Shootout at Penn's Grove Post Office
On January 8, 1916, nine men broke into the post office at Penn’s Grove, New Jersey. Little did they know that postal inspectors and local police were aware of their plan and were waiting for their arrival.
The Crime
According to a New York Times article, the men were "western professionals," known as Yeggmen, and were beginning an extensive campaign in the eastern United States to rob stores, banks, and post offices. Their plan was to break into post office and steal the payroll checks from a local gunpowder factory, which were being stored in the post office safe.
Postal inspectors and police were aware of their plan. A few months prior, some of the men were involved in another robbery at Penn's Gove. Then, days before, citizens spotted the culprits once again lingering around the Penn's Grove Post Office. Authorities let the burglars break into the building before attempting to capture them. Once the men were inside, inspectors and police raided the building.
The Crime and Investigation
The crooks fired on the officers, and a gun battle with more than 50 shots ensued. Despite the intense gun fight, no inspectors or police were harmed. That couldn't be said for the crooks. Three of the the burglars, John Mayo, Frank Watson, and Charles Collins, were wounded and taken into custody, while the others fled the scene.
During the battle, Mayo was shot in the right arm, face, body, and foot. Both Watson and Collins were shot in the right arm. inside the post office, inspectors found burglary tools, including oxygen and acetylene tanks for cutting through the steel safe. One of the men captured was carrying evidence of the plans to rob banks and stores from new York to Philadelphia.
The Investigation
During sentencing, Mayo and Watson received two years of hard labor at the New Jersey State Penitentiary. Collins, who had a lengthy criminal record, was sentenced to five years of hard labor. Inspectors were then on the hunt for the crooks that managed to escape. Just a few hours after the heist, Frank Stebbins, Henry Hamilton, and one other were caught trying to board a train in the nearby town of Pedricktown.
They were immediately brought into custody and sent to trial. The men were sentenced to five years of hard labor at the New Jersey State Penitentiary. Six out of the nine were caught, tried, and sentenced for the robbery.
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