Lou’s View

By Lou Bernard

There have been some weird crimes committed in Clinton County over the years. I’ve written about some of them—The Match-Light Burglar who used lit matches to get around in the dark, the Wrist Bag Grabber who waited until women got off the train and then ran off with their purses, and the Alley Bird who frightened people in Renovo by leaping out in women’s clothing. But there was one in Loganton that was one of the strangest I’ve found. (Okay, except for the Alley Bird. That was pretty weird.)

The year was 1926. September. The article ran on the front page, headlined, ”Woman Takes Part In Loganton Hold-Up.” Don’t worry. We’re not even close to the weird parts yet.

The whole thing began at about four PM on September 7th. Lester Condo and Richard Overdorf, two workers from Renovo, were driving on the Spruce Run Road north of Loganton when they encountered another car. Now, in 1926, cars weren’t exactly a rarity, but they weren’t yet all that common, either. Also the average car went half a mile an hour, so it wasn’t exactly hard for the other car to pull up in front of the two men and stop them.

It contained five people, one of them female. They got out of the car waving around a revolver, held up the two men, and then left.

Now, a bit about definitions here: When I say “held up,” I mean it more in the sense of “delayed” than “robbed.” Though the whole thing took a moment, no money changed hands. The newspaper pointed out that the five people didn’t take any money or valuables, though they did have a gun pointed at them.

The criminals—It’s not completely accurate to call them “robbers” or “thieves”—Proceeded south until they got to Sulphur Spring, on the outskirts of Loganton. There they encountered another car, which they also flagged down, displayed their revolver, and then left without actually taking anything of any value. At this point, it looks possible that the five folks had ambition, but not much follow-through, as the execution of the crime left a lot to be desired.

Driving into Loganton, they stopped at the boarding house of Mrs. J.B. Herb, where they had a meal.

Now, let me recap: Five criminals had stopped two cars and shown a gun without actually stealing anything, and then gone out to dinner. But, based on the headline above, the newspaper considered the strangest part of this to be that a woman was involved. Bonnie and Clyde and Clyde and Clyde and Clyde.

Meanwhile, the victims of this odd crime had told a few people in Loganton, and word had gotten around. (I’m told that Loganton community news is still circulated in this fashion even today.) The locals noticed that, yeah, the car of criminals was parked in front of the Herb house, so they copied down the license plate. Someone eventually decided to contact the police, and they sent word to Sheriff Roy Hanna.

Hanna, that evening, was at an Odd Fellows event in Hecla Park. He bailed on that and headed down to Sugar Valley, where he arrived at seven PM, three hours after the actual crime not being such a bad turnaround time in those days. The bad guys had disappeared by then, however, what with dinner being over and all. Hanna asked around, and someone recalled one of the bandits as being a guy from Avis. So Hanna went there to inquire, which is not exactly how you’ll see it done on the CSI shows, but he wound up making arrests and sent the whole thing to the district attorney.

So, in early September of 1926, we had a definitely weird crime: Five people who pulled over cars, threatened them with a gun, and then left without actually stealing anything. It’s nice to see someone who isn’t motivated by money, but simply pride in their work.