Post by WOLVERETT on Apr 18, 2015 11:00:41 GMT -5
On July 1, 1874 two little boys were abducted in front of their family's mansion. It was the first kidnapping for ransom in the history of the United States. And it would be the major event of its kind until the Lindbergh baby kidnapping.
The boys were named Charley and Walter Ross; they were 4 and 6 years old. The two men who kidnapped them had given the boys candy on previous occasions. That day, however, the men told the boys to climb into their buggy and promised to buy them firecrackers. The boys boarded and they drove off into the city. Charley would never be seen again.
As they drove farther away, Charley wanted to go home and began to cry. The men stopped in front of a store and gave Walter 25 cents. He entered the store and started choosing firecrackers, while the men drove away with Charley.
The Site of the Kidnapping
Today the Cliveden Presbyterian Church stands on the site of the kidnapping. The Ross mansion was torn down in 1926.
The boys' father, Christian K. Ross, thought the boys were playing in a neighbor's yard. But soon a neighbor told him that she saw the boys traveling in a buggy. The father began the search for his son that he would continue until his death in 1897. He didn't tell his wife at first, who was recovering from an illness in Atlantic City. Two days later, however, she found out when he began advertising in the newspapers for his sons' return. A stranger found Walter and returned him to his father. Walter related the tale.
Two days after that, the father received a crude note, saying that Charley would be released for a sum of money. On July 7, came another note demanding $20,000 and instructing the boy's father how to go about paying the kidnappers. The father tried to follow the instructions as best he could but never contacted the kidnappers.
www.ushistory.org/germantown/upper/charley.htm
Please note the Charley Project is named for this case.
The boys were named Charley and Walter Ross; they were 4 and 6 years old. The two men who kidnapped them had given the boys candy on previous occasions. That day, however, the men told the boys to climb into their buggy and promised to buy them firecrackers. The boys boarded and they drove off into the city. Charley would never be seen again.
As they drove farther away, Charley wanted to go home and began to cry. The men stopped in front of a store and gave Walter 25 cents. He entered the store and started choosing firecrackers, while the men drove away with Charley.
The Site of the Kidnapping
Today the Cliveden Presbyterian Church stands on the site of the kidnapping. The Ross mansion was torn down in 1926.
The boys' father, Christian K. Ross, thought the boys were playing in a neighbor's yard. But soon a neighbor told him that she saw the boys traveling in a buggy. The father began the search for his son that he would continue until his death in 1897. He didn't tell his wife at first, who was recovering from an illness in Atlantic City. Two days later, however, she found out when he began advertising in the newspapers for his sons' return. A stranger found Walter and returned him to his father. Walter related the tale.
Two days after that, the father received a crude note, saying that Charley would be released for a sum of money. On July 7, came another note demanding $20,000 and instructing the boy's father how to go about paying the kidnappers. The father tried to follow the instructions as best he could but never contacted the kidnappers.
www.ushistory.org/germantown/upper/charley.htm
Please note the Charley Project is named for this case.