Saturday, December 08, 2018

A December sleighjacking at Lucas


I've been trying to figure out why Frank Troutman was carrying $400 in cash when sleighjacked just west of Lucas on a stormy December night back in 1898. Was he headed for Farmers & Miners Bank, which of course would have been open that evening for customers in town to do their trading? It's unlikely we'll ever know.

One thing's sure, however --- had Frank been at the wheel of an F-150 rather than behind a sleigh, its horsepower would not have delivered him safely to a livery stable in town.

Here's the story, as published on the front page of The Chariton Patriot of Dec. 8, 1898, under the headline, "Beaten and Robbed: Frank Troutman is Assaulted and Relieved of $400."

"Frank Troutman, who lives on the Granville West farm, southwest of Lucas, near Last Chance, was assaulted and robbed of about four hundred dollars last Saturday night.

"He was on his way to Lucas in a sleigh, when, as he reached the east end of the iron bridge over Whitebreast, he received a blow on the head which rendered him unconscious. The night was cold and stormy, and having his head and face well wrapped up, he was not aware of the presence of anyone near him. When he regained consciousness, he was in Lucas, his horses having gone to the livery barn, where he was discovered in the sleigh with the lines wrapped around him. He had a bad welt on his head and was shy about four hundred dollars which he had been carrying."

There's no indication that the robbers ever were apprehended, although there were additional reports that Sheriff Manning was pursuing clues.

Frank Troutman was Francis Lucian Troutman, who continued to live in Lucas and adjoining Clarke counties until 1930, when ill health caused him to move with wife, Minerva, to Kansas City to live with a daughter. He died there on May 2, 1931, age 73, and his remains were returned to Lucas County for funeral services at the Last Chance Christian Church and burial in Last Chance Cemetery.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Is there a story associated with "Last Chance"? How it's got its name, was it ever a thriving town?