Indian River Magazine

11/10/2024

Only 2 weeks left to vote in our Best of the Treasure Coast Contest.
Voting is now open for the annual Best of Treasure Coast contest! 🌟 Support your favorite local spots in categories like Best Restaurant, Best Tourist Attraction, Best Salon, Best Retail Store, Best Brewery, and many more! 🏆
🙌 Don't miss out—cast your vote today and show some love for the best businesses on the Treasure Coast! 💙
👇 Click the link below to vote now!

Vote now for your favorites in our Best of the Treasure Coast contest

11/06/2024

📣 Vote for your favorite local spots in the Best of the Treasure Coast contest! 🏆 Shoutout to last year's Best Seafood Restaurant winner, 12A Buoy in Fort Pierce! 🦐

From amazing fried shrimp to fresh fish and chowder, they never disappoint! 🌊 Let’s show some love for our hometown favorites!

Click the link below to cast your vote today!

Vote now for your favorites in our Best of the Treasure Coast contest

11/01/2024

FINAL INSTALLMENT: The Fall of the Ashley Gang

The Ashley Gang saga ends in blood and betrayal, leading to an ambush. With Sheriff Merritt’s deputies lying in wait, John Ashley and his crew made one last desperate dash, but fate had other plans. Catch the chilling conclusion in our series.

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As November 1924 approached, the Ashley Gang had been reduced to the trio of John Ashley as leader, veteran criminal Clarence Middleton and newcomer Jerold Ray “Shorty” Lynn.

11/01/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series✨

Explore the untold history of Florida's notorious Ashley Gang through the eyes of Steve Carr, who grew up hearing the stories of the Ashley Gang and decades of research. His journey digs into the past to reveal the Ashleys' complex legacy, now preserved in a fascinating exhibit at the Elliott Museum.

Steve Carr’s interest in the Ashley Gang began as a child growing up in Lake Worth, where he would hear his grandfather, William Carr, and friend, Woody Upthegrove, talk about the gang’s exploits.

10/31/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series✨

Sandra Provence, a descendant of Florida’s infamous outlaw John Ashley, shares stories and memories passed down through generations of her family’s legacy.

Sandra Provence learned a thing or two from her grandmother, the sister of outlaw John Ashley, about how to comport herself as a descendant of Florida’s most notorious crime family.

10/31/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series – Part 9: September Search

After robbing the Bank of Pompano, John Ashley and his gang eluded capture in the shadowy swamps, outmaneuvering authorities yet again.

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https://indianrivermagazine.com/september-search/

Palm Beach County Sheriff Bob Baker got something of a break when John Ashley and the gang robbed the Bank of Pompano on Sept. 12, 1924.

10/30/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series – Part 8: Bank of Pompano Robbery💰

After nearly two more years in prison, John Ashley made his last daring escape. But his return would be short-lived—the explosive events of 1924 were just around the corner, setting the stage for the gang’s dramatic final chapter.

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https://indianrivermagazine.com/bank-of-pompano-robbery/

The Ashley Gang and Sheriff Bob Baker and his deputies had settled into a kind of detente in the months following the shootout at the still near Fruita that left Ashley patriarch Joe Ashley and Deputy Fred Baker dead.

10/29/2024

🌟Last year, readers selected Ocean Grill Vero Beach, FL , as the Best Restaurant🍽️ on the Treasure Coast for 2024 in our annual Best of the Treasure Coast contest. But who will be voted the best this year? With just one month left, now’s the time to make your voice heard!

Vote today! Click the link below👇
https://indianrivermagazine.com/best-of-the-treasure-coast-contest/

10/29/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series✨

Growing up, Inez Lynn Hamilton told her grandchildren that her father died in a tragic accident at the Sebastian River bridge. But the truth? Her father, Jerold Ray “Shorty” Lynn, was a member of the infamous Ashley Gang, gunned down in 1924.

As the daughter of Ashley Gang outlaw Ray Lynn, Inez Lynn Hamilton had an unusual —and intentionally misleading — story that she would share with her grandchildren about her father’s death.

10/29/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series – Part 7: Shootout at the Still

After nearly two years in prison, John Ashley made his fifth and final escape—busting out of a state road camp in broad daylight with Navy deserter Wayne Cobb. Back in the Everglades, John kept a low profile...but things wouldn’t stay quiet for long. 👀

After nearly two more years in prison, John Ashley made his fifth and final escape from custody on Sept. 27, 1923.

10/28/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series – Part 6: The Love Interest

Laura Upthegrove was a young married mother of four, but she wanted more from life than marriage and motherhood. In 1920, she left a stable home for the thrill of outlaw life, joining John Ashley and his gang as they ran wild through Florida’s backwoods. 🌴🖤💥

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Besides Hanford Mobley, Clarence Middleton and Roy Matthews, another person worked behind the scenes to execute the Bank of Stuart robbery, casing the bank in the weeks before with how-to instructions relayed by John Ashley from prison. Her name: Laura Upthegrove, John’s lover.

10/27/2024

One month left to vote in our Best of the Treasure Coast Contest.

Voting is now open for the annual Best of Treasure Coast contest! 🌟 Support your favorite local spots in categories like Best Restaurant, Best Tourist Attraction, Best Salon, Best Retail Store, Best Brewery, and many more! 🏆

🙌 Don't miss out—cast your vote today and show some love for the best businesses on the Treasure Coast! 💙

👇 Click the link below to vote now!

Vote now for your favorites in our Best of the Treasure Coast contest

10/27/2024

💰Ashley Gang Series – Another Bank Robbery!💰

Instead of showing up in court to face a piracy charge, Hanford Mobley put on a dress, veil, and heels, and headed straight for the Bank of Stuart. Alongside two accomplices, they pulled off the heist in broad daylight, escaping with thousands.

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http://www.indianrivermagazine.com/another-bank-robbery/

Instead of dressing for court and appearing in Tampa to face a charge of piracy on May 2, 1922, Hanford Mobley slipped on a woman’s black dress and white blouse, stockings and high heels and large-brimmed veiled hat.

10/26/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series – Part 4 of The Boy Leader is here!

Small but fearless, Hanford Mobley grew up in the shadow of his infamous uncle, John Ashley. Raised on tales of crime, Hanford would soon make a choice that sealed his place in outlaw history…

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https://indianrivermagazine.com/the-boy-leader/

With John Ashley in prison and three of his brothers dead from their criminal activities, leadership of the Ashley Gang in 1922 fell to John’s 17-year-old nephew, Hanford Mobley.

10/25/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series – Part 3: Bad Dad

Joe Ashley wasn’t just John Ashley’s father. Though often portrayed as a law-abiding citizen, Joe had a hidden life of crime. From moonshine operations to brutal feuds, his actions paved the way for his sons’ notorious legacy.

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While the patch-eyed John Ashley is historically acclaimed as the leader of what became known as Florida’s notorious Ashley Gang, it was John’s suave father, Joe Ashley, who forged a path of criminality for John and his four brothers.

10/24/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series – Part 2: On the Run

The saga continues with Part 2 of the Ashley Gang series—now available!

After two years on the run, John Ashley returns to hide in the Everglades. When he's finally caught and faces trial, he escapes, only to pull off a daring train heist and rob the Bank of Stuart, losing sight in one eye in the process.
But John isn’t done. After multiple mistrials and a conviction, he escapes prison, vanishing once again into the swamps of the Everglades. The stakes are higher than ever, and the legend of the Ashley Gang grows.

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👉 https://indianrivermagazine.com/ashley-gang-10-part-digital-series/

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https://indianrivermagazine.com/life-on-the-run/

John Ashley spent much of his career as a criminal on the run, hiding out in the Everglades while in frequent communication with his family in Fruita

10/23/2024

Read the full online version of Indian River Magazine's Fall 2024 issue at
https://indianrivermagazine.com/indian-river-magazine-fall-2024-online-edition/

10/23/2024

✨Ashley Gang Series – Part 1: In the Beginning

It all started in the 1850s when the Ashley family settled in the wilds of Florida, battling the rugged landscape and lawlessness of the frontier. By 1911, their reputation ignited with John Ashley’s fatal encounter with Seminole DeSoto Tiger in the Everglades, sparking a blood feud with Sheriff George Baker.

This is where it all begins. Want more? Click the link to become a member today! 📰✨
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The killing of Seminole DeSoto Tiger thrusts pioneering Ashley family on wrong side of law. Today, exactly a century after John Ashley, Hanford Mobley, Ray Lynn and Clarence Middleton were killed at the Sebastian River bridge, the shootout and the gang’s activities still stir the public imaginatio...