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Harvesting Oats, Powell, 1915.
As lands became available, settlers from elsewhere put in claims for small farms.
Among those proving up a claim for an eighty-acre farm was Walter W. Durand originally from
Bates County, Missouri. On November 18, 1919,
the Lander Land Office issued a patent to Durand for Farm Unit "C," or Lots forty-one E and forty-one
F, of Lot forty-one Township 56 N., Range 99 W., a few miles northwest of
Powell near Bitter Creek. For the next 20 years, Durand and his wife Effie Jane farmed and reared
their family including a son, Walter Earl Durand. Earl was a strapping lad, blue-eyed, blond, and
6 ft. 2 inches in height, who dropped out of school after the eighth grade. He loved to
hunt and became familiar with all parts of Park County, including the the North Fork west of
Cody, the rugged and isolated Sunlight Basin to Cody's north, and the Beartooth Mountains up on the
Clarks Fork on the Montana Line.
Sunlight Basin, 1926.
On Friday, March 24, 1939, the topic of conversation in Powell was the
100 man posse searching for Earl. The high sheriff, Frank Blackburn, was himself directing
men in the mountains near Clark fifty-five miles to the Northwest. In Cheyenne,
Governor Nels H. Smith had previously authorized members of the Montana National Guard to cross the border into
Wyoming to assist the posse. That morning, Johnny Gawthrop, a 21-year old
teller in the First National Bank of Powell, told an officer of the bank, Maurice Knutson, that he had
a horrible night. He had imagined that Earl would come into the bank. Knutson reassures him that there is
no danger. Shortly after 1:00 p.m., 17 year old Tipton
Cox was skipping class and was lounging at Otis Roulette's Texaco Station and
Goodyear store across the street from the bank. In the bank, in addition to Knutson and Gawthrop, were the
bank's president, vice-president and five customers. Across the street in the St. John's drugstore was a
part-time employee George Blivins. It is unlikely that that any heeded Harry Moore's Buick as it parked about 100 feet to the
east of the Bank. Harry Moore was the radio operator at the Hopkins Ranch. But Harry was not in the
vehicle. At that moment, he was on foot miles away seeking a phone.
Powell, Wyo., 1939. Roulette's Service Station on right,
First National Bank of Powell on corner.
All at once, the sound of shooting from within the bank alerted citizenry that something
was amiss at the Bank. Blivens placed a call to the Billings Gazette for whom he wrote. The
Gazette, in turn, relayed the call to KGHL. Thus, citizens within range of the station's
signal listened live to the situation. Other bulletins went out to other news media. Newspapers had
already been whipped into a feeding frenzie over reports from the possee and the
events of the prior nine days, The Denver Post referring to Earl as the
"Tarzan of the Tetons." Armed citizens appeared from everywhere, rooftops, doorways, windows. From the bank emerged Earl using the bank President Bob Nelson,
Knutson, and Gawthrop as human shields. It seemed as if shooting came from
everywhere. Gawthrop fell mortally wounded.
It appeared as if Earl was aiming his Winchester at Tip Cox in the doorway of the service station. Tip
grabbed Roulette's rifle and took aim at Earl, hitting him. Earl staggered back into the
bank where he committed suicide. As Johnny Gawthrop lay dying on the sidewalk, he groaned,
"I'm glad it was me, and not one of the married men."
Powell, Wyo., approx. 1950.
And what brought about the above events? It started with four poached elk. On Monday, March 13, 1939, a complaint was
received that someone was killing elk out of season along the Cody Road 26 miles above Cody. Game wardens
Boyd Bennion and Dwight King investigate and stop at gun point a car driven by Gus Knopp of Powell. Inside were Knopp, Knopp's son age 15,
the son's friend age 16, and an individual later identified as Earl Durand. Earl leaps from the
car and disappears into the darkness. Parts of two elk are found in the trunk. The three passengers remaining in the car are taken
to Cody where they are booked into the jail. The next day, North Fork rancher John A. Yeates discovers two of his cattle have been shot. One is dead
with a part of its flesh removed. This led later to newspapers reporting that Earl ate the
flesh raw. Durand is tracked in the snow by Undersheriff Noah Riley and is arrested. Durand and the elder Knopp plead guilty. Durand is
sentenced to six months in the county jail and a fine, the elder Knopp to two months and a fine and
the two juveniles lectured and let go. Additionally, the prosecuting attorney begins the process of
charging Durand with the felony killing of the cow. Later there are rumors that
the undersheriff taunted Durand by telling him he was to be sentenced to Rawlins for twenty years.
In the 1930's, sheriff's offices in rural counties were typically small. The jail might be manned by
the sheriff's family and there might be a deputy assigned to different areas of the County. At the time, Sheriff Frank Blackburn was picking up prisoners
in California. With the absence of the sheriff, general law enforcement in Park County was
entrusted to Riley; a 68-year old deputy in Powell, David M. Baker; and the Powell Town Marshal.
Thus, the jail was manned by the sheriff's daughter and by the undersheriff Noah Riley. On
Thursday, March 16, Riley brings the inmates their meals. When Durand's cell is opened, Earl grabs a bottle of
milk off the tray and cracks Riley over the head, giving him a
concussion and earning Riley the nickname "Milk Bottle." Durand takes Riley's gun. Durand releases the
remaining prisoners and leads Riley out of the jail to Riley's car. Bob Alsup, a friend of Riley's and later
the operator of the Cody Sportings Goods Co., notes something peculiar, the inmate is leading the
deputy, not the other way around. Alsup follows Riley's car until waved off by Durand. He gives the
alarm which is telephoned to Deputy David M. Baker in Powell. A description of the car is broadcast over
KGHL. The Riley automobile is spotted near Powell. Deputy Baker and Powell Town Marshal Charles E. "Chuck" Lewis proceed to the
Durand homestead with the intent of freeing Riley and rearresting Durand. There, Durand is forcing Riley and his father, against the entreaties of
both parents, to help pack his belonging. At the homestead,
Durand shoots both the Deputy and the Marshal. Deputy Baker dies on the scene. Durand flees and Riley escapes
by hiding behind a tree. Riley makes his way across fields to Otto Smith's. The elder Durands emerge from their home and discover the wounded marshal and take him
to the Powell hospital where he expires. Smith takes Riley to the hospital. From the hospital Riley calls sheriffs in
neighboring counties in Montana and Wyoming. In the meantime, in Cody, the county attorney has proceeded to the
jail to discover the inmates milling about outside. He puts them back in the jail and designates a game warden to be in
charge of the recapture effort.
A 100-man posse is organized, a portion of which is under the command of the game warden. The county attorney hires an airplane and
pilot to aid in the search. Nothing is found. The pilot is later employed to go to
Casper to obtain tear gas bombs. It is later learned that Durand was hiding along
Bitter Creek a short distance outside of Powell. On Saturday Sheriff Blackburn returns from
California and takes charge. On Tuesday, March 21, Durand appears at Herf Graham's, steals a rifle, and leaves a note for
Sheriff Blackburn, later reprinted in the Powell Tribune, threatening the lives of the Sheriff and the prosecuting attorney, offering the two game wardens
an opportunity for an even draw, and concluding:
Of course I know that I'm done for and when you kill me I suggest you have my
head mounted and hang it up in the court house for the sake of law and order
Your Beloved enemy,
Earl Durand
p.s. I know where King [one of the game wardens] lives, so he may expect me
around any time to shake hands.
Durand showed his return address as the undertaker's.
On Wednesday morning, Durand breaks into Art Thornburg's house and forces the
Thornburgs to drive him to Clarks Fork Canyon about 55 miles from Powell. That evening,
Durand's position near the canyon is discovered. Two members of the posse, Rodeo cowboy Orville Linaberry and Meeteetse
resident Art Argento try to rush Durand's position and are killed in the
process. When their bodies are finally recovered, Linaberry's shoes are missing as
are the laces from Argento's boots. The laces were later used in the bank to tie the
human shields together.
Clerks Fork Valley, 1930's. Photo by Wm. P. Sanborn.
Unbeknownst to the posse, Durand has worked his way down to near the highway where, using Argento's
deputy's badge, he hails down Harry Moore's Buick. In the Buick, in addition to Moore, are
John Simpson and his 86-year old father Peter Simpson. Durand forces Moore to drive to Deaver 16 miles east of Powell where he
picks up additional amunition. In Deaver, Durand stops for gas and pays for it himself telling Moore it was only
"fair." From Deaver, Durand takes his three passengers to a coal mine where he leaves them to walk three miles to
the closest ranch.
Following, Durand's death inside the bank, his body was taken to Easton's funeral home where it was
placed in a position of repose on a sofa for the thousands that came to Powell. The next day a private
graveside ceremony was conducted at the Crown Hill cemetery. Tip Cox has a moment of fame. He is flown to
Denver for an appearance on a radio program. Later he is flown to New York
for an appearance on a national radio show. He appears in news reels. Noah Riley dies in 1973. Knudson sold his stock in the bank and
moved to Sweet Grass County, Montana. He later returns to Powell. Years later he
repurchased the stock and again became a director. Bill Alsup, who first gave the alarm as to the
jail break, died at age 94, in February, 2004. The elder Durands moved from Powell and ultimately
settled near Boise, Idaho. Walter W. Durand died in 1966 and Effie Jane died in 1972. Two years later,
the world premier of a movie filmed near Pinedale, The Legend of Earl Durand, was held at the
Teton Theatre in Powell. It attempted to portray Earl as a misunderstood Robin Hood. A number of
local residents walked out.
Heart Mountain Relocation Camp, Wyoming.
As indicated on the previous page, to the west of Powell lay the Heart Mountain War Relocation Authority Camp which
at one point became the third largest city in Wyoming. The camp took its name from the mountain in the distance
in the above photo. In 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066 which
excluded from coastal areas of the west coast persons of Japanese descent. It mattered not that individuals were born in
the United States and under the Constitution were citizens. Thus, some 11,000 persons were settled in the camp constructed of tar paper
barracks, some of the buildings moved from a nearby CCC camp. It has been estimated that two-thirds of those relocated to various
camps in the interior west were, in fact, American citizens. Those relocated were required to sell their busnesses, homes,
automobiles, furniture and other personal possessions.
In the camp, the residents established a newspaper, the Heart Mountain Sentinel edited by Bill Hosokawa, formerly an editor
of the American style English lanquage Singapore Herald. Hosokawa was born in Washington State and was a journalism
graduate of the University of Washington. Unable to obtain employment as a journalist in the United
States he had taken the job in Singapore, but returned to the United States several weeks before the war in
the Pacific broke out. Thus, he escaped internment by the Japanese when Singapore fell. Instead, he was gathered
up with others in the Pacific Northwest and shipped to the camp at Heart Mountain. One method of escaping from
the camp was to obtain employment other than on the west coast. Hosokawa ultimately obtained a job with the
DesMoines Register. Later he was employed by the Denver Post from which he retired in 1984.
Hosokawa is the author of Nisei: The Quiet Americans (New York: W. Morrow, 1969). Residents also established a
boy scout troop. A high school was established in tar paper buildings moved from the CCC camp. The High School had a football team which played
other high schools in the area and on one occasion played the State Champion team, Natrona High School.
Students viewing poster for Senior Class play. L. to R.:
Janice Shiota, Teruo "Ted" Fujioka, Shogo Iwasaki. Fujioka was student body president and Iwaskaki
student body vice-president. War Relocation Authority photo by Bill Hosokawa courtesy of National Archives.
One of activities promoted by Fujioka was moving a flag pole from the CCC camp so that an
American flag could be flown in front of the school.
Later in the war,
a USO was established for boys from Heart Mountain returning home on leave before shipping out for Europe. In 1943, the government
allowed American citizens of Japanese ancestry to enlist in the Army. Many of those from the mainland were assigned to
the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. The 442nd was ultimately assigned to a unit from Hawaii composed also of
those of Japanese descent. One of thosen enlisting was Ted Fujioka.
Students with Assistant Principal Ralph Forsythe.
War Relocation Authority photo by Bill Hosokawa courtesy of National Archives
On November 22, 1944, the flag in front of the school was lowered to half mast. Word was received that
Ted Fujioka was killed in action on October 26 in the battle for the liberation of Bruyeres in the Vosges Mountains of eastern
France. Hitler had issued orders that the town was not to fall. It was part of the essential German defenses in preventing
the American, British Commonwealth, and Free French forces from crossing the Rhine. Fighting before Bruyeres commenced on September 30 and lasted 19
days. During the battle a unit from Texas, known as the Lost Battalion, was surrounded by German forces. The 442nd fought their way through the German lines rescuing
the Texas men. The 442nd suffered 800 casualties in saving the Texans. Fujioka received a Bronze Star with
Oakleaf Cluster. In all, some 15 men from Heart Mountain Relocation Camp were killed in action in
France and Italy. Today, in Bruyeres Rue du 442eme Regiment Americain d'Infanterie commemorates the sacrifices
of the 442nd. Ted Fukioka's final resting place is in the Quequement American Military Cemetery near
Epinal, France.
Quequement American Military Cemetery, Epinal, France.
Next page: Lovell.
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