BLACK POWDER BOOBY TRAPS

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
It's time for the legendary law and order stories of
the wild West. This podcast features of forensic psychologists, then
looks of the history of the most infamous and famous
outlaws and cowboys of the wild West. So sit back,
Parker and take a listen.

Speaker 2 (00:28):
In the lawless days of the American Frontier, black powder
wasn't just for six shooters and dynamite blasts. I was
also a head and guardian against theft. Cowboys, outlaws, and
even banks used black powder and ingenious and deadly ways
to protect their valuables, rigging what were essentially early movie traps.
One infamous tactic involved loading black powder charges inside safes.

(00:52):
If a thief attempted to drill prior champer with the
safes lock mechanism and cleverly concealed fews or pressure trigger
could ignite powder, resulting in an explosion that not only
destroyed the contents, but could seriously maim or kill the
would be robbery Robert. These traps were a last resort
designed to ensure that if a bank or rancher couldn't

(01:13):
keep their property, neither could the criminal. Often compared to
therm height for its availability and impact, black powder was cheap, reliable,
and highly effective in confined spaces, didn't take much to
create a devastating result. While banks employed these measures sparingly,
preferring to recover stolen funds intact, some private citizens and
traveling merchants saw them as necessary to terrence in a

(01:34):
time when law enforcement could be miles away. The use
of black powder booby traps highlights the gritty reality of
frontier justice and self reliance in a world where safes
were vulnerable and trust was rare. Explosive traps served as
a message, steal from me, and you may not live
to spend it.

Speaker 1 (01:54):
Well.

Speaker 2 (01:54):
Largely forgotten in today's high tech world of security systems
and biometric locks, the fiery defenses were once a very
real and dangerous part of the Old West,