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Wells Fargo never forgets.
James B. Hume was 23 years old when he left home to seek adventure and gold in California. He was born in 1827 in upper New York State into a religious, hardworking farm family. While Jim loved the outdoors and the company of his nine brothers and sisters, his days were filled with rigorous chores and farm responsibilities. When not working, he enjoyed school and reading, especially newspapers. Sundays were devoted to church services.
James B. Hume used scientific methods to track down the West’s most notorious robbers.
In 1836 the family moved to Indiana, where the farmland was better. Jim worked hard there, too, but as he grew older he began to feel confined by the rigid life imposed by his father. Reading about the California gold rush inspired him to leave the routine of farm life. In March 1850, accompanied by his older brother John and several friends, Jim left Indiana for a new life in California.
The trip took five months. They traveled overland by foot, wagon, and horse at a leisurely pace, arriving in California in August. The group separated, with Jim and John panning for gold along the American River. They were making a little money, but the work was hard, and they did not care for the rough-and-tumble lifestyle that surrounded them. They moved often, from one location to another. John wrote home that “there is no such thing as society” in the camps where they lived.
Gold miners crossing the plains to seek their fortune.
The brothers soon grew tired of prospecting and decided to try shopkeeping instead. They opened a small store in Placerville, California, supplying miners with tools, food, and other supplies. John, who had studied law back in Indiana, opened his own legal office in town, which soon became more rewarding to him, financially and personally, than mining or tending store. John went on to a long career as a lawyer, elected public official, and district attorney.
Meanwhile, Jim, still hopeful of striking it rich, formed a small group of friends and set out for more gold mining. For several years he toiled through drought, hard work, and difficult living conditions. But when his hopes did not materialize, he gave up his mining career in 1860. During his years in the area he had become well respected and participated in local politics. To support himself he accepted a position as Placerville’s tax collector. Two years later, recognized for his performance in that role, he was appointed to several town positions. He was now the city’s marshal, police chief, and street commissioner.
Jim’s several jobs, although bearing impressive titles, proved to be more boring than exciting. His main duties involved catching unlicensed dogs and keeping the streets clean. When the city passed a rule requiring property owners to clean the streets in front of their homes, a local newspaper reported, “Mr. Hume intends to strictly enforce the ordinance, and it is to be hoped that all citizens will cheerfully co-operate with him doing so. He expects the residents of Main Street to commence their scraping and sweeping operations this fore-noon, and so give that thoroughfare a bright, clean face for Sunday morning.”
The residents of Placerville were more than delighted with Hume’s performance of his duties. A newspaper editor wrote, “Our city, under the administration of our able, efficient and energetic Marshal, James B. Hume, presents a fine appearance.” In 1863, Hume was reelected to his positions with a wide margin over an opponent. A year later he was appointed undersheriff of El Dorado County, expanding his law enforcement experience, which led to his first encounter with stagecoach robbers.
On March 4, 1864, a few miles from Placerville at a spot on the road known as Bullion Bend, two stages were stopped by a gang of six heavily armed men claiming to be Confederate soldiers. Although California was far removed from the battlegrounds of the Civil War, the men declared, “We do not want anything of the passengers. All we want is Wells, Fargo and Company’s treasure to assist us to recruit for the Confederate Army.” Their escape did not go smoothly. Cornered in a hotel room by two deputy sheriffs, the bandits began shooting. With bullets flying in all directions, one robber and one lawman were badly wounded while the other deputy was killed. The remaining robbers escaped.
Placerville, El Dorado County, where Jim Hume served as sheriff. The gold mining areas were rough-and-tumble places at first. Placerville’s original name was Hangtown, which was changed once the town became more respectable.
Jim Hume was away from town at the time, but two months later several of the escaped bandits were caught. Jim questioned them intently until they confessed. With information they provided and his own investigation and witness interviews, he set out to track down the rest of the gang. Traveling on horseback over 160 miles to a location near San Jose, he found them at a meeting of Confederate sympathizers. Jim burst into the room, arrested them, and brought them back to Placerville to face trial.
The lessons he learned from that case about investigating clues and interviewing witnesses stayed with him. As undersheriff, he frequently led posses in search of robbers and murderers. In one 1867 incident, he and his men cornered armed bandits on the road. Jim commanded them to stop. When they began firing, one shot hit Jim’s arm but did not cause serious injury. Jim ordered his men to return fire. When the smoke cleared, one robber was dead and a second surrendered. A third robber fled, but Jim tracked him down and escorted him to Placerville to stand trial.
In 1869, the people of El Dorado County elected Jim to be their sheriff. His duties were explained in a newspaper article: “In that capacity it was his duty to convict or dislodge all the criminals that infested the wiles of that country.” Jim took pride in protecting the county. He used his investigative skills to solve serious crimes, including arson (setting fire to property) and murder. Another newspaper praised his ability in stopping a jail-break by writing, “It was thwarted by one of the most vigilant officers and intelligent detectives in the State.” Despite his good work as a law officer and his popularity, he lost the next election in 1871. That did not stop him from doing his job through March 1872, when the new sheriff took over.
On November 28, 1871, a single highwayman held up the stage between Georgetown and Greenwood and escaped with the Wells Fargo treasure box containing $1,000 worth of gold dust. As soon as he was notified, Sheriff Hume set out for the robbery site. He tracked the robber’s trail as far as he could until it disappeared. Jim returned to Placerville and publicly announced that he could not find a single clue. This was just a trick to make the robber feel at ease. Privately, Jim sent telegrams to Wells Fargo agents throughout the area, alerting them to be on the lookout for the gold, which was unusually shaped and easily identifiable. It took a few months until a gold buyer in a nearby county realized that he had bought that exact gold. Jim sent a deputy, who discovered the name of the robber, James Watkins, and learned that he had fled to Nevada. Jim contacted Nevada officials, and Watkins was returned to El Dorado County, where he was put on trial and sentenced to jail. Jim’s trick succeeded.
During the 22 years he lived in Placerville, including eight years as undersheriff and two as sheriff, Jim made many friends. He participated in local political and social affairs and was an elected officer in his Masonic lodge, a popular fraternal organization. But now it was time for him to move on. One newspaper wrote, “Rogues, after they came to understand and know of Hume, gave El Dorado county a wide berth. Hume is probably one of the best detectives on the Pacific coast…. He is a kind and obliging man, but a determined and resolute officer.” On March 4, 1872, the residents of Placerville gathered to pay tribute to Jim Hume with speeches of thanks and the presentation of an expensive gold watch.
Wells Fargo was concerned with the rising number of stage holdups and the theft of money by its own employees. They were aware of Jim’s law enforcement experience and successes and his long cooperation with Wells Fargo in tracking down stagecoach robbers. Wells Fargo offered him a unique position as their chief special officer. Although not clear from the title, he was hired to lead their own security department. At his job interview, Jim said, “I’ll take the job but one thing must be understood: I am boss absolute.” His employers happily agreed.
James B. Hume’s Wells Fargo business card.
But before moving on to the Sacramento office of Wells Fargo, Jim took a year’s detour to Nevada with the company’s permission. The Nevada State Prison was experiencing embarrassing difficulties, including frequent prisoner escapes and one mass escape of 30 prisoners who killed guards and civilians as they fought recapture. The state needed someone competent to temporarily take charge and put the jail in order. Jim’s reputation as an honest and proven lawman led the Nevada governor to appoint him acting warden of the prison. Once that job was completed, Jim began a legendary career with Wells Fargo that lasted over 25 years.
Over those years, Jim traveled throughout the West, protecting the interests of Wells Fargo, always remembering that “Wells Fargo never forgets.” Building on his many law enforcement contacts, he set up a large force of cooperating investigators and paid informants throughout the area. He issued wanted posters and offered substantial rewards for the capture of criminals. Rule number 275 in the Wells Fargo instruction manual stated: “The Company offers a standing reward of $300 for the arrest and conviction of each person engaged in robbing the Express on the public highway, and will always aid in the prosecution of such criminals.”
Newspapers reported his comings and goings but usually without details of who he was pursuing. His investigations were varied. During one stage holdup in 1871, the robbers buried the treasure box containing 60 ounces of gold dust. Three years later, Jim unearthed the gold and returned it to the company. Robbers also targeted the Wells Fargo offices. Jim investigated the robbery of the safe in the office of a Wells Fargo agent in Quincy, arrested the thieves, and recovered the stolen $800.
Sometimes, robbers just had no luck. When Jim investigated the December 4, 1875, robbery of the Caliente and Los Angeles stage, he uncovered a strange tale. After robbing the stage, the highwayman realized he did not bring along an ax to crack open the treasure box. As he carried the heavy box away, he fell into a ditch, breaking his foot and leg. He then crawled three-quarters of a mile to a mining camp, pushing the treasure box in front of him. There he found an ax and broke open the box. He fashioned a pair of crude crutches and stole a horse to escape.
But he did not count on Jim’s keen powers of observation. When Jim showed up on the scene he made a useful discovery. The horse was fitted with a temporary shoe, which had left a distinctive trail and led to the arrest of the road agent.
It was not the only time that Jim used his tracking skills. Testifying in another case, he explained how he caught another stage robber: “I discovered two different boot tracks going in the direction of the robbery. I followed them almost continuously…. One was larger than the other…. They were very distinct and perfect.” He then described the arrangement of the nail impressions and imperfections in the sole of the shoe. In front of the jury, he held the robber’s shoe in his hand and pointed out the specific defects. Naturally, the court convicted the robber, who received a long sentence in California’s San Quentin State Prison.
Jim Hume’s interest in details solved many crimes. He became known for his skill in interrogating suspects “and getting them, through his persistent questioning to finally admit their guilt.” He introduced the use of ballistics—the science of guns and bullets—to prove guilt. When three heavily armed robbers stopped the Yreka-to-Redding stage, the driver alerted the shotgun messenger who was riding in the coach. In an exchange of gunfire, the messenger killed one of the robbers. As the two remaining highwaymen quickly made their escape, they shot back wildly at the stagecoach, killing one of the horses.
As a posse formed to chase the robbers, Jim made a strange request. He ordered all the buckshot removed from the horse before it was buried or destroyed. During the trial that followed, Jim introduced the shot as evidence, comparing it with buckshot found in possession of one of the robbers when he was captured. For the jury, that was enough proof of the man’s guilt, and he was sentenced to jail.
As time went on, Jim gained a reputation as an imaginative investigator. One newspaper said, “He is a terror to the jail-birds, and rascals, and always has an eye open for their special benefit.” When a pair of robbers stopped the Bodie-to-Carson stage at 2:30 am, the shotgun messenger killed one of them as the other escaped in the darkness with money from the treasure box. After the body was buried, Jim was notified and made his way to the crime scene. By then familiar with many known criminals, Jim dug up the body but did not recognize him. He did, however, find a bank book in the dead man’s pocket listing the names of both robbers and a boardinghouse address in San Francisco. Keeping that information secret from the public so as not to warn the escapee, Jim notified the sheriff, who was able to arrest the surprised robber when he returned home. Case solved. A local newspaper commented, “J.B. Hume, the head of Wells, Fargo & Co.’s detective force, was especially sagacious [wise] in his plans for the detection of the surviving robber, and to his experienced judgement the success of the entire matter is mainly due.”
Jim was a frequent visitor to San Quentin Prison as he delivered convicted robbers to serve jail sentences for their misdeeds. Back then, the prison was also a destination for sightseers, who arrived by boat from cities across San Francisco Bay. They enjoyed leisurely strolls in the sunshine by the water while gazing at prisoners locked behind barred windows.
Jim’s friends particularly appreciated his good humor and took enjoyment from a newspaper article that described in detail his visit to the prison grounds with his future wife, Lida Munson: “As the steamer reached the wharf at San Quentin, a friend on shore recognized Hume, and called out to him, ‘Halloa, Jim, is that you? … You do not seem to have anybody with [you] for the States’ boarding house this trip.’” Hume laughingly responded, “Oh, yes, I have,” and placed his hand on Lida.
Wells Fargo stagecoach messengers posing with treasure boxes and shotguns. Shotgun messengers were a brave and hardy group. They were “the kind of men you can depend on if you get into a fix,” according to their boss, Jim Hume.
She did not appreciate the joke, and later in the day, when the couple returned to their residences, she paid him back for publicly teasing her. As Jim left the streetcar to enter his hotel, Lida loudly shouted after him, “I do not think that man should ever have been pardoned: he should have stayed in prison every day of his term!” This joke did not stop the embarrassed Wells Fargo special agent from marrying Lida on April 28, 1884, at San Quentin in the home of his friend, the prison warden, Charles Aull, who once worked for Wells Fargo. A newspaper report on Jim’s prison wedding remarked, “He doubtless is better pleased with this capture than any he has heretofore made.”
James B. Hume created Wells Fargo’s highly respected detective system, which relied on scientific evidence, cooperation with local sheriffs, and stubbornness to track down criminals. After the successful capture of a four-member gang of frequent stage robbers, a newspaper gave credit to the Wells Fargo “corps of officers, who under a careful and systematic detective campaign, in which neither money nor men have been spared,” closed the case. “The present effort,” the newspaper continued, “was one of the most systematic and determined that has ever been made upon any occasion upon the coast.”
During his long career, Jim had many successes in bringing Wells Fargo stage robbers to justice. Yet, for a period of eight years beginning with the Funk Hill robbery in 1875, one highwayman eluded capture and challenged Jim’s patience and reputation.
