Cole Younger American Confederate guerrilla of the Civil War Date of Birth: 15.01.1844 Country: USA

1. Biography of Cole Younger
2. Partisan Activities during the Civil War
3. Joining the Criminal Gang
4. The Pinkerton Pursuit
5. The Northfield Bank Robbery
6. Imprisonment and Redemption

Biography of Cole Younger

Cole Younger was an American Confederate partisan during the Civil War. He was born on January 15, 1844, in Greenwood, Missouri, to Henry Washington Younger, a prosperous farmer. Cole was the seventh of 14 children.

Partisan Activities during the Civil War

During the Civil War, Missouri was overwhelmed by partisan activities. Younger fought under the command of William Clarke Quantrill, who led a partisan raid on Lawrence, Kansas in August 1863, resulting in the death of around 200 men and boys. After the war, Younger claimed to have left the Confederate partisans and spent some time in California.

Joining the Criminal Gang

Younger became a member of a criminal gang led by Jesse James after the war. Along with his younger brothers Jim, John, and Bob, Cole crossed the line of the law and started robbing banks and stagecoaches. Their criminal activities extended to Missouri, Kentucky, Kansas, and West Virginia.

The Pinkerton Pursuit

In 1874, the Pinkerton National Detective Agency began pursuing James and the Younger gang after a train robbery. During a shootout, Jim and John Younger were killed, and Cole was wounded. Another agent named W.J. Whicher was kidnapped by the gang and found dead near a rural road in Jackson County, Missouri.

The Northfield Bank Robbery

In the fateful Northfield bank robbery on September 7, 1876, Cole and four other gang members provided cover outside the bank. However, the locals fought back, seriously injuring Bob Younger. During their escape, the Younger brothers and another gang member, Charlie Pitts, engaged in a shootout with a local posse. Pitts was killed, and Cole, Jim, and Bob were captured.

Imprisonment and Redemption

Following their capture, the Younger brothers were sentenced to life imprisonment. Bob died in prison from tuberculosis in 1889. Cole and Jim were conditionally released on July 10, 1901. Jim later took his own life, while Cole became an author and wrote memoirs that portrayed himself as a Confederate avenger who only participated in the Northfield incident. Cole Younger eventually expressed remorse for his criminal past in 1912 and passed away on March 21, 1916.