Matheny AKA William Brooks
Louis B. Matheny was a well-known post office and bank robber in the 1890s and 1900s. Operating throughout the country for over 20 years, Postal Inspectors were constantly following the trail of crimes left by criminal mastermind Matheny.
Career Criminal Matheny
Louis B. Matheny (alias William Brooks) was born in Auburn, Indiana around 1861. Little is known about his early life, but he grew up with his father, Dr. T.J. Matheny, a respectable citizen. Louis Matheny’s criminal career began in 1886 when he left for Ohio with a crook by the name of Buckey Maguire and several other thieves from Dayton, Ohio.
He was next heard from in 1894 in Southern California when he was arrested for “complicity in a case of robbery and assault” with another crook named Joe Toohill where they had killed Special Officer Cashin. In 1895 a slue of burglaries in Los Angeles, California and surrounding areas were traced back to Matheny and a fellow crook named Ryerson.
Finally in 1896, Matheny and Jim K. Stevens were ordered out of L.A. by Chief of Police Glass just before an attempted robbery on the Second National Bank through a tunnel discovered by law enforcement.
Career Criminal Matheny Cont.
Louis B. Matheny (alias William Brooks) was born in Auburn, Indiana around 1861. Little is known about his early life, but he grew up with his father, Dr. T.J. Matheny, a respectable citizen. Louis Matheny’s criminal career began in 1886 when he left for Ohio with a crook by the name of Buckey Maguire and several other thieves from Dayton, Ohio.
He was next heard from in 1894 in Southern California when he was arrested for “complicity in a case of robbery and assault” with another crook named Joe Toohill where they had killed Special Officer Cashin. In 1895 a slue of burglaries in Los Angeles, California and surrounding areas were traced back to Matheny and a fellow crook named Ryerson.
Finally in 1896, Matheny and Jim K. Stevens were ordered out of L.A. by Chief of Police Glass just before an attempted robbery on the Second National Bank through a tunnel discovered by law enforcement.
Final Arrest and Punishment
Louis B. Matheny was recaptured on June 27, 1904, and was sentenced to four years in the penitentiary at Caldwell, New Jersey. After his release he claimed to be reformed, yet in 1908 he was arrested again in Baltimore, Maryland. Working under the alias George Steele, Postal Inspectors Mosby and Boyle discovered Matheny operating a green goods scheme in Atlanta, Georgia and arrested him.
After pleading guilty in October 1908, he was sentenced to 18 months in the Atlanta penitentiary and fined $100. The fine was determined unsatisfactory since he was discovered with over $1700 in stolen cash. Once released from Atlanta, he was re-arrested March 10, 1910. He was then sentenced to an additional year at Blackwells Island Prison, New York and fined $500.
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