Harvey Van Dine

Serial Killer

Harvey Van Dine – One of Chicago’s 1903 “Car Barn Bandits”

Overview

Harvey Van Dine was a member of the notorious 1903 Chicago gang dubbed the “Car Barn Bandits.” Along with Gustave Marx, Peter Neidemeyer, and occasionally Emil Roeski, he conducted a series of armed robberies and murders between July and November 1903. The gang terrorized saloons, train depots, and the car barn of the Chicago City Railway Company, leaving at least eight people dead and several wounded.

Criminal History & Timeline

• Early 1901: Marx, Neidemeyer, and Van Dine are jailed for stealing lead pipe from a school in Chicago.
• July 3, 1903: Neidemeyer and Roeski rob workers L. W. Lathrop and Martin Doherty at Clybourn Junction; Lathrop is wounded and $70 stolen.
• July 9, 1903: Van Dine joins Marx and Roeski to rob Ernest Spires’ saloon (North Ashland Ave). Otto Bauder, 19, is shot and killed.
• July 10, 1903: Van Dine & Roeski rob Greenberg’s saloon; bartender Louis Cohen is locked in an icebox. $25 taken.
• July 12, 1903: Same duo hits Charles Alvin’s saloon; about $125 stolen.
• July 20, 1903: Peter Gorski’s saloon robbed; Gorski shot and seriously wounded.
• August 1, 1903: Van Dine & Neidemeyer shoot and kill saloon proprietor Benjamin La Cross and customer Adolph Jennsen at 2120 W. North Ave; steal $64.
• August 30, 1903: Car-barn robbery at 61st & State St.—Neidemeyer, Marx, Van Dine break in; Sledgehammer used by Van Dine. Motorman J.B. Johnson and clerk Frank Stewart killed, others wounded. Gang escapes with $2,250.
• November 21, 1903: Gustave Marx is arrested after killing Detective John Quinn in Greenberg’s saloon; this leads to his confession implicating Van Dine and others. Detective Quinn later dies.
• November 26–27, 1903: Van Dine, Neidemeyer & Roeski tracked to dugout near Pine, Indiana. Officers surround hideout; Detective Joseph Driscoll is killed, Detective Zimmer wounded. Van Dine wounded in shootout; escapes with partners.
• Late November 1903: Captured after a posse shoots them in marshland; Van Dine surrenders when blinded by birdshot.

Victims

• Martin Doherty (wounded) – July 3, Clybourn Junction
• L. W. Lathrop (wounded) – July 3, Clybourn Junction
• Otto Bauder – July 9, 1903, shot dead at North Ashland Ave saloon
• Louis Cohen (survived) – July 10, Greenberg’s saloon
• Unspecified four patrons – July 12, Charles Alvin’s saloon (no deaths)
• Peter Gorski (wounded) – July 20, Milwaukee Ave saloon
• Benjamin La Cross – August 1, killed at 2120 W. North Ave saloon
• Adolph Jennsen – August 1, killed at same saloon
• J.B. Johnson – August 30, killed at Car Barn
• Frank Stewart – August 30, killed at Car Barn
• William Edmond & Henry Biehl – wounded August 30
• Detective John Quinn – November 21, killed during arrest of Marx
• Detective Joseph Driscoll – November 27, killed during Indiana shootout
• Detective Mat Zimmer – wounded November 27
• L. J. Sovea (brakeman) – shot and killed during hostage train hijacking

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Confirmed Victims: (8)

Otto Bauder Age: (19), Date of Death: 1903-07-09

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Survivors:

Martin Doherty , Date of Attack: 1903-07-03

L. W. Lathrop , Date of Attack: 1903-07-03

Louis Cohen , Date of Attack: 1903-07-10

Peter Gorski , Date of Attack: 1903-07-20

William Edmond , Date of Attack: 1903-08-30

Henry Biehl , Date of Attack: 1903-08-30

Detective Mat Zimmer , Date of Attack: 1903-11-27

VAN DINE Harry | Serial Killer Database Wiki - Fandom

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