Robert H. Birch

Robert H. Birch
An illustration of Robert Birch from the Edward Bonney book The Banditti of the Prairies, Or, The Murderer's Doom!!: A Tale of the Mississippi Valley at 18 years old in 1846 being pursued by the law toward the end of his outlaw period with the Midwestern criminals the "Banditti of the Prairie".
Born
Robert Henry Birch

c. 1827
New York[1] or North Carolina[2]
Diedc. 1866 (aged 39)
Arizona Territory, present-day Arizona
Other namesRobert Birch, Henry Birch, "Three-Fingered" Birch, Robert Harris, R. Harris, R. Haris, Haris, Owin, Haines, Gains, Thomas Brown, Tom Brown, Robert Blecher, R.H. Blecher
Occupation(s)bandit, burglar, prospector, postmaster, soldier
Employer(s)Confederate States government, self-employed
Known forBeing an accomplice in the torture-murder of Colonel George Davenport and a member of the notorious Banditti of the Prairie
Military career
Allegiance
Service / branch Confederate Army
Years of service1862-1865
Unit
Battles / warsAmerican Civil War
An illustration from Edward Bonney's book Banditti of the Prairies in which Robert Birch and his accomplices in the Banditti of the Prairie attacked and murdered Colonel George Davenport at his home on July 4, 1845. Birch was later captured and arrested for the crimes and escaped from jail in Wisconsin.
Robert H. Birch with his Banditti outlaw partners, William Fox and John Long burying ill-gotten loot
An illustration of Edward Bonney, from his book Banditti of the Prairies who as a bounty hunter and amateur detective in 1846, began a man-hunt doggedly pursued Robert Birch and his accomplices in the "Banditti of the Prairie", from Illinois to Ohio and back to Chicago for the torture-murder of Colonel George Davenport and counterfeiting.
Robert Birch was arrested for his part in the torture-murder of Colonel George Davenport but because he broke out of jail in 1847, through outside help or bribery, in Knoxville, Illinois his case never went to trial and he vanished without a trace. The October, 1845 hangings of Granville Young and John and Aaron Long, Banditti murderers of Colonel Davenport, from the 1850 book, The Banditti of the Prairies, Or, The Murderer's Doom!!: A Tale of the Mississippi Valley by Edward Bonney, who is standing to the right of the gallows, wearing a top hat and black suit.

Robert H. "Three-Fingered" Birch, born Robert Henry Birch (c. 1827 – c. 1866), was a 19th-century American adventurer, criminal, soldier, lawman, postmaster, and prospector. He was a member of the infamous "Banditti of the Prairie" in his youth, whose involvement in the torture-murder of Colonel George Davenport in 1845 led to his turning state's evidence against his co-conspirators. Birch was also the discoverer of the Pinos Altos gold mine with Jacob Snively and James W. Hicks. During the American Civil War, he served in the American Southwest with the Confederate forces of the Arizona Rangers and 2nd Texas Cavalry.

  1. ^ Thrapp, Dan L. Encyclopedia of Frontier Biography: In Three Volumes, Volume I (A-F). Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1988. (pg. 114-115) ISBN 0-8032-9418-2
  2. ^ Edward Bonney. (1850) 1963. The Banditti of the Prairies, Or, The Murderer's Doom!!: A Tale of the Mississippi Valley. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press 97.