(My commission expires Nov 20^th 1907)

From Winfield Daily Courier, November 21, 1940, p. 1, 5

J. J. Benjamin Dies  in Winfield Hospital

Mayor and Udall Banker Victim of Heart Affliction

Jerome J. Benjamin, Cowley county banker living at Udall, mayor of his home town and a prominent figure in lodge circles of Kansas, died at 12:35 a.m. Thursday [November 14, 1940] at Newton Memorial hospital in Winfield where he had been admitted less than a day previously.  To a heart ailment was assigned the cause of his death.

Funeral services for Mr. Benjamin will be conducted at two o'clock Sunday afternoon from the Udall Methodist church.  Burial will be at Cambridge.

About five weeks ago, Mr. Benjamin suffered a severe heart attach which kept him confined for about three weeks.  The past two weeks he had been feeling much better and had resumed his duties at the bank.  Tuesday morning he suffered another severe attack and was brought to the hospital Wednesday morning.

In County Since 1907

A resident of Cowley county since 1907, Mr. Benjamin was regarded as an outstanding citizen.  He took an active interest in the affairs of his home community and of the state and nation and he was much interested in the people with whom he came in contact.

Mr. Benjamin, at the time of his death, was cashier of the Bank of Commerce at Udall, mayor of the town and secretary-treasurer of the board of trustees of the Kansas Independent Order of Odd Fellows.  He long had been prominent in the I. O. O. F. and was a member of all branches of the Odd Fellowship.  In 1935 to 1936, he served as grandmaster of the state order.  Mr. Benjamin was [an] active member of the Modern Woodmen of America lodge and the Masonic order at Burden.

As a seven-year-old lad, Mr. Benjamin came to Kansas with others of his family.  He grew up in the Lucas community and in 1907 came to Cowley county, establishing his home and business at Cambridge.  Jerome John Benjamin was born March 6, 1878, in Wisconsin.  Mr. Benjamin was the last surviving member of a large family.

Served Many Kansas Banks

Mr. Benjamin was one of the oldest bankers in the state in point of service and his work took him to many towns.  For some time he lived at Wichita.  He served as president of the Industrial State bank at Wichita and several years ago was a director of the Union National bank at Wichita.

Other banks for which Mr. Benjamin held the chief executive position -- sometimes two at a time -- were located at Corwin, Lucas, Durham and more recently, Cambridge.  He was president of the Cambridge State bank for close to a quarter of a century.

Survivors of Mr. Benjamin are the wife, Lucy Davis Benjamin; one daughter by a previous marriage, Miss. Mildred Benjamin of Washington, D.C.; two stepchildren, Mrs. J. C. Landaker of Fort Sam Houston, Texas, and Felix Davis of New York City; and several nieces and nephews.

Excitement run high last Friday morning in Cambridge, When upon opening the doors of the Cambridge Bank for the usual days business it was soon discovered that the bank had been robbed.

Some unknown thief or thieves had entered the building through the front door by unlocking same with a skeleton key. A charge of high explosives was applied to the lock on the vault door which completely tore the lock off and gave the burglars free control over the contents of the vault. Private boxes rented by the patrons was searched of valuables, and the contents scattered over the vault floor.

Bonds and War Saving Stamps to the amount of about $25,OOO were taken from the private boxes placed in the vault, by people in that community for safe keeping.

All but about seven or eight hundred dollars in Stamps and Bonds was registered and will not be lost by those owning them as insurance will cover the loss. The amount lost will be felt by quite a number as the amount was in small lots.

No attempt, as far as could be seen, was made to enter the safe inside of the vault which contain a large amount of money.

The Bank and contents is protected by insurance companies but on account of the robbers not entering only the vault and not the Safe containing the money, no money or damages can be collected from the insurance company.

As soon as the robbery was discovered detectives were summoned and went to work at once on the case but up to the present time no trace has been found of the robbers.

Burden paper 10 Oct. 1919

On the 15th of January 1923, AL Spencer, the notorious bank robber, took a few juveniles over into Kansas for a little training, and a graphic account of the robbery of the State Bank of Cambridge Kansas is told by M. E. Hampton, the bank's cashier.

---Quote--- "I was sitting near a window writing up a balance sheet when a fellow walked up to the window, laughed and said, just as pleasant as you please, "Don't either of you move." The other fellow was a new clerk who took the job just a day previous to the robbery. Mr. Benjamin, the banker, had just gone to the post office to mail a letter to Winfield ordering some currency and was not present as the holdup started, but came along before it was finished.

The bandit after ordering us not to move, enforced the order by flourishing a big .45 caliber revolver in our faces. About this time another fellow came marching Mr. Benjamin behind the cage at the point of a nickel-plated revolver. Mr. Benjamin came back just in time to share in the festivities, as soon as this bandit got directly behind me so he could cover me and the other clerk, bandit No. 1 came around the cage to where we were standing. Meanwhile they left another bandit at the front door. This bandit stood to the side of the door, covering everyone who came inside the bank. This bandit, the one who first covered me and the clerk, and the one we have since learned to call Al Spencer, kept telling the man at the door, who seemed to be an amateur of the outfit, "Don't stop anyone; let them come inside and line them up beside the door."

As soon as he got Mr. Benjamin back to where we were, Spencer said to him, "Mr. Benjamin, open up the jug." Mr. Benjamin said, "Open up what?" Spencer then said, "I'1l knock your block off if you don't hurry up and open the safe." Mr. Benjamin started toward the vault and acted like he was going to close the door and Spencer said, "You shut that door and I will shoot daylight into you." Spencer then shoved Mr. Benjamin up against the wall by the side of the door to the vault and turned around and said, "Who is the cashier here?"

He looked at me and said, "Come over here and open that safe." I told him the safe was open. He walked over, reached into the safe, and took out the bonds and laid them on the counter. Spencer then asked where the cash drawer was. I showed him, then walked up and opened it for him. Then Spencer said, "Bring the money out here." I walked into the vault and picked it up and handed it to him. He then asked where the currency was. I told him, "You have got it all." Spencer said, "You get that currency, or I will knock your head off." The remark was accompanied by some choice profanity.

I told Spencer to look on the book if he didn't believe that was all the money. Spencer then walked over to the daily balance book and looked it over. Meanwhile people kept coming into the bank and the leader between times kept coaching the other two bandits, one of whom stood near the bank employees and the other one stood near the door, what to do.

While Spencer was looking over the daily balance book, Joe Hoyland, an old fellow we call Uncle Joe, came into the bank and never did see the bandit at the door, He looked around and made some remark and this bandit, who was just behind him, reached out and took hold of some checks and currency which Hoyland had in his hand and said what you got there? Uncle Joe looked around and must have shut his hand down on the currency for we found a half of his deposit ticket on the floor afterwards. As Uncle Joe shut his hand the robber hit him over the head with his revolver and as he hit him the gun went off and the bullet went through the floor.

Spencer rushed up leaving the other bandits guarding us, and said, "Who done that?" The bandit at the door told him that he did it because the old man would not give him the money. At this Spencer pulled back and hit Uncle Joe just below the temple and in front of the ear, then he told all five of the men lined up by the door to get back into the vault and do it quick. He then locked us all in the vault.

We got out of the vault in about five minutes after the robbers left and telephoned the robbery to the different towns around Cambridge.

According to Hampton the bandits got about $21,000.00 worth of bonds and several hundred dollars in silver.
                                                              Unknown News Paper