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History Center talk on early-1900s robber gang that had downtown Springs shootout An armed gang of robbers had a deadly shootout with police officers in downtown Colorado Springs Sept. 13, 1918.The incident, which left one officer dead and another with the loss of an eye, gives a local edge to the bloody saga of the Frank Lewis-Dale Jones Gang, who came to the region as part of an interstate crime spree but were apprehended a short time later. Retired police investigator and historian Dwight Haverkorn will discuss the gang, along with their similarity to other criminals, past and present, Friday, Nov. 14 at the Old Colorado City History Center, 1 S. 24th St. Sponsored by the Old Colorado City Historical Society (OCCHS), the talk will be from 11 a.m. to noon, with the doors opening at 10:30. The admission fee is $5 for the general public (free for OCCHS members). Light refreshments will be served. For more information (including how to become an OCCHS member), call 636-1225. The Jones Gang “may not be as well known as other gangsters of the era - such as John Dillinger, Bonnie and Clyde or Baby Face Nelson - but Haverkorn says they were certainly notorious,” a press release states. “As many as nine officers were killed by the Lewis-Jones Gang members and several others were wounded.” Haverkorn says history gives us many examples of why Colorado isn't a place for fugitives to visit. "Typical of gangs who shouldn't come here, there was a group called the Texas 7; guess who didn't leave," Haverkorn joked. "This is just not a place for bad guys to come."
Westside Pioneer/press release
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