Scott Mangold - Tragedy at Southern Oregon Tunnel 13: DeAutremonts hold up the Southern Pacific

Published by The History Press

Charleston, SC 29403

www.historypress.net

Copyright 2013 by Scott Mangold

All rights reserved

First published 2013

e-book edition 2013

ISBN 978.1.62584.838.3

Library of Congress CIP data applied for.

print edition ISBN 978.1.62619.346.8

Notice : The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Many of my earliest memories involve trains. I was lucky to have two grandfathers who recognized my need for anything train-related. Gramps Mangold rode the bus home from work, and I would meet him at the end of the street just in time to watch Union Pacifics behemoth Streamliner grind up Sullivans Gulch, always on time. Grampa Prather was on the road much of the time, selling tire tools from his panel truck. Often when not in school, I traveled his sales routes with him. Raised in a pioneer Willamette Valley family, he told me stories that taught me much of the history of the Pacific Northwest. Most enjoyable were tales about railroading, so it was surprising in later years to realize that he never told me about the DeAutremont holdup at Tunnel 13. It wasnt until college that I knew the story.

As a college chum and I returned to campus from a civic function, he asked if I knew that Id been discussing oil and watercolor painting with paroled killer Ray DeAutremont. With other priorities, like graduation and the draft, I did not think much about the DeAutremonts at the time. I returned to civilian life in 1973, just in time to find local media very involved in the fifty-year commemoration of the holdup. Curious now about the sensational, morbid crime, I found myself eager to digest the daily DeAutremont feature segments. I became interested in other lesser-known aspects of the story and read and watched everything I could. Clearly, the young criminals could have made other choicestheir later lives showed that. We learn from the past, and learning doesnt have to stop.

With appreciation and affection, I dedicate this narrative to my family and especially my grandfathers, Marty and Henry. Deserving special recognition for inspiration are Alice and Larry Mullaly and Dr. Bob Church, who spent considerable time convincing me that I could write a historical narrative. Larry and Alice, thank you for your fruitful visits to the wonderful California State Railroad Museum.

Very special thanks goes to Pat Harper and the staff of my fellow volunteers at the Southern Oregon Historical Society for encouragement, as well as to SOHS for allowing me unlimited use of information, photos and facilities. And thanks to Kathy Enright for finding volume 1 of the State v. DeAutremont trial text (hereafter called Trial Testimony)! The book would not have been possible without this access. Bob Hunter of the Medford Mail Tribune and Ashland Daily Tidings warrants similar appreciation for unlimited use of DeAutremont-related articles and photos.

Jim ODonnell of the Smithsonian National Postal Museum gets the sleuth award for his relentless pursuit and location of the elusive U.S. Post Office Department photo album titled Story of the Holdup of Southern Pacific Train No. 13, October 11, 1923Capture and Conviction of the DeAutremont Brothers.

No less deserving of my recognition and gratitude are the several people who contributed materials, ideas and editing. It was your support that made this an enlightening and fun project. I thank you all.

Inspiration and encouragement: Alice and Larry Mullaly, Dr. Robert Church and Victoria Law.

Instruction and technical assistance: Bill Ainsworth.

Research, material and photos: Pat Harper, Kathy Enright, Dawna Curler and the Southern Oregon Historical Society; Robert Hunter of the Medford Mail Tribune and the Ashland Daily Tidings; Terry Skibby; Mike Yoakum; Kathryn Santos and the California State Railroad Museum; Jeff Cauthen and the Southern Pacific Historical and Technical Society; Ed Austin; Tom Dill; Nancy Dunn and the Artesia (New Mexico) Historical Museum and Art Center; John Glenn; Martin L. Hansen; Bill Hellie; Jim Kinney; Greg Lambert; Hadley Lovell; Rita McDonald and the Williamsburg (Iowa) Historical Commission; Bruce McGarvey; Noreen McGraw; Arnold Menke; the National Archives in Washington, D.C.; John Neilson; Jim ODonnell and the Smithsonian National Postal Museum; John Paskell; Gary and Robert Pederson; Bruce Petty; Mary and Diane Putnam; Jonathan Signor; John Signor; Ben Truwe; Francis Vandervelden, Laura Witt and the Oregon Department of Transportation; and James Williams.

Editing: Larry and Alice Mullaly, Chloe Sternola, Dana Tuley, Sheila Whitsett and Dick Moore.

Production: Dee Taylor, the wonderful magician who knows everything about using computers, and the dedicated and hardworking Aubrie Koenig, Ryan Finn and the tireless staff of The History Press.

Patience and tolerance (by no means the least important): my lovely, encouraging wife, Lori.

INTRODUCTION

On October 11, 1923, three young DeAutremont brothers held up Southern Pacifics train No. 13, the San Francisco Express, at Tunnel 13 in Oregons Siskiyou Mountains. It turned out that there was neither a gold shipment nor anything of extraordinary value on the train. Tragically, the bandits killed three trainmen and a postal clerk before fleeing. In such a crime, the question is: did it have to happen this way? Were the carnage and loss of life necessary?

Following his capture, Ray DeAutremont, the philosopher of the gang, acknowledged the horrific nature of the crime and expressed his regrets. But when prodded, his answers sometimes seemed insincere, not as repentant as we would like. Instead, Ray rationalized that he and his brothers were victims of the forces of cosmic development (fate). His attitude suggested that the brothers could have done little or nothing to avoid their crime. Ironies undoubtedly bolstered Rays beliefs: the first trainman to die at Tunnel 13 was Coyl Johnson. Three and a half years later, the DeAutremonts youngest brother, Lee, died the same way Coyl died: a shot to the gut.

I T S A LL IN THE N AME

Researching the DeAutremonts is complicated by their altering of the family name. In the early twentieth century, Dantremont became DAutremont and then DeAutremont. With spelling changes, they pronounced their name differently ( dot-ri-mont and dee- ot-ri-mon). Family members changed their names back and forth; life being simpler then, this practice was not as problematic as it is today.

Twins Ray and Roy looked alike but were different from each other in most respects. Studying the family requires reading slowly enough to avoid confusing Ray and Roy. The brothers used aliases to stay a step ahead of the law. They changed so often that their names confused even themselves. If James was included in an alias, it probably was Hughshis choices showed hero worship of Jesse James. Also notable is the spelling of Brakeman Johnsons name. He usually went by his nickname, which research substantiates as Coyl, not Coyle.

Sadly, some refer to this episode of history as the Last Great American Train Robbery. It was not. Any action that wastes life cannot by any stretch of the imagination be called great. On June 4, 1924, Doc, Joe, Jess and Willis Newton removed $3 million in cash, jewelry and other valuables from a Milwaukee Road passenger train outside Chicago. In contrast, the DeAutremonts recovered no valuables, so they merely held up a trainit was not a robbery.