The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1900-01-16

berries. obtained from Judge McPhear~an
an order for Platt's removal 10 thc ws~t-
crn district cf Virginia Ga July ). 1Sss.
piatt pleaded guilty Ia the indictments
for eigh I-r>tofflce nir-iarIe> anil safe
blowing jobs in that district and WIS ~en-
fenced to five years for each case. Iui-
uent was suspended i'm six cases leaving
Il sentence of ten years Ia apply for Two
roi.herie>.
The career Of this gang i an Interesting
one. and n part of it L. aS follows:
Piatt operated in the North for several
years and then turned his attention u the
Westerns section Of Pennsylvania. when
during ~ ne picked mp Frederick AnJev-
son. who had been in Il gang with Old
Peter Rocks n main leader Later on
with Anderson AMI Others he turned
south into Virginia. In September. -.
the gang blew up the p~ostoffice >lf" nj
buchanan. Va. securing over SOL III
stamps and money. They robbed a small
office in .ilbcHnarlc county aud IN M
vcmber of the same year ,roke into the
pcstoffice nj Basic City. Va. but secur-
81 only Il small amount of money from
the retail drawer. a. another safe blow
iT- gang had previously visited the place
They then worked north across Maryland
into Southwest Pennsylvania. blowing
titIi INC ~dIt> J II - lew Ntpit~ atAh 'aHt
places en- route. That winter was spent
i'll Western Pennsylvania spending most
of the time in stores and small jobs. They
viewed the po>tofficc> at Indiana. Mount
Pleasant. tialIitzin. South Forks AMI
Hastings. Pa. They We're flushed" nj
Hastings, failing 10 get anything. hut
broke III ut West Elizabeth and one or
two small offices.
In the spring of 1896 the gang. includ-
Ing Platt and AnderSon. headed south
ward through the Shenandoah Valley in
Virginia. doing some stores and Other bur
glaricS along the route. At Roanoke.
Va. they fell in with Joe Jones. alias
Brooks. alias McFraw. etc. a noted safe
blower, fifty-eight years of age. a native
of Montreal. Canada. Jones has operated
in Canada and the United States and has
served time i'll Michigan. Iowa. West NT-
Ginia, and served eight Years at Mounds
Vile. West Virginia, for burglarizin- 4
jewelry store. He escaped from the
Tennessee penitentiary in 90. while serv-
ing Il th~ree-year sentence. lie also -
capped from Barnwell. s. c.. jail in Feb
ruary. 90. while serving n five-year sen
tonce for Il poStoffice burglary which he
committed in South Carolina. He is now
at large.
Tones was known to Plat and joined
forces with Plat at Roanoke, and the
gang headed west into West Virginia.
owe. the c. 4 O. railroad. blowing open
the safe OF the Standard Oil Company
and several stores safes in Greenbiier
county. and particularly at Charleston,
also at Huntington West Virginia. and ut
Covington, Kentucky.
They also drilled two safes III Il large
vinegar factory at Covin-ton, kentucky
h,,t ,ynra friUbtapnl away Ipf,ra fn1cb-
ing off the safe. The gang headed back
to Virginia and entered on their most
successful career of postoffice burgla-
ries. In July. 1896. they entered the
ed S4OO i'm stamps and money. They also
entered the Radford. Va, postoffice.
EARLY IN August of the same year the
gang blew Open the postoffice safe ut
Fincastle, Va4., and secured $500 in
stamps and money, and after the job
Platt and Jones separated. Platt shipped
Il package containing drills, fuse powder.
tunnels. revolver cartridges. etc. by eN-
press to j. w. Pearson at Stanton. Va.
where they were accidentally delivered to
another party before Platt called. In
spector Gregory Secuyed them later aS
an unclaimed express package. In Sep
TENDER. 1896, the gang. including Plat
and Anderson. blew off the out side door
of n large safe in the .poStoffice at
Waynesboro. Va. but We're frightened
away by people in the street. In the
same month they jumped back to Rad
ford. Va. and drilled a pOstoffice safe,
but failed to explode. They robbed Il
store safe Of 800 and Anderson held up
Il man, who stumbled on them at Con
cord Depot, Va.
They also burglarized the Standard Oil
safe at L%ynchburg and We're chased by
the Lynchburg police officers. One Of
them had his shoe cut off by a bullet
fired by 4 policeman while he WAS run
ming. Tools We're scattered broadcast.
The gang blew up the postoffice safe 1T
Keysyille. Va. securing over $500 in
stamps and money. and in November.
1896, after this job, they secured two
covered wagons and with two or three
extra horses for trading began a gypsy
our. Platt and Anderson each mar
ried and took their wives on the road
with them ira yeling and horse trading
as gypsies do. During December. 1896.
while in camp at GrottOCS, Va. the men
drove across at night to Bridgewater,
VA, where they operated on the postof-
flee safe. \ citizen stumbled on their
sentinel and exchanged shots. Platt
dropped out of the rear window Of the
office and coming UP behind the citizen
held MN up ana turned MIN oNtI ~ iHt
sentinel and completed the job. After
this they led the citizen out. threatening
him with punishment if he disclosed any
thing of their Identification.
They wintered near Roanoke. Va. The
spring Of 81 they continued the career
of horse trading and while in camp near
Radfo11. Va. they drove across 10 Cam
hria, Va. This was i'll March, and they
blew up the postoffice safe and secured
5000 or $50 in stamps and money. 1hey
also destroyed valuable private papers
to the amount Of 81 1000. During April.
81. they blew open the postofficc safe
at Dublin, Va. The safe door Went
through the window and came near strlk-
ing the sentinel.
The gang then headed north into Penn
sylyania and since that time very little i
known of their operations.
Plat was arrested and sentenced IN
Harrisburg in 1897 for feloniOus assault
to the Eastern PenitentiaTy for two years
AIN