San Miguel Valley Bank Robbery

San Miguel Valley Bank Robbery. June 24, 1889. , The 1889 robbery of the San Miguel Valley Bank in Telluride was one of the most brazen and daring bank robberies in the history of Colorado. Butch Cassidy (Robert Leroy Parker) and Mart Warner (Willard Erastus Christiansen) successfully got away with what was calculated to be $20,750 , more than half-a-million dollars in today's currency when adjusted for inflation. , Perhaps because it was their first bank job, the inexperienced outlaws led the teller outside with his hands up, and in the process, alerted the entire town. Warner, Parker and one or two other accomplices then headed west out of Telluride on horseback to this very spot on Keystone Hill where fresh horses were awaiting them. , A posse, led by Sheriff J.A. Beattie, pursued the bandits out of town but were unable to apprehend them. This robbery marks the point where these late 19 century cowboys crossed the line between being cowmen and rustlers and became some of the most wanted outlaws of their time. , The Telluride bank robbery is cited as a turning point in Warner and Cassidy's career as outlaws. Because they had been identified, they began running from the law full time. They are given credit for various criminal activities near Telluride, and throughout Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming. , Who Was the Wild Bunch? , From about 1889 to 1901, The Wild Bunch was a loosely organized outlaw gang led by Butch Cassidy that was successful at robbing banks, stage coaches, and trains throughout the West. , Anecdotally, the Wild Bunch robbed the Rio Grande Southern train at Stoner, holing up in the Dunton area (north of Dolores, Colorado). The gang reportedly conducted various deeds and misdeeds in the canyon country throughout Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming. Their most famous hideouts included: Robber's Roost in southeast Utah, Hole In The Wall in north central Wyoming, and Brown's Hole in central Colorado. , Matt Warner and Butch Cassidy are now the namesakes of chapters of the Ancient and Honorable Order of E Clampus Vitus®, an organization dedicated to the preservation of Western history and protectors of “widders and ophans.” , Robert Leroy Parker Chapter #1889 ECV, Colorado. , Matt Warner Chapter #1900 ECV, Helper, Utah.