Closing Notes, and the "Oregon Boot"
The Mecums had at least one more escape in them. According to one account: "...due to their unruly manner at the local penitentiary the Mecum brothers were transferred to the Kingston Penitentiary in Ontario where they managed another daring escape by knocking out their guards and the hospital surgeon, stealing their clothes and walking right out of the prison under the watchful eye of the warden. They were eventually caught and sentenced to another 19 years."
Prison authorities had had enough. How to punish and control these American wild men? Beatings with the truncheon didn’t work. The boys were used to them, and it seemed to have no effect other than allowing angry and frustrated policemen or prison guards an outlet for venting their emotions. It had no effect on the boys’ future behavior.
But there was one more thing to try: The Oregon Boot.
"Designed by a warden at a territorial prison in Oregon, the boot was essentially a heavy metal ring attached to a metal framework surrounding the inmate’s boot. It weighed between five and twenty-eight pounds, and was used on one leg only, to keep the inmate off balance."
The framework could be extended several inches below the instep, forcing the inmate to lift his leg vertically to walk, an awkward maneuver that put great stress on the hips, knees, and ankles. It was a cruel, but effective means of control. Although many countries banned its use in the early 1900s, for certain incorrigible types, like the Mecums, it was still used in some locations into the 1930s.
And so Bert and Charlie were fitted with the Oregon Boot. It would be kept on day and night for the next five years. It apparently accomplished what all the previous beatings and other punishments inflicted on the boys over the years had not. In the words of Mecum biographer Barbara Richards, “it finally brought an end to their rebellion and defiance.”
In September 1917, after discussions between Ottawa and Washington, Jones County Iowa officials met their Canadian counterparts at the US/Canada border at Windsor, Ontario, and the boys were transferred into American custody. They were given prison sentences in Iowa for the Escape and the shooting of Officer Hamaker. Bert was eventually transferred to Fort Madison. After his release in 1923 he travelled to Minnesota, got in trouble there, served a prison sentence, and then vanished into the mists of time.
Once returned to Jones County, Charles Mecum was sentenced to an additional 5 years for Escape and 1 year for Causing Great Bodily Injury stemming from the shooting of Officer Hamaker. Bert Mecum was sentenced to 10 years for Assisting a Prisoner To Escape. Both were admitted to the Anamosa Reformatory in October 1917. Charles appears to have discharged from Anamosa 4/1/20. Bert transferred to the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison in September 1921.
"Charles Mecum's prison days were over. He settled down, raised a family, was a school janitor in his later years, and died in 1961 in Kansas City, KS."
Bert Mecum's fate remains unknown. He lived in the Twin Cities after his release from prison, but then disappeared.
Constable Traynor, the Winnipeg officer mainly responsible for the Mecums' apprehension, was awarded the first King's Police Medal for bravery. He died of typhoid fever in 1913, three weeks before the medal was to be presented. It was given to his wife posthumously.
Allan Hamaker, the Anamosa guard shot during the initial escape, survived and returned to work, but would not stay long. He left the Reformatory in 1913.
The Winnipeg police force has been armed ever since the Mecum incident. The Winnipeg Police Service has an interesting homepage, including old stories from their archives.