This is the second article in a seven-part series of stories surrounding the mystery of who robbed the Oak Saloon in 1910, running from June 18 through July 30.
In the first installment of this series, the Oak saloon was robbed of $600 by two unmasked men on the same day that Halley’s Comet appeared in Park City’s eastern sky. One of the robbers claimed to be “Kid Parker” who was also known as Robert LeRoy Parker or “Butch Cassidy.”
Henry Spriggs, the proprietor of the Oak Saloon, was the first to reach Main Street and fired several warning shots as the two bandits ran from the scene of the crime and were soon lost to sight. No trace or track could be found of the robbers; it was as though the earth had swallowed them up. The night watchman at the Silver King Coalition Building was the last man to spot the two men. They passed him soon after the holdup, one holding a gun and the other carrying a bag of money.
Salt Lake City, Ogden, Coalville, and all other surrounding towns were quickly notified of the robbery. In short time, a heavily armed posse of citizens was out scouring the surrounding territory, to no avail. No clues could be found. Spriggs even offered a $1,000 reward if the bandits were captured in Summit County and $500 for their arrest by officials of any other county.
“Kid Parker,” who promised to be back again in six months, was said to be about 30 years of age, with a dark complexion and light mustache. He was described as weighing 150 pounds and being about 5 feet 8 inches in height. His accomplice was taller and heavier than “Kid,” smooth shaven, and probably around 35 years old.
Henry Spriggs described “Kid” as not a very big man, but the revolver he waved looked “big enough for him to crawl through.”
Credit: Park City Historical Society & Museum, Thomas F. Hansen Collection
Park City authorities believed that the highwaymen took the trail out of town toward Brighton and then down Big Cottonwood Canyon. Two men, answering the description of the Oak holdups, attracted the attention of numerous citizens in the Mill Creek and Holliday areas of Salt Lake. Their shoes and clothing were dusty and there was evidence to believe that they had been walking far and rapidly. As near as could be observed, the two men were attired in corduroy trousers, wore dark coats and slouch hats, one of them having a mustache.
The two were last seen walking toward Murray where the marshal searched the town and the surrounding country but found no trace of the robbers. They were suspected of having taken street cars to the city. The Park Record reported that “chances were very favorable that they would not be captured.”
The Oak robbery proved to be the first in a string of 25 burglaries, holdups, and petty thefts that formed one of the most thrilling chapters in the annals of crime in the west. Street cars, saloons, stores, and pedestrians were held up during a reign of terror throughout the early spring of 1910. Police officers from Salt Lake City to Ogden were baffled by the mystery of so many crimes in such a short period of time.
Eventually, the culprits would leave a trail. Stay tuned for part three of the series.