It was 1866 in Liberty, Missouri, a little town. Jesse James and his crew will complete their first alleged heist in early February of that year. The perpetrators used a handgun to beat a cashier over the head and took over $60,000 in assets. In today's money, that equates to over $1 million. Jesse James' crime spree would go another 16 years. ¹⁾

The year was 1889 in Telluride, Colorado. Butch Cassidy was on his way to completing his first major heist. When he attacked the bank, he was armed. Warner and McCarty were his accomplices. While Cassidy loaded his sacks with cash, they slowed down the teller. The robbers took over $20,000 in cash. This equates to about $500,000 now. Butch Cassidy's career spanned 20 years. It all came to an end when he died from a gunshot wound. ²⁾

America witnessed its first severe bank heist in the summer of 1798. In Philadelphia, Isaac Davis and his accomplice Patrick Lyon attacked Carpenter's Hall. They stole around $162,000 in all. That may not appear to be much, yet it would be worth millions of dollars today. Lyon died of yellow fever shortly after the crime. Isaac Davis began to feel remorse. He ended up gradually putting the money back into the Bank of Pennsylvania. They made the decision to question him. He confessed and returned the money during the interview. He was subsequently exonerated. ³⁾