Site of the Kansas City Massacre of 1933 took place at the Union Station

no visit to Kansas City Missouri is complete without checking out the historic Union Station it opened on October 30th 1914 as the third largest train station in the country at 850,000 ft its size is monstrous the ceiling in the grand hall is 95 ft High three chandeliers hanging from the ceiling weigh 3,500 lb a piece and the grand hall clock has a 6t diameter face the Grand Station was a replacement to the First Union Station which was in service from 1878 until 1914 and where Walt Disney's parents brought him to Kansas City for the first time in 1945 annual passenger traffic peaked at 6783692679 [Music] scene of one of the ugliest events in the history of Kansas City this place is truly massive I don't think I've ever been in a train station quite this big of course I'm from a small town in California but it's pretty cool k can you imagine how many millions of people had probably come through this building in the course of the time that it was built here I think it was spent here at least 90 years Union Station on this side is where the assault of the Kansas City Maser took place June 17th 1933 in which believe five officers were killed some monsters were trying to free Frank Nash who was being transferred to lenworth State Prison in Kansas there was a massacre that took place in the ensuing gun battle Mr Nash was also murdered the Lawman came out with their prisoner right through that door came out to some awaiting cars right about in this area where the massacre took place these stains here almost kind of remind you of the murder scene that took place out here the June 17th 1933 massacre at the Union Station wouldn't have happened if not for the Lawless ways of convicted bank robber Frank Nash and his Escape from the federal prison at lenworth Kansas in October 1930 Nash remained on the lamb until he was finally tracked down to Hot Springs Arkansas where he was arrested on June 16th 1933 Kansas City certainly has an old field to it authorities made plans to deliver Nash back to lenworth by way of the Rails to Kansas City and then by automobile from there but as Nash's custodians led him in handcuffs across the Union Station Parking lot to an awaiting car little did they know that three of his allies were a waiting armed and intending to free him the resulting gunfight led to the deaths of Nash one federal agent two Kansas City police officers and a police chief from Oklahoma two federal agents were also wounded so I was hoping to find this is there is a plaque out here it's a memory of the law enforcement officers killed in the Kansas City Massacre June 17th 1933 killed in the gun battle were Frankie Hermanson he is at rest at the Highland Park Cemetery in Kansas City William J redg Grooms who is buried at Mount St Mary Catholic Cemetery in Kansas City Orin Henry Otto Reid is buried at Oak Hill Memorial Park of mallister Oklahoma Raymond J Caffrey is buried in Oma's holy Seer Cemetery prisoner Frank Nash is inomed in a maam in the Lynwood Cemetery of paragold Arkansas it's kind of difficult to wrap your mind around the fact that 5 minutes men walked to their deaths right through this area right here and you know it's not surprising too that all the guards kind of expected something but there were so many cars out here that day that it was very hard to even track who might be popping out of nowhere with rifles machine guns to take Frank Nash back who was very valuable to the underworld one of the most prolific bank robbers in American history it's believed the four men masterminded the attempt to resue Frank Nash from the authorities there were Richard tman gadus Herbert farmer LS stachi and Frank B Malloy the three men chose Veron Miller to free Nash it's believed but not proven that Miller sought the help of Pretty Boy Floyd and Adam retti a very bad scene fact to change some federal laws regarding bank robbery the Lawman arranged for Reed vetle who was a special agent in charge of the FBI's Kansas City office to meet them at the the train station early the next morning Miller Floyd and retti drove to the Union train station in a Chevy sedan and awaited the arrival of Nash the armed Lawman escorted Nash through the lobby of the train station lack and chief Reed were armed with shotguns the other officers carried pistols in the parking lot the Lawman walked over to cafre Chevrolet and Nash was told to get in the front seat lacky Smith and chief Reed sat in the rear seat agent Caffrey was getting into the driver's seat as vle took with officers Hermanson and grooms at the right side near the front of the car suddenly two our men burst out from behind a car before agent lacky had a chance to warn his fellow officers one of the gunmen shot it up up bitterly turned just in time to hear a voice command let him have it from a distance of about 15 ft from the Chevrolet a man crouched behind a car and opened fire officers Grooms and Hermanson immediately fell to the ground dead vetle was shot in the arm but ran over to cafre side of the vehicle only to see him take a fatal head shot as they sat in the Chevrolet Nash and Reed were fatally wounded agent Lackey was seriously wounded by three bullets but Smith was unscathed after seeing that Nash was dead one of the gunmen shot it they're all dead let's get out of here and with that they sped off the massacre triggered a massive federal investigation that would give Fame to a young FBI agent named Jay Edgar Hoover things would not end well for the three alleged Massacre participants Vernon C Miller 37 was a World War I hero and police officer who turned to embezzling and became a hired gunman a friend of the underworld he was found beaten and strangled and left in a ditch in late 1933 and bank robber Adam C retti was executed in Missouri's gas chamber on October 7th 1938 Bank Robert Charles Arthur Pretty Boy Floyd was 29 years old at the time of the massacre Charles Floyd began his Life Of Crime as an 18-year-old stealing money from a post office 3 years later in 1925 he was arrested in St Louis for payroll robbery he was out of prison in less than 4 years but apparently didn't learn from his experience he began robbing banks about 30 of them sometimes helping poor people by food or giving Christmas gifts with the money that he stole Floyd became involved with underworld Mobsters hired as a gunman for bootleggers and rum runners he continued to insist that he had nothing to do with a mass that day in Kansas City he quickly became Public Enemy Number One and was hunted down by FBI agent Melvin pvis 3 days before his demise Floyd and retti robbed the tiltonsville People's Bank retti was captured the next day after a shootout but Floyd temporarily got away he was shot and killed October 22nd 1934 in a cornfield outside of East Liverpool Ohio on his body was his watch with a fob that had 10 notches reportedly made for each man that Gunn down this death mask was made from his lifeless body at his funeral in Oklahoma an estimated 20,000 to 40,000 people filed past his coffin today you'll find him 6 ft under in Akens Oklahoma there have been several movies filmed depicting either the Kansas City Massacre or Pretty Boy Floyd Bill Hopkins played the part of Floyd in the 1975 TV movie the Kansas City massacre in which Dale Robertson played FBI agent Melvin pervis in the movie Dillinger Floyd is depicted by Steve Canali hunted down by actor Ben Johnson playing peris are you Pretty Boy Floyd I'm Charles Arthur boy this is for Kansas City boy I wouldn't on that there seems to be controversy today about whether or not the divot in the marble facade thought of the train station was caused by a bullet fired during the massacre it sure looks like a bullet hole to me if it's not I'm open to hearing theories on what caused the hole in the [Music] Stone [Music]

Channel: History Hunters

Views: 38,186

Keywords: Kansas City Massacre, Pretty Boy Floyd, Union Station, Famous crimes, History Hunters

Id: y8z1BHUBCVQ

Length: 9min 59sec (599 seconds)

Published: Sun Nov 26 2023