Disclaimer: (The following story is pure fiction. All names, places and events are coincidental and are only used to embellish the story.)Brink’s Loot and the Medford Quake
by Mark Ryan © 2010
It was early January 2010 and a large magnitude 7.0 earthquake had struck Haiti. There was massive devastation with over 150,000 people killed and homes, buildings and roads demolished. During the weeks that followed, after-shocks struck Haiti again collapsing more buildings with minor earthquakes and tremors felt as far away as the eastern seaboard of the United States.
These after-shocks produced cracks in many roads and buildings from Maine to Florida, toppling house chimneys and church steeples. Luckily there was no loss of life. Each day, the local newspaper had another earthquake story and you could even view updated maps at the internet web site of the Weston Observatory at Boston College. One of the maps depicted the probability for earthquakes greater than magnitude 2.6 hitting many towns in New England with the heaviest concentration just north of Boston.
Since the early 1600s when early English explorers visited New England records have been kept describing the land. Since then, about 19 earthquakes have centered in Massachusetts with intensity M5 or greater. The last severe earthquake of M8 occurred in 1755 at Cape Ann and felt in Boston with walls and chimneys thrown over. Now the Haiti earthquake was causing more minor damage opening cracks in buildings and roads around New England.
Due to the earthquakes striking close to home, the general public was on heightened alert with newspapers, magazines and TV stations reporting stories daily. As a result, local schools and other community organizations began offering information sessions about earthquakes and the geology of the area.
The Friends of the Fells was such an organization that was well entrenched in running weekly nature hikes showing off the new cracks along woodland trails in the Middlesex Fells Reservation. Their web site contained an updated calendar of events and general information about the Fells.
The Fells borders the towns of Medford, Malden, Stoneham and Winchester, just north of Boston, MA along Rte. 93. The Fells Reservation is comprised of over 2500 acres of conservation land with many trails spanning the woods and marked with various colored dots and frequently used by hikers, dog walkers, mountain bikers and families.
Since I am a local member of the Friends of the Fells, I have had the opportunity to attend several sessions over the years and enjoy the hikes along the trails. During these excursions, I have invited my grandchildren, neighbors and some friends to join me from time to time. Recently, I invited a few of my friends from the Romeo gang to attend a hike planned for Saturday. The Romeos are retired school teachers who meet each month for lunch to share laughs and camaraderie. The name Romeo stands for (Retired, Old, Men, Eating, Out), and is an international organization with local affiliates forming all the time.
From our last lunch date, three of the Romeos were interested in joining me for a hike and I said I would call them with the exact information. After getting the details, I gave them a call and told them to meet at 9:00 AM on Saturday morning at Bellevue Pond just off South Border Rd. in Medford.
On the designated Saturday, the Romeos attending were Joe Balsario, Jim Terluccio, and me Marco Greico. There were other local attendees for the hike and all together we made a small group of about ten people including the group leader Steve Williams. Steve was a geologist and worked for the local office of the USGS (United States Geological Service). He was also a local resident and active member of the Friends of the Fells. We all had the required gear, (warm coat, hiking boots, lunch, water, snacks, compass, binoculars and cameras, etc.) and were ready for a 3 hour hike.
Today we were going to walk the Skyline Trail from Bellevue Pond to the Sheepfold. This hike required you to be in pretty good health since some parts of the trail went up and down some steep inclines, although it was clearly marked by Blue Dots. Starting at Bell Pond we walked about a ½ mile along a fire road and then along a short trail to the left to Wright’s Tower on Pine Hill. From this vantage point you could see the Boston Skyline all the way to the Blue Hills and the Atlantic Ocean.
Standing at the base of the tower, the geologist Steve Williams said “The igneous rocks you see around you have an infusion of blue stone called the Medford Dike; it was formed from a larva flow millions of years ago when the Appalachian Mts. were over 15,000 feet high. Then about 100,000 years ago the last glacier flattened the mountains to their present elevation which is only 100 feet above sea level.” He then pointed to a brass medallion and said, “This is marker was placed here by the Geologic Service to identify this rock outcropping”. “You can also see glacier striations or scratches across the exposed granite, produced as the glacier receded north”. “In addition, because of the iron deposits in the rock, a handheld magnetic compass points to the west instead of north at this spot”. “Lastly, you can see some new cracks in the exposed granite which were recently produced from the after-shocks of the Haiti Earthquake”.
We then continued along the trail heading north to the Sheepfold and the Panther Caves. As we moved along the trail, Steve would stop and point out some of the geology as well as the fauna and flora. We saw many broad leaf trees which during the winter are bear of leaves (maples, oaks, birch) and conifers with their evergreen pine needles (pines, firs and spruce and hemlock). We also heard birds in the trees and saw animal tracks along the snow. Steve identified the animal tracks as rabbit, fox, skunk and deer. As we moved along quietly we came upon a small stream in a meadow where two young deer drank from the water. As soon as they saw us, they quickly pranced off into the woods.
When we got to the Sheepfold, the trail intersected with an old railroad trolley track and went across a stone bridge at the entrance, off Rte.28. After seeing this, Joe Balsario’s eyes opened wide since he was a history buff and especially loved old train trolley stories. We stopped at the bridge and Steve said, “From 1910 to 1960, an electric trolley traveled along the tracks from Somerville to Stoneham. Although the primary purpose was to connect the city with the suburb, the trolley stopped at the Sheepfold to let out city folk for the family picnic areas nearby or for a quite hike in the woods”. “The trolley was discontinued after Rte. 93 was built during 1956 -63 to connect Boston to Salem, NH”. Steve also pointed out that the railroad bridge had been damaged by the earthquake after-shocks and contained several cracks.
We then hiked up to the picnic area of the Sheepfold and saw an asphalt track off to the side containing about ten lanes. Steve pointed to the track and said, “This track was constructed in the late 1950s for the soap box derbies. The derby attracted youngsters from surrounding communities to build home made racing cars constructed from wood planks and soap boxes and old baby carriage wheels and race them down the track. Proudly sitting in their creations, the young race car drivers released their car brake at the top of the hill as it rolled down by gravity with no internal power source”. I remember this race track fondly and use to visit the Sheepfold often as a young boy. In 1960, I lived in Chelsea and would sometimes take the trolley or even pedaled my bike out here. It was an all day event but a lot of fun with my childhood pals. I even remember pedaling the bike out to Wright’s Pond to go swimming off Pickle Rock and watching the new highway construction off Rte. 93 while I rode along the old Rte.28.
After leaving the Sheepfold, we approached the Panther Caves. This was a giant pile of large boulders on the side of a hill. The boulders were at least 10 to 20 feet around dropped here by the last glacier. There were dozens piled on top of each other with some buried in the ground. If you were skinny enough, you could wiggle between the rocks and enter some small caves in the middle of the pile. Steve then said, “The caves use to have a lot of bats who would live along the cave ceiling and even hibernate here for the winter. In the summer months they feed only on insects and keep the mosquito population down. However, fungus blight, called the “white-nose syndrome”, has attacked the bats and millions have died off all over New England”. Some of the younger and skinnier members of the group were able to squeeze inside with Steve who had a large flashlight. When they came out, they excitedly described the dark cave and actually saw a few bats clinging to the cave walls. The earthquake tremors had opened up even more cracks exposing more caves to explore.
As we moved around the hillside, we heard some voices echoing from a cave opening. We then saw three men coming out of the cave holding some bags as they stopped with surprise seeing us. Startled, one of the men pulled out a gun and told us to put our hands on our heads and not make a move. Evidently we had caught them in some kind of criminal act. Some of the bags had a logo printed on the side that said BRINK’S. After seeing the bags, my first thought was that these were money bags from the Brink’s Cash Security Company. Had these men just robbed a bank and stored the bags here in the caves?
The one holding the gun told us to move into the cave and keep walking to the end without turning around. The cave entrance was a narrow tunnel that went on for about ten feet and then opened into a large cavern maybe twenty feet high and wide. Steve had a flashlight which helped guide us through the darkness. After we were all in the tunnel and almost to the cavern, we heard a grinding noise from behind us as a large rock crashed against the cave opening. The thieves had sealed us in the cave. The loud crash had disturbed the bats that now started flying around and swooping at our heads. We all rushed back to the entrance and tried to push against the rock. However, the tunnel was narrow and only two of us at a time could push on the rock. Evidently, the thieves had moved the rock by using a long tree branch as a lever. We had no such leverage inside the cave and were doomed.
Luckily I had my cell phone and tried to dial 911. There was a weak signal deep in the cave but it got better as I moved closer to the cave opening. Finally the emergency operator answered and I described what had happened. She told me to keep the phone on and she would have police respond immediately. She also said that she wanted to continue talking until the police arrived. Not only would that keep us calm but it would also help the police track the phone signal by GPS triangulation and locate our exact position.
While I remained on the phone, Steve and the others explored the other end of the cave. Maybe there was another way out. As they looked for other openings with the flashlight, they found where the thieves had dug a hole. Curious, Jim Terluccio moved some of the surrounding rock debris. Eventually, he uncovered some more Brink’s bags which were mostly empty but some filled with checks, bank statements and deposit slips that were dated January 1950. Most of the paper checks were chewed and shredded, probably by animals and used as nesting material. Evidently, the thieves left these behind since they had no cash value. At that moment Jim who is also a history buff said “These bags must be from the Great Brink’s Robbery which occurred in 1950.” As Jim dug deeper into the hole he found some hats, coats and Halloween masks that might have been used as a disguise by the robbers.
When I was a boy, the news of the Great Brink’s Robbery was splashed over the front pages of newspapers all over the world. My mom and dad frequently talked about it at the dinner table. People were astounded by the daring and cunning of the robbers. Their planning went off like clockwork. Although the robbery was a criminal act, the robbers were almost treated like heroes. Simple thieves were able to baffle the great Brink’s Company, the FBI and other law enforcement agents around the world. The Brink’s Robbers were treated like Robin Hood in his plight with the Sheriff of Nottingham.
After being trapped in the cave for about an hour, we heard voices from outside the cave entrance. It was the police and they yelled to us inside. We yelled back that we were all safe but wanted desperately to get out. The police then said that they had called the local fire department to bring in some equipment to move the rock. In a short time the firemen using heavy equipment like the Jaws of Life and a backhoe, moved the rock from the entrance and we all got out.
Relieved that we could now see the bright sky again we were able to calm down as the adrenaline stopped pumping. After, we all gave our statements to the police and described what happened. We also told them what the men looked like and about the Brink’s bags and the clothing we found. Not wanting to hike back to Bell Pond, we got a ride from the police and were free to go home in our own cars.
Later that evening we heard on the TV and Radio News that the thieves had been captured heading north on Rte. 93 in their car. Evidently, other hikers had seen the robbers leaving the parking lot from the Sheepfold in an old blue Buick and carrying a duffle bag. When the police arrived looking for us, they questioned anyone they saw in the area, especially near the parking lot. However, only a few of the Brink’s bags were found in the get away car with only worthless checks and no money.
Several weeks later, the FBI had been called in to investigate the case since they had been working on it for over 60 years. Their records showed that the Great Brink’s Robbery took place on the night of January17, 1950 at the Brink’s Warehouse on Prince St. in Boston. The robbers took over 2.5 million dollars in money and checks which they carried out in Brink’s money bags.
Also, nine armed men using keys that they had made earlier entered the warehouse while two remained outside in a canvas covered truck. Wearing dark coats and caps which looked like Brink’s uniforms and Halloween masks to hide their faces, they went to the second floor and surprised the real Brink’s guards. After tying the guards up and tapping their mouths, they gathered all the money bags and left in the waiting truck.
During the months that followed, all the known criminals from the area were rounded up and questioned but there was never enough hard evidence to link them to the robbery. As time went on, none of the guns, uniforms, money bags, checks, bank slips or money was ever found. However, most of the gang was arrested on other charges and spent the remainder of their lives behind bars. It was also rumored that some of the money was divided up and the rest was hidden in the woods of Stoughton, MA along with the truck which was cutup into pieces. The truck was later found in Stoughton but with no money.
However, the new discovery of the money bags found in the caves of the Medford woods has produced new evidence and new possibilities. Finger prints have been discovered on the checks and deposit slips found in the cave bags that match some of the original gang. Also, the caps and coats found in Medford matched the description of those wore by the original Brink’s robbers as a disguise. The new evidence started to accumulate but still no money.
Evidently, a grandson of one of the original Brink’s robbers, Joseph “Specs” O’Keefe had been one of the new Medford Cave thieves. He had recently inherited an old family house in the North End of Boston and found a map in the attic describing the location of the stashed loot. He was a spitting image of his grandfather and a new Boston hoodlum looking to make the big score. He was certainly following the family tradition.
It is now speculated that after the original robbers buried the money in the Medford caves they sealed the entrance with exploding dynamite. However, animals slipping through small crevices found the bags of money and could have used the paper to make nests just like field mice use loose paper in a garden shed. Also animals could have dragged the money out of the caves a little at a time which then was found by lucky local hikers.
Another speculation is that men working in the area might have discovered the money and took it years ago. There have been numerous work projects around and near the Sheepfold over the past 60 years. These projects involved repairing fire roads and nature trails, building picnic areas and stone bridges, constructing the trolley railroad and also building Rte. 93. All these workmen had ample opportunity to take some of the money a little at a time. The recent earthquakes could have also opened up the caves leaving them exposed to local residence and curious neighborhood kids.
Maybe my original thoughts about the Brink’s Robbers being like Robin Hood actually came true. Although the thieves never had the intent of giving their money away, it ended up that way. What did Robin Hood say? “Steal from the Rich and give to the Poor”.
Comments: (always welcome). Email to markryan82@comcast.net
Acknowledgements:
I would like to thank my Romeo friends for their colorful backgrounds and giving me the inspiration for my stories.
References:
Winter Hikes in the Fells
http://www.fells.org/File/2009-10_Winter_Calendar.pdf
Wright’s Tower
http://www.spotstory.com/spots/show/83
Geology Hike at Wrights Tower
http://arlingtonnaturalconnections.blogspot.com/
Mass Earthquakes
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/states/massachusetts/history.php
Middlesex Fells Reservation
http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/metroboston/fells.htm
History of the Fells – Trolley Cars 1910 –Somerville to Stoneham – CCC WPA 1930 - Soap box derby 1950-60s
http://www.fells.org/thefells/history.cfm
Rte 93N Construction 1956-63 Medford to NH
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_93
Brinks Robbery Jan 17, 1950
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Brink
