The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
Compiled and Edited by Virginia Ross
Stronghurst Graphic, Sept. 20, 1923
BANK ROBBERIES NEARBY: This seems to be the open season for bank robberies throughout the country, and this section of Illinois is being given particular attention by bandits. Last Monday morning at about 9:30 two young men, without masks, boldly walked into the State Bank of Cameron, Ill. and held up cashier H.W. Johnson and his assistant, C. E. Dunca, at the point of their guns and forced them into the bank vault, closing the inner door of the vault upon them. Then they proceeded to scoop up all the cash, amounting to $2,450, some $10,000 worth of registered U.S. bonds and a number of certificates of the stock of the bank belonging to directors of the bank. They then made their getaway in a large red automobile which they had stolen the night before at Galesburg and which they had parked about a block from the bank before the citizens of the village had realized what had happened. Mr. Johnson, the cashier of the bank, is a brother of the late Jas. Johnson who ran a garage here several years ago and Duncan, the assistant cashier, is a former Raritan boy.
Early Tuesday morning a band of yeggs drove into the village of Mathersville in Mercer County and after breaking into the bank there proceeded to dynamite the safe. After two unsuccessful blasts had been made, the citizens of the village rallied and drove the bandits off after an exchange of shots in which no one was injured. The robbers managed, however, to elude capture and are still at large.
On Wednesday morning between 2-3 am, the safe of the bank at Joy in Mercer County was dynamited by members of a band of yeggs while other members of the gang patrolled the streets and terrorized the citizens into silence. The loot obtained in this case amounted to between $3,000 and $4,000. The bandits in this case, as in all similar cases which have occurred in this section during the past few months, succeeded in making a clean getaway.
With the exception of the Cameron case, all the recent bank robberies in this section of the state have been pulled off in practically the same manner; however, in a case which occurred at Sandoval, Ill. on Wednesday morning, the mode of procedure was varied. There two armed men entered the home of the cashier of the bank,, ordered him to dress, bound his wife, and then forced the cashier to go to the bank and open the vault. They took $700 or $800 from the vault but were forced to flee when the cashier’s wife, who had succeeded in freeing herself, gave the alarm. The bandits, however, made a safe escape in the auto in which they were traveling.
The frequency of hold-ups and robberies of this character is presenting a problem which will need to be solved before long or the entire country will be at the mercy of organized bands of criminals. While there has been much opposition in the past in this state to the idea of a state police force because of the expense which would be incurred, there is little doubt but that a system of patrol of the highways of the state by such officers would go a long way toward breaking up the operations of the auto bandit class of criminals.
MARRIED IN MOLINE: LARSON-TILLOTSON: From the Moline Daily Dispatch-“Miss Mildred K. Larson, daughter of John A. Larson, became the bride of Converse V. Tillotson, son of Dr. and Mrs. George Tillotson in a pretty ceremony at the parsonage of the First Lutheran Church. The Rev. C.O. Morland officiated in the presence of a few close relatives, the bride’s father, Mr. Tillotson’s parents and Miss Marjorie Clemitus of Chicago. Miss Ruth Seaberg served the bride as honor maid and Dr. Kendall Tillotson of Chicago, brother of the bridge groom, was best man.
The bride wore a pretty frock of Alice blue georgette crepe (the color was named after Alice Roosevelt who favored that color), a sleeveless model trimmed with a band of panne velvet of the same shade and charmingly beaded. Her flowers were bride roses in corsage arrangement. Miss Seaberg’s frock was also of the blue georgette crepe and she also wore a corsage bouquet of roses.
Following the ceremony a wedding breakfast was served at the LeClaire Hotel, covers being laid for eight. Late summer garden flowers adorned the table. Mr. and Mrs. Tillotson left that afternoon for a honeymoon motor trip which takes them first to Chicago, later to Detroit and up into Canada. They will return via Peoria where they will spend a few days before returning to Moline. They will be home with the bride’s father after Oct.1st. The bride’s traveling outfit was a modish tweed knicker suit with hat and accessories to match. (This was quite daring for the time period.)
Mrs. Tillotson is a lovely girl and has won many friends through her work as assistant for Dr. Phoebe Pearsall. She attended the Moline public and high schools. Mr. Tillotson is employed by the Horst and Strieter Co.”(Tillotsons were former residents of this county.)
WEDDING BELLS: REZNER-MARSHALL-Miss Grace Marshall of Stronghurst was united in marriage on Sept. 11th to Mr. Leon Rezner, a young farmer of the Biggsville neighborhood, at the Presbyterian manse in Monmouth, Ill. The couple was attended by Mr. John Marshall, a brother of the bride, and his wife. The bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Alexander Marshall of Stronghurst and is a graduate of the Stronghurst High School, Abingdon College and the Western College for women at Oxford, Ohio. Lately, she has successfully taught several terms of school in his county.
The groom is the son of Mrs. Leroy Rezner whose farm, two miles east of Biggsville which he has farmed for this past year or two. He also has a farm of his own in the same neighborhood and there he and his bride will probably make their home next spring.
A BIRTHDAY SURPRISE: Mrs. C. M. Bell’s Sunday School class of girls gave a surprise party for Miss Eileen Jones, a member of the class-it being her 13th birthday. The evening was spent in playing games and nice refreshments were served by the girls, one of whom brought out the birthday cake with 13 candles. Each girl made a wish and blew out a candle. Before leaving, each girl presented their little friend with a gift.