Reno Gang
| Founded by | Frank Reno and John Reno |
|---|---|
| Founding location | Seymour, Jackson County, Indiana U.S. |
| Years active | 1864-1868 |
| Territory | Southern Indiana, Missouri, Iowa |
| Ethnicity | European-American |
| Membership (est.) | 10-11 |
| Criminal activities | Bounty-jumping, murder, counterfeiting, robbery, train robbery |
The Reno Gang, also known as the Reno Brothers Gang and The Jackson Thieves, were a group of criminals that operated in the Midwestern United States during and just after the American Civil War. Though short-lived, they carried out the first three peacetime train robberies in U.S. history. Most of the stolen money was never recovered.
The gang was broken up by the lynchings of ten of its members by vigilante mobs in 1868. The murders created an international diplomatic incident with Canada and Great Britain, a general public uproar, and international newspaper coverage. No one was ever identified or prosecuted for the lynchings.
The Reno Brothers have been portrayed in two movies, including Elvis Presley's first movie where he starred as brother Clint.
J. Wilkison (also known as Wilkinson or Wilkerson) Reno moved to Indiana in 1813 from the Salt River region of Kentucky, one of the Civil War border states. He married Julia Ann Freyhafer in 1835. Future gang members Franklin (Frank), John, Simeon (Sim), and William (Bill) Reno were born to the couple in Rockford, Jackson County, Indiana. There was also another son, Clinton ("Honest" Clint), and a daughter, Laura. In their early years, the siblings were raised in a strict, religious (Methodist) farming household and were required to read the Bible all day on Sunday, according to John Reno's 1879 autobiography. Neither Clint nor Laura were involved in the gang's crime spree.
The brothers got into trouble early. John claimed that he and Frank bilked travelers in crooked card games. Also, the Renos were suspected when a series of mysterious fires broke out around Rockford over a period of seven years beginning in 1851. The community also suspected the brothers in the theft of a horse. The crimes caused considerable tension in the town and Wilkison and four of his sons fled, living near St. Louis, Missouri, for some time, before returning to their farm in 1860. The war broke shortly after and the brothers enlisted in hopes of escaping the angry citizens of the town.
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