In 1905, the wealthy village of Bedford, New York, found itself under siege by a firebug.
Barns, homes, haystacks, and a grocery store went up in flames, one after another, until the well-to-do families of the Westchester Hills formed their own vigilance committee.
Pinkerton detectives were brought in. Special deputies were assigned. A $500 reward was offered.
But the strangest part of the case was the suspect.
According to reports, the man under suspicion was not a drifter or an outsider, but the son of one of Bedford’s richest families. He was also, curiously, often among the first to arrive whenever another fire broke out.
Rich Vigilantes Pursue Firebug
BEDFORD, New York. — The village of Bedford, in the Westchester Hills, is patrolled by a vigilance committee, formed days ago to protect the village homes from the work of a firebug.
Aided by four Pinkerton men and half a dozen special deputies, under Constable Frederick Kinkle, the vigilance committee, composed of some of the wealthiest of Bedford’s families, expects soon to get definite evidence that would fasten guilt on the man generally placed under suspicion.
Suspect Wealthy
This man is the son of one of Bedford’s foremost and wealthiest residents. The Pinkerton men are all but ready to accuse him openly in a warrant.
Bedford’s population is made up almost entirely of well-to-do families. Most of its men own extensive estates and are engaged in banking or professional fields in New York.
The firebug began his work on the evening of September 26, and since then the village has been in a ferment of excitement.
First on Hand
The first place visited by the incendiary was the grocery store of Mrs. Evans Brown, on the Bedford road. It was found in flames at 3 o’clock in the morning, and was burned to the ground.
The fire department found the young society man on the ground ready to help them.
The next night a barn in the rear of Henry Marquand’s home, a mile away, was found afire. The same society man was one of the first arrivals.
On October 10 the family of the Reverend Frederick Van Hoersen was nearly suffocated in a fire that started in the cellar of their home, next to the church. Oil-soaked waste had been thrown into the cellar. Five hours later the barn in the rear of George Wood’s house, half a mile from the church, was found afire.
Always There
Persistently stories of the strange behavior of the society man were going the rounds. It was commented that he was always among the first arrival on the scene of fire, and his behavior excited open suspicion.
Last Monday evening a man was seen to enter the barn of Miss Mary Woodcock. A few minutes later the barn was in flames.
As usual the society suspect was one of the early arrivals.
The next night the barn attached to R.P. Lounsbery’s mansion was destroyed. After the firemen left, three barns and two haystacks on Miss Woodcock’s property blazed up. The society man was much in evidence that night.
The wealthy men of the village gathering at Mr. Lounsbery’s home the next night, organized a vigilance committee. Pinkerton’s were summoned and a reward of $500 offered for the arrest of the firebug.
Source: The Washington Times. Washington, D.C. October 21, 1905.
