Haxtun Bank Robbery

 

The bank was located at 203 Colorado, which was on the northeast corner.

On February 25, 1915, at 3:00 p.m., a lone bandit walked into the bank and forced the only cashier, John Brunke—a 25-year-old unmarried man—into the vault at gunpoint. There, he proceeded to shoot him three times, hitting him in the temple, neck, and body. Brunke died minutes later. The bandit pulled the window curtains to make the bank appear closed and then began placing the bank's money (approximately $5,000.00) into a gunny sack. Several minutes later, he casually walked out of the bank, strolled over to the livery stable, mounted his horse, and rode off in a northwesterly direction.

Because most of the money the bandit had obtained from the bank was in coins, the coins rubbed together as he rode, causing a hole to form in the sack. Unaware of the hole, he plodded across the snow-covered prairie as the coins trickled from the bag, marking his path.

Minutes after the robbery, J. M. Delander arrived at the bank to conduct some last-minute business. Noticing that the curtains were closed, he cautiously opened the door and called out to the cashier, but received no response. Mr. Delander entered the bank and found Mr. Brunke dead in the vault. Mr. Delander quickly summoned help, and a posse was formed. Within hours, the posse caught up with the bandit, shot his horse out from under him, and took him into custody. Many members of the community combed the prairie for the coins and paper money, with most of it eventually being returned to the bank.

The robber was identified as Wm. Thompson, who had been working for Andy Osmond. Another man, Harry Rose, was found to be an accomplice and the one who had masterminded the robbery. Thompson was given a quick trial, where he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to serve a life sentence. Rose was tried and also received a life sentence.

At the time of the robbery, most of the townspeople were at a large public sale where the president of the bank was serving as the auctioneer.

As a side note to this incident, on March 15, 1915, the townspeople of Haxtun voted to pass an ordinance closing all the pool halls in town. The reason? Thompson and Rose frequently loitered around them, and the people felt that closing the pool halls would stop ruffians from hanging around town.