On June 3, 1871, notorious outlaw Jesse James and the James-Younger gang pulled off a daring bank heist in Corydon, Iowa, stealing $10,000 from the Ocobock Brothers’ Bank. Posing as cattle buyers, the gang took advantage of the town’s attention on a local event, catching a lone bank clerk off guard. After forcing him into the safe, they brazenly declared, “You better check the bank!” before escaping on horseback.
As the townsfolk processed the shock, a mounted posse set out in pursuit, but the outlaws managed to evade capture. The Pinkerton Agency was soon on their trail. The gang’s criminal exploits continued until their downfall at Northfield, Minnesota, in 1876, solidifying Jesse James’s place as a legendary figure of the Wild West.
