance north of the bank. Other citizens say they heard the explosions but paid no attention to the noise. The banking room had anything but a presentable appearance when we visited it Saturday morning about 1:30 o’clock along …The boys say the man that stopped them was a heavy set man wearing a slouch hat and long coat. Wood was the only one who saw the other one and he says he was a smaller man and also wore a long overcoat. It is the opinion of almost every one that there were only two men connected with the robbery. The burglars secured a part of the tools with which they did the work at the blacksmith shop of JV Fish & Co. They gained an entrance to the shop through a back window. Frank Stilwell says he passed the blacksmith -- -- Attica about 3 o’clock. Two men besides the driver were in the machine. Marshall Beamer tried to halt them but they paid no attention to him. About 2:15 o’clock about an hour after the last explosion an automobile came through Newtown from the east and turned north at Campbell’s Corner going at a high rate of speed. No one saw how many occupants the machine contained. This automobile could have picked up the burglars somewhere out north of town. This is only a rumor; take it for what it is worth.