Boggs and Buhl Department Store - 1921 Robbery:
Mystery of Jesse Frazer alias Benjamin Stokes

The History of Buhl Planetarium Internet Web-Site author, Glenn A. Walsh, has received the following electronic- mail message regarding the mystery of the 1921 robbery and murder at the Boggs and Buhl Department Store on the Lower North Side of Pittsburgh, on Federal Street one block south of the old Allegheny City Hall which was replaced in 1939 with the original Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science.

The electronic-mail message author, Jason Sampson, requests more information on this mystery. Anyone with additional information can contact Mr. Walsh at: < boggsbuhl@planetarium.cc >.

The electronic-mail message was received: 2022 Thursday, June 9 at 5:01 PM EDT.

On your site, you mention the robbery of June 10, 1921. I have been researching this due to the fact the my Great Grand Uncle was involved. In fact he was Jesse Frazer alias Benjamin Stokes.To my knowledge and research he was never caught. I came across a newspaper article from 1983 claiming he was caught in 1934. However a 1936 interview, with the lead detective, shows he was still wanted. In 1939 an article shows there was still a $4,000 reward for him. I will attach the newspaper clippings. I suspect the confusion came from an incident in June 1934 when a telegram from Sacramento was sent to Pittsburgh asking for information about Jesse Frazer. I wonder if you have any further resources that would help shed light on this. Was he ever caught?

Referenced Newspaper Articles

1934 June 5: Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph

1936 March 5: Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph

1939 March 25: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

1983 January 3: The Pittsburgh Press

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