Was the union station massacre orchastrated by the KC mob headed by Lazia at the time?I know that Pretty Boy Floyd was at the scene pumping bullets with some other dude,but who was really behind it all and why?I know they wanted to rescue Nash but the KC mob had to at least know abut it and give the ok?!

It was ordered by Chicago, KC helped in the escape of those involved. It is believed now that Floyd was not involved as he was seen in Indiana and wrote a letter to the KC paper dening his involvement. KC provided lodging and vehicles for their escape. Until the mid 80's KC was under the Chicago umbrella so KC would not have a say in the matter.

thanx for the info!cheers!

Yes. it was ordered by Chicago to have Frank Nash escape from the authorities. Nash had many strong connections with many of the Midwest families. The incident has an ironic twist as it was one branch of the old James-Younger gang killing off another branch.

....and during the rescue mission Nash got killed by his own men right?

**All this info is incorrect. Sorry to disagree but Chicago didn't order anything in KC in those days. Kansas City at that time was every bit the machine and power Chicago was. Pendergast and Lazia didn't get bossed by ANYONE.

Verne Miller was the culprit behind the botched escape attempt, and that's all it was a botched escape attempt and nothing else. Miller was a very strange and unpredictable commodity and will be found not long afterwards in a ditch
outside of Detroit after a brush with the Purple gang.

The only old west gang connection is to Henry Starr who pulled the first getaway in a motor vehicle after robbing a bank. There's no connection to the James/Younger gang to this incident at all. Unless you put it in things that happened in Missouri.

**Charles Arthur "Pretty Boy" Floyd was not involved in any way other than Hoover trying to find a reason and headlines.

Yeah looks like the government blamed Floyd and Richetti for the massacre,but the Lazia gang were behind the it

Miller was one of the gunmen, who were the other 2 ?

dgvc63, Vernon Miller's grandfather was a cousin to Clell and Ed Miller both men were members to the James-Younger gang. Vernon's father moved to the Dakato's where I believe Vernon was born. Frank Nash associations can be traced all the way to Henry Starr who was the son of Myra Maybelle Starr and Thomas (Cole) Younger out of wedlock. Floyd associations can be traced back to Henry Starr as well, but he was not one of the shooter. That was what I mean with the ironic twist, Vernon killed Nash.

Your right, Chicago asked for a favor from Kansas City and KC hired Vernon on short notice. After that I believe Miller hooked up with a mobster in New Jersey for awhile till his death in Michigan by the purple gang.

Pendergast did not involve himself in LCN business. Pendergast handled the politics of the city, and many methods of funneling city contracts to his companies such as Pendergast concrete. He had his croneys in positions of athourity such as Harry Truman who was the county executive at the time and Pendergast concrete was the only contractor used for county construction and road projects.He worked with the LCN family as an enforcement arm and as a method to ensure re-election. In return the LCN was allowed to operate without interference or fear of prosecution. Lazia was a politian also, the real power in the family were the mustache pete's, the Digiovani brothers, John Blando, Joe Cusimano, Sam Corrello, Tano Lococo, Jim Balestere were the most prominate members of the Sicilian arm and true power in the KC family until 1950's when many began dying off and the US born memebrs of the family began taking over. Lazia was a front for the Sicilians, he handled getting Pendergast re-elected as he was the president of the Democratic party in the north end 9th ward buy using force to ensure votes for Pendergast, ensuring the dead voted etc. Lazia was a go between connecting Pendergast to the Sicilians. Ater Pendergast went to prison, Lazia was murdered an a Sicilian was made boss. The Sicilians were connected with Capone as KC was a very large Liquor provider for the Chicago outfit. Chicago controled every family west of the Miss river. Frank Nitti attended Lazia funeral meeting with Jim Balestere at the President hotel to discuss Lazia's replacement. Vern Miller and Adam Richiette was not part of the KC family, they were gangsters with alliance with Chicago,KC 's involement in this escape attempt was to simply provide a way out of town. This was at the request/order of the Chicago outfit.

There is evidence that has been presented that Nash and one of the detectives may have been killed by one of the detectives escorting Nash. The type of shotgun they had with them can be fired by holding the trigger down and working the pump action, each time the pump closed with the trigger already pulled and it would fire. This detective was not familar with this weapon, discharged it and left his finger on the trigger, when he worked the action it fired unexpectedly to him, There were pellets in Nash and the dead detective.

I acknowledged the Starr connection to Nash as Nash was a gang member of Starr's early on. The Clell Miller connection is coincidence of name only, there's literally no concrete info on Verne Miller's birth.

Chicago did not control Kansas City in any way during the time of the massacre. Chicago's influence over anything West of the Mississippi came later than the period of time in question.

There's also testimony of a Verne Sankey naming Miller and Harvey Bailey as two of the KC Massacre gunmen. Bailey was a gunman associated with Lazia and Miller.

As far as WHO arranged it...

The four individuals—Richard Galatas, Herbert Farmer, “Doc” Louis Stacci, and Frank Mulloy—who, investigation disclosed, had engineered the conspiracy to free Nash, were indicted by a federal grand jury at Kansas City, Missouri on October 24, 1934. On January 4, 1935, the four were found guilty of conspiracy to cause the escape of a federal prisoner from the custody of the United States. On the following day, each was sentenced to serve two years in a federal penitentiary and pay a fine of $10,000, the maximum penalty allowed by law.

Might be interesting to dig up info on Galatas, Farmer, Stacci *(Melrose Park I believe) and Mulloy.