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{{Multiple issues|{{More citations needed|date=May 2013}}
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[[File:The great train robbery LCCN2014637142.tif|thumb|
Since the invention of locomotives in the early 19th century, trains have often been the target of [[robbery]], in which the goal is to steal [[money]] or other valuables. '''Train robbery''' was especially common during the 19th century and is commonly associated with gangs of outlaws in the [[American Old West]]. It has continued into the 21st century, with criminals usually targeting freight trains carrying commercial cargo, or targeting passengers of public transportation for their valuables.
==History==
===Background===
Prior to the development of [[railroad]]s, [[stagecoach]] robbery was common.{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=
===Victorian England===
Several major train robberies occurred in England in the mid-19th century. The Great Western Mail Robbery occurred in 1849. In two robberies on the [[Bristol and Exeter Railway]], two passengers climbed from their carriage to the mail van and back. They were discovered at [[Bridgwater railway station|Bridgwater]] after the second robbery.<ref>{{Cite news|title = Vtbt Vreb hues. |date=January 6, 1849 |url = http://archive.spectator.co.uk/article/6th-january-1849/7/vtbt-vreb-hues |work=The Spectator |pages=6–7 |access-date=November 13, 2015}}</ref> One was Henry Poole, a former guard on the [[Great Western Railway]], dismissed for misconduct (possibly on suspicion of another robbery);<ref>{{Cite web|title = The Woman Who Murdered Black Satin |url = https://kb.osu.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/1811/6278/The_Woman_Who_Murdered_Black_Satin.pdf%253Fsequence%253D1|website = kb.osu.edu| hdl=1811/6278 |access-date = 2015-11-13 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> the other was Edward Nightingale, the son of George Nightingale, accused, but acquitted,<ref>{{Cite journal|title = The Great Western Mail Robbery|last = Maggs|first = Colin G|date = May 1963|journal = Railway Magazine|pages = 117–119}}</ref> of robbing the [[Mail coach#History in Britain|Dover mail coach]] in 1826,<ref>{{Cite
On May 15, 1855, a train carrying gold departed [[London]], England, for [[Boulogne]], France, and was found upon arrival to be missing over £12,000 worth of gold and money. The incident became known as the [[Great Gold Robbery of 1855]]. Four men were arrested in 1856 for the crime.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Great Gold Robbery, 1855 |url=https://www.btp.police.uk/police-forces/british-transport-police/areas/about-us/about-us/our-history/crime-history/gold-robbery/ |website=British Transport Police |access-date=July 2, 2024}}</ref>
===American Old West===
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, train robberies were frequent in the [[American Old West]], where trains carrying valuable cargo, like [[payroll]] shipments, were a frequent target. These shipments would be guarded by an [[expressman]] whose duty was to protect the cargo of the "[[Passenger car (rail)#Baggage car|express car]]".{{cn|date=July 2024}} Changing social and economic situations after the [[American Civil War]] led to the development of gangs and individuals who took up train robbery as a means of income. After the war, many soldiers were faced with little economic opportunity upon returning home, and train robbing required little specialized skill. Other robbers held the railroad companies in contempt, particularly those from the Midwest and West.{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|pp=
Initially, trains were perceived to be largely impenetrable—especially when compared with the earlier stagecoach—and were often unguarded or only lightly guarded. Early trains passed through large stretches of rural landscape with little to no communication available, leaving them vulnerable to attack and hindering investigation and response by law enforcement. Early bandits were rarely caught.{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|pp=
[[File:James-younger-train-robbery.jpg|thumb|1873 train robbery by the [[James–Younger Gang]] near [[Adair, Iowa]]]]
Infamous train robbers from this era include [[Butch Cassidy]], [[Bill Miner]], and [[Jesse James]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5v99BAAAQBAJ&pg=PT52 |title=Future Crimes: Everything Is Connected, Everyone Is Vulnerable and What We Can Do About It |first=Marc |last=Goodman |publisher=[[Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group]] |date=February 24, 2015 |page=52 |isbn=9780385539012}}</ref> Jesse James is mistakenly thought to have completed the first successful train robbery in the [[American West]] when on July 21, 1873, the [[James–Younger Gang]] took US$3,000 from a [[Rock Island Railroad]] train after derailing it southwest of the town of [[Adair, Iowa]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rits.org/www/histories/jjstory/JJ.html |title=Jesse James and the Rock Island Lines |work=Iowa Train Robbery on the Rock Island |date=August 7, 1985 |access-date=June 8, 2012 |first1=James |last1=Sampson |first2=Lucille |last2=Sampson |editor-first=Wade |editor-last=Calvert |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080804080541/http://www.rits.org/www/histories/jjstory/JJ.html |archive-date=August 4, 2008}}</ref> However, the first peacetime train robbery in the United States occurred on October 6, 1866, when robbers boarded an [[Ohio & Mississippi]] train shortly after it left [[Seymour, Indiana]]. They broke into one safe and tipped the other off the train before jumping off. The [[Pinkerton National Detective Agency]] later traced the crime to the [[Reno Gang]]. There was one [[Great Locomotive Chase|earlier train robbery in May 1865]], but because it was committed by armed guerrillas and occurred shortly after the end of the Civil War, it is not considered to be the first train robbery in the United States.{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=
Train robberies peaked in the 1890s. Although they occurred in a wide variety of states, [[California]], [[Missouri]], [[Texas]], and [[Oklahoma]] recorded the highest numbers.{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=
Several factors contributed to the decline of train robberies around the turn of the 20th century and the decades following, although they did not stop entirely. Ruddell and Decker (2017) write, "train robberies were eliminated, in large part, due to making targets less attractive, increasing guardianship, and reducing offender motivation or in other words taking routine precaution".{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=
In 1923, what would later be dubbed the "Last Great Train Robbery", the [[DeAutremont Brothers]] targeted a [[Southern Pacific Railroad]] carrying mail. The would-be robbers attempted to breach the mail car using [[dynamite]] but accidentally used too much, causing a large explosion that destroyed the targeted goods; ultimately, four people died in the attack.<ref name="brice2019">{{cite news |last1=Brice |first1=Anne |title=How a botched train robbery led to the birth of modern American criminology |url=https://news.berkeley.edu/2019/04/30/heinrich-collection-at-the-bancroft-library/ |access-date=July 1, 2024 |work=Berkeley News |date=April 30, 2019}}</ref> Southern Pacific and the Pinkertons pursued the gang for years and distributed 3.5 million leaflets worldwide for information, eventually apprehending the members. Train robbery had become obsolete by the 1930s in the United States, and many criminals began instead [[Bank robbery|targeting banks]].{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=
The outlaw culture in the American Old West became romanticized in Hollywood's [[Western film]]s, such as ''[[The Great Train Robbery (1903 film)|The Great Train Robbery]]'' in 1903.<ref name="wollan2024"/> Some serial train robbers, like [[William L. Carlisle]], became [[folk hero]]es.<ref name="wollan2024"/>
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===20th century===
[[File:Rogow.jpg|thumb|left|Depiction of the 1906 [[Rogów raid]]]]
Train robbery saw a marked decline as the 20th century progressed, although isolated incidents still occurred. Train robberies outside the United States were not as common before the mid-20th century; additionally, many robberies in Canada and Mexico during that time were perpetrated by American outlaws.{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=
Some countries were an exception to this rule. [[Egypt]], then [[History of Egypt under the British|a British colony]], struggled with an epidemic of train robberies during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. At the time, Egypt had high rates of poverty and social inequality, leading some citizens to turn to crime; some of these were train employees who were underpaid. An unorganized and ill-equipped police force hampered efforts to resolve cases; during this time, only about 17% of train robbers were apprehended. Some gangs were sheltered by local residents, and in turn gangs often used their profits to support their communities. Most cases occurred in [[Gharbia Governorate]], [[Beheira Governorate]], and [[Cairo]] and [[Giza]]. Egypt established its Railway Police force in 1893, and this combined with new advances in security and forensic technology led to the gradual decrease of train robberies after 1904.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Li |first1=Xiaoyue |title=Usurpers of Technology: Train Robbery and Theft in Egypt, 1876–1904 |journal=International Journal of Middle East Studies |date=2021 |volume=53 |issue=2 |pages=195–212 |doi=10.1017/S0020743820001221 |via=[[Cambridge University Press]]}}</ref>
[[File:Train Robbers' Bridge.jpg|thumb|Train Robbers' Bridge in Buckinghamshire, England, site of the [[Great Train Robbery (1963)|1963 Great Train Robbery]]]]
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===21st century===
Modern train robbery still exists, although it no longer resembles the mythos set by Hollywood Westerns. Thieves often target train cars carrying cargo for large corporations, such as [[Walmart]] and [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]];<ref name="wollan2024"/> and are most interested in commercial goods, particularly electronics, or raw industrial materials like metals and textiles.<ref name="segura2013"/> In the United States, the [[Los Angeles Basin]] is the most common spot for freight to be stolen en route. Other hotspots include areas near large depots, like [[Detroit]], [[Chicago]], and [[Memphis, Tennessee|Memphis]].<ref name="wollan2024"/>
In Mexico in 2011, train theft had increased by 120% from the previous year.<ref name="segura2013"/> Railroads in the south-central part of the country, such as [[Zacatecas]], [[Veracruz]], [[Puebla]], and [[Guanajuato]], are at the highest risk.<ref name="segura2013"/> The area around [[Acultzingo]] has the highest rate of train robberies, recording 521 in 2017–2018 alone.<ref name="navarro2018">{{cite news |last1=Navarro |first1=Andrea |last2=Cattan |first2=Nacha |title=Growing Headache for Corporate Mexico: Robberies of Cargo Trains |url=https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/international/2018/07/24/495872.htm |access-date=July 1, 2024 |work=Insurance Journal |publisher=Bloomberg |date=July 24, 2018}}</ref>
A string of train robberies in India have targeted both cargo and passengers. On August 9, 2016, a group of robbers drilled a hole into the roof of a secure car aboard the [[Chennai–Salem Express]] and stole [[rupees|₹]]57.8 million ($860,000; £570,000).<ref name="bbcindiagtr">{{cite news |title=India police investigate 'great train robbery' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-37032474 |access-date=July 1, 2024 |work=BBC News |date=August 10, 2016}}</ref> The train had been transporting ₹342 [[crore]] from the [[Indian Overseas Bank]] to the [[Reserve Bank of India]] in [[Chennai]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Chennai: ₹5.78 crore train heist cracked |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/chennai-5-78-crore-train-heist-cracked/articleshow/66201313.cms |access-date=July 1, 2024 |work=The Times of India |date=October 14, 2018}}</ref> The Indian media dubbed it "the great train robbery".<ref name="bbcindiagtr" /> Eight arrests were made in 2018 in connection with the heist.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sivaraman |first1=R. |title=This train heist had the sleuths at their
In 2021, train robberies in [[Los Angeles]] resulted in hundreds of discarded packages to be strewn about the tracks. Trains were targeted on a section of tracks that they must slow down on and that are easy to access. Thieves used bolt cutters to cut open the locks on shipping containers and took the packages inside. The dropped packages were then picked over by thieves as well as passerby. [[Union Pacific]] estimated that losses were in the millions from all the stolen merchandise.<ref>{{Cite web|date=January 17, 2022|title=Chronic robbery plagues rail cargo containers in Los Angeles|url=https://www.bostonherald.com/2022/01/17/chronic-robbery-plagues-rail-cargo-containers-in-los-angeles/|agency=Associated Press|access-date=January 19, 2022|website=Boston Herald|language=en-US|url-access=subscription}}</ref> By late 2021, an average of 90 containers were broken into daily.<ref name="hitchens2002">{{cite
===Subway robbery===
{{See also|Steaming (crime)}}
==Methods==
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Train theft results in significant financial and commercial losses. As [[e-commerce]] has increased demand for large quantities of goods to be transported even longer distances, and as trains create fewer emissions than cargo trucks, the size of trains has also increased.<ref name="wollan2024"/> [[Ferromex]], Mexico's largest railroad company, reported that its carload volume had increased by 6.6% in 2011.<ref name="segura2013"/>
Financial losses to train robbery are difficult to calculate and vary from one crime to another.<ref name="segura2013"/> Robberies during the American Old West period resulted in an average loss of $9,980 per crime.{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=339}} In 2006, 11,711 train robberies in China were reported, with losses totalling ¥41.7 million ($6.8 million).{{sfn|Yu|Ru|2016|p=149}}
Sometimes, train drivers do not realize a car has been breached, and packages may continue to fall from the train, causing more loss as cargo is damaged by the fall or the train's wheels.<ref name="wollan2024"/> Train derailment, caused either directly or indirectly, is also frequent.<ref name="segura2013"/> One such derailment in China caused a pileup in a railway tunnel that cost ¥3 million to clear, and millions more in indirect costs and loss of income.{{sfn|Yu|Ru|2016|p=149}} Additionally, packages or debris falling from a train can damage surrounding infrastructure. In one case in China, sheet metal being thrown from a train by robbers damaged nearby power lines, causing a blackout.{{sfn|Yu|Ru|2016|p=149}}
===Humanitarian cost===
[[File:Jack Mills and David Whitby memorial plaque.jpg|thumb
Especially during the early decades of train robbery, violence against train staff and passengers, both directly and indirectly, was common. A 2017 review of 241 train robberies in the United States between 1866 and 1930 found that 91% were committed at gunpoint, 28% used dynamite, 29% resulted in shootings, 13.5% led to deaths, and 7.5% included derailments.{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=
Today, violence against train employees is rare, and the majority of robberies on freight trains are nonviolent, as robbers prefer to avoid confrontation in most cases.<ref name="wollan2024"/>{{sfn|Yu|Ru|2016|p=149}} However, passengers aboard carrier trains generally still fear being victimized. A 2024 study on Swedish rail safety reported 19% of surveyed passengers feared robbery while on or waiting for a train.{{sfn|Ceccato et al.|2024|p=7}}
==Investigation and prevention==
Railroad companies have long hired private security agencies to protect cargo during transport, or even establish their own internal police forces to patrol railroads. They may also hire private detectives to investigate and deter theft.<ref name="wollan2024"/> In the early decades of train robbery, sheriffs would often recruit [[vigilante]] posses of citizens to apprehend perpetrators. Of the robberies during 1965–1930 studied by Ruddell and Decker, up to 90% of all train robbers were eventually caught. Those who survived the arrest—30% died during the confrontation—were sentenced to prison and sometimes faced [[capital punishment]] or were [[lynched]].{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=
In response to increased cargo train traffic, the Mexican federal government made train robbery a federal crime.<ref name="segura2013"/> China has its own railway police force, which in 2013 employed approximately 80,000 officers.{{sfn|Yu|Ru|2016|p=152}} Chinese cargo trains transporting electronics are usually accompanied by armed guards.{{sfn|Yu|Ru|2016|p=153}}
Several preventative measures are taken to deter and complicate robberies. These include increased security, [[target hardening]], heavier punishments for convicted criminals, and collaboration with different law enforcement bodies.{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=9}} New technology, such as motion sensors, cameras, and smart seals are all used to deter theft.<ref name="wollan2024"/>▼
▲Several preventative measures are taken to deter and complicate robberies. These include increased security, [[target hardening]], heavier punishments for convicted criminals, and collaboration with different law enforcement bodies.{{sfn|Ruddell|Decker|2017|p=
==Notable train robbers and gangs==
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==In fiction==
===In Westerns===
[[File:The Great K & A Train Robbery.jpg|thumb|upright|Poster for the 1926 film ''[[The Great K & A Train Robbery]]'']]
Train robberies are a common depiction in [[Western film]]s and media. The first movie to depict a train robbery was the 1903 silent film ''[[The Great Train Robbery (1903 film)|The Great Train Robbery]]'', produced by [[Edison Studios]]. This 11-minute film depicts a gang of outlaws who rob a train, only to later be hunted down by vigilantes and killed in a shootout. ''The Great Train Robbery'' is credited with popularizing and setting a narrative standard for the enture Western film genre.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Musser |first1=Charles |title=Before the Nickelodeon: Edwin S. Porter and the Edison Manufacturing Company |date=1991 |publisher=University of California Press |location=Berkeley |url=http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/ft3q2nb2gw/ |access-date=July 1, 2024 |chapter=Chapter 8: Story Films Become the Dominant Product: 1903–1904 |pages=253–259}}</ref> Since then, dozens of Westerns have depicted train robberies, including:
* ''[[The Great K & A Train Robbery]]'' (1926)
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===Works cited===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite journal |last1=
* {{cite journal |last1=Ruddell |first1=Rick |last2=Decker |first2=Scott |title=Train Robbery: A Retrospective Look at an Obsolete Crime |journal=Criminal Justice Review |date=2017 |volume=42 |issue=4 |pages=333–348 |issn=0734-0168 |doi=10.1177/0734016817702192 |via=[[Sage Journals]]}}
* {{cite book |last1=Yu |first1=Chunyan |last2=Ru |first2=Yihong |editor1-last=Szyliowicz |editor1-first=Joseph S. |editor2-last=Zamparini |editor2-first=Luca |editor3-last=Reniers |editor3-first=Genserik L.L. |editor4-last=Rhoades |editor4-first=Dawna L. |title=Multimodal Transport Security |date=2016 |isbn=9781783474820 |pages=143–159 |chapter=Chapter 10: Multimodal freight transportation security in China |doi=10.4337/9781783474820 |via=[[Elgar Online]]}}
{{refend}}
==Further reading==
* {{cite book |last1=Patterson |first1=Richard M. |title=Train Robbery: The Birth, Flowering, and Decline of a Notorious Western Enterprise |date=1981 |publisher=Johnson Books |isbn=9780933472471}}
* {{cite book |last1=Patterson |first1=Richard M. |title=The Train Robbery Era: An Encyclopedic History |date=1991 |publisher=Pruett Publishing Company |isbn=9780871088079}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Schulz |first1=Dorothy M. |title=Holdups, Hobos, and the Homeless: A Brief History of Railroad Police in North America |journal=Police Studies |date=Summer 1987 |volume=10 |issue=2 |pages=90–95}}
{{American frontier}}
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