The McCarty's

“The McCarty breed of outlaws was originally from Oregon. They started out as cowboys and cattlemen. From Oregon, Tom drifted into Utah, married my sister, Teenie, become a cattle and horse rustler and then a regular highwayman. George, another brother, was then living near Sumpter, Oregon and had not become an outlaw” – Matt Warner

The McCarty brothers were Tom, George and Bill McCarty. Tom and Bill made up two thirds of The Invincible Three, an outlaw partnership with Matt Warner. Tom McCarty and Warner developed a strong bond as brothers-in-law, a bond that lasted well after Warner’s sister died.

Before creating The Invincible Three, Tom McCarty and Matt Warner robbed the San Miguel Valley Bank with Butch Cassidy. The three men split up after escaping Telluride and McCarty and Warner headed to Oregon to Tom’s brother Bill’s place.

Once they established The Invincible Three, the outlaws set off on a series of crimes that culminated with robbing the payroll of the Benjamin E. Snipes & Co. in Roslyn, Washington. Warner was eventually arrested and tried for the crime, effectively breaking up the outfit. George McCarty, known for living life on the straight and narrow, was arrested and tried alongside Warner despite not having any involvement in the crime. Warner says George McCarty’s only crime was being a McCarty. Newspaper accounts dispute this claim, stating George helped the robbers by watching over the horses used in the crime.

Following Roslyn, Tom and Bill McCarty, along with Bill’s son Fred, formed their own gang and went on to rob the Farmers & Merchants Bank in Delta, Colorado. During the escape both Bill and his son were shot and killed. Tom McCarty managed to escape without injury. As a result of his family members deaths, it is said that McCarty gave up the outlaw life and became a hermit until his dying days.

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