Clickety Click Quiz / Test | Criminals

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. November 5, 1870. Known as the first train robbery in the western United States, what modern day state had a Central Pacific passenger train carrying gold and silver bullion robbed on that day?

Answer: Nevada

The robbery took place in Reno, NV.

The robbers were told that the train was carrying about $60,000 in gold, so they planned the heist.

The gang found about $41,000 in gold weighing more than 150 lbs. They missed another $15,000 in gold and about $8,000 in silver hidden on the train.

All of the robbers were caught or killed within days of the heist.

2. He dressed his crew in KKK garb for their first train robbery ... Who was the infamous robber who was shot in the back by Robert Ford at the end of his life?

Answer: Jesse James

James was a legend in the "Wild West". The leader of the James-Younger gang; they were known for local crimes before they moved up to robbing trains.

For the first robbery, July 21, 1873, the gang killed a train engineer and stole about $3,000 from the train.

James was killed in 1882.

3. The James-Younger Gang were the first crew to rob a train in Missouri.

Answer: True

January 31, 1874. The James-Younger Gang dressed in their KKK garb and jumped a train in Gads Hill, Missouri.

The population of the town was a mere 15 (!) people, and the train rarely stopped there. It was scheduled to stop that day to allow State Rep. L.M. Farris to meet up with his son.

James and his gang took advantage of the stop to switch the train to a side track and promptly robbed every passenger of jewelry and money.

4. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid were members of what gang, active primarily in Oklahoma in the 1890s?

Answer: The Wild Bunch

The Wild Bunch, also known as the Doolin-Dalton Gang or the Oklahombres were mainly active from 1892-95.

The gang was still partially active for several years after 1895. Their planned final robbery was the Wilcox Robbery in 1899. In that robbery the gang hit up a Union Pacific train just after 2 a.m. and made off with more than $50,000 in loot.

5. Taking more than $3 million in cash and valuables the Newton Gang made off with the largest bounty from a train robbery in United States history. The heist happened in Roundout, Illinois and was made possible because the gang used a mode of transportation other than horses to pull it off. What was their method of transport?

Answer: fast cars

The heist happened on June 14, 1924. The Newtons (four brothers and their accomplices) used speedy cars to hijack a mail hauler.

The gang reportedly robbed more than 85 banks and four trains while they were active.

The last surviving brother, Joe, lived until 1989.

6. The Great Gold Robbery saw more than $12,000 worth of gold bars taken from a train traveling from London to Paris. The robbery wasn't noticed until the safes containing the gold were opened. What had been used to replace the gold to make the weight of the safes stay the same?

Answer: lead

William Pierce and Edward Agar boarded the train carrying carpet bags filled with lead shots and departed with bags of gold.

They had been assisted by a rail clerk who had keys to the locked room. The safes were weighed prior to being put on the train, and again when they were taken off the train.

Two of the three safes were slightly heavier with the lead, and the third slightly lighter. They were opened quicker than planned because of that.

With the robbery uncovered, the two men were captured quickly and jailed for the crime.

7. Aug. 7, 1963, more than �2.6 million was taken from the HVP cabin of a mail train headed from Glasgow, Scotland to London, England. What does HVP stand for?

Answer: High Value Package

Fifteen men boarded the train and stole more than $2.6 million in used �1 and �5 notes from the train.

The train was carrying an extra large parcel of money due to bank holidays in Scotland.

The train had a total of 12 carriages where mail was sorted and set for delivery.

The men were quickly captured as they all left finger prints on the train.

8. The Bedzany Raid was more than a train robbery. A group of 20 people boarded a train and took about 400,000 rubles. That money was used to fund what cause?

Answer: Polish revolution

The robbery happened in 1908 and the money used to help Poland free itself from both Russian and Austria-Hungary's control.

The 20 robbers, 16 men and 4 women, included three future prime ministers and other notable members of the future Second Republic of Poland.

The group called itself the Boj�wki and was organized by J�zef Pilsudski.

9. Credited as the first train robber to use the term "hands up", which man was sentenced to life in a Canadian prison after failing to rob a train of a whopping $15?

Answer: Bill Miner

Miner moved to Canada after he was released from California prison. He was embarrassed by his failure as a robber and moved to Canada.

Three years after moving to his new country, he started robbing trains again. He robbed a Canadian Pacific train of $10,000 and began to get greedy.

Fortune didn't favor him for long, though, after he stopped another train. During that robbery his mask fell off and he was identified. He made off with $15 but was quickly arrested and sentenced to life in prison.

10. Train robberies started to decline in the 1920s in the United States after the advent of the traveler's check. That didn't stop DeAutremont Brothers, Roy, Ray and Hugh from trying one last heist in 1923 though. They hopped a train in Ashland, Oregon that had a special nickname. What was the train called?

Answer: The Gold Special

The Gold Special was a Southern Pacific train transporting gold for the U.S. Postal Service.

The brothers however used too much dynamite in their attempt to get into the car carrying the gold. Instead they killed the mail clerk and destroyed all of the gold.

During their getaway they killed three more men. They were identified and eventually captured after a four-year, nationwide manhunt.

Hugh DeAutremont was paroled in 1958, but died less than a year later after he was diagnosed with cancer.

Twins Ray and Roy both lived into their 80s. Ray was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1949 and given a frontal lobotomy. Roy was paroled in 1961 and worked as a janitor until his death in 1984.

Source: Author Shadowmyst2004

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Clickety Click Trivia Quiz

Clickety Click, clickety Clack, there's a train coming down the track. That unique click clack sound is the sound of train robbers chasing down the locomotives.

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