Sancho, yes they have the wall on display along with tons of historic photos, stories and memorabilia. Mick
Here's something else I found in a very old issue of Motor Age. Frank (as a really young kid) ran in the first ever Nevada 1000 (In a Hudson of course)... His driving partner? Roy Craig. Roy was busted in the 30's for printing fraudulent checks... And then broke a sports car record at Bonneville in 1954 or 55... I think? I do know he was a regular around Tom Cobb and Stuart Hillborn and that he worked with Ab Jenkins in setting up Bonneville as a racing venue.
How many years of the HAMB and we just now hear about this story!?! Awesome. Just awesome. Please continue to read, write, research and report on Frank!
Great story Ryan!! I have a small cabin on a lake in Mercer Wisconsin, When my grandparents bought the place in 1942 a new neighbor moved in across the way, Ralph Capone ! All the town people loved him and couldn't say enough good things about him. He was always involved in the community, was an active member of the lions club ect! He was the first to help a family that was down on their luck by buying them a bag of groceries! But they all forgot the money he used was dirty, Prostitution, Dugs, Booze, Rackets, Gambling!! After his life of crime and spending a few years in the big house, he lived his retirement in the beautiful north woods of Wisconsin. By the way, Little Bohemia where the great Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson shootout and escape is just 10 minutes away from my cabin.!!
What a great read! And to have a familial connection must make you secretly smile, just a little, in spite of publicly being politically correct. Labeled as "Public Enemy #1" certainly qualifies for the title "Outlaw" and by extension those who enabled and supplied them were "Outlaws" too. But I think the elephant in the room may be the "outlaws" (with a small "o") a solid decade before this who were running bootleg hooch in souped up cars to try and make a dishonest buck during the prohibition times. Their casual competitions to see who had the fastest stock (bootleg) car evolved into Stock Car/NASCAR racing, after all. That's not to take anything away or diminish the story. There's definitely a different fork in the road here, leading to bullet proofing, heavy duty armament and a darker shade of outlaw. The moonshiners and bootleggers have been done to death on television and movies, but I can easily imagine the possibility of a movie deal script from a totally fresh perspective.
There is a book in there for sure and you need to write it. Don't let anything stop you from pursuing your talent with the written word. -Abone.
That's a great story Ryan. I have roots down there. Mom born in Holdenville. Grand father a farmer and buried near there. Big money flowed into it at one time. Oil boom opened up the farm country. Plus big rail road culture. Gave us the "Wewoka Switch". Don't forget the "Green Corn Rebellion" back in 1917. Books written about this.....................
Great story and history Ryan. Reading through the comments reminds me of a story my father used to tell me about boot legging moonshine in Arkansas in the late 1930's. My grandfather was a moonshiner and my dad used to help him make it, after my grandfather got drunk one night and scared my father to death making a delivery in the family model-t at about 40 mph, he decided to start stealing the T to make delivery's himself. He told me he caught a few beatings for it ,but after being successful, he was the driver. Within a year my father had modified the T and by his account could do nearly 60 mph and proceeded to return the scare of a lifetime to my grandfather. He told me it wasn't long after He left home to become a truck driver, that was 1940 he was 12, he didn't see his family again until he was in his 30's after serving 2 tours in Korea. There is no glory in outlaws and bandits, but I am proud of my father and the man he became and was.
A few more details for your family history; Air Service Company was located at 241 South Virginia Street in the mid 1960s. At the time that was the center of auto dealers and services in Reno. I recall the black and white sign on the brick building, long since gone and not many photos exist of that area or era from my research. According to a 1964 city directory your notable relative lived at 1445 Monroe St. in Reno, a pretty nice area then.
From what I can tell, when he was working near the airport he called his company "Air Service Garage." At the time, he was retiring from the air and ending his career as a pilot instructor. And he was a pretty well regarded instructor. In fact, he was Aline Rhonie's instructor: https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/aline-rhonie-papers-1920s-1990s However, when he moved to a location near the casinos he changed the name to "Cochran Garage" for a while... And then, when he got out of prison he went back to the Air Service Company name... I'm guessing to lessen the impact of the name. As for his house on Monroe St, it's now part of some Reno Mob Tour... I guess they drive you by it and tell you the story of his shenanigans. Details here: FootPrints - Historic Reno Preservation Society
Damn, you too? My ancestors were pirates from Scotland, had solid alliances with the Norsemen (Vikings) and lost their lands for it, most notably Kisimul Castle and the Isle of Barra. They earned it back by getting the Vikings out of Scotland. In the migration to the New World they ended up in Toronto and couldn't tolerate the winters there. They walked away from 80 acres just outside of the main city and ended up in Muskegon, MI. Out of the frying pan into the fire as far as winters go but they were close to water again. Fast forward to the generation before me, my dear departed Dad was part hoodlum and part hard working honest hustler. He'd buy a Model A for $5, burn it out in Ford Woods, then get $15-20 for "clean scrap". They burned out Cadillacs, Buicks, dozens upon dozens of Fords, even an aluminum bodied Packard towncar they paid $50 for and cleared almost $600 for the 6 tires, the aluminum body and aluminum Packard 12 heads (talk about a crime!). All the while riding with his "gang" of pals around the Oakwood area of S.W. Detroit on their bobbed Harleys and also tearing up the circle tracks in Flat Rock, Mt. Clemens and Toledo in later years. Hoodlums? Y'all tell me, Dad at the back, my uncle Tony at the front.
Cool story...and I pass by the Barrow family station nearly every day in West Dallas.....the levee's just a few blocks away...
I've been desperately seeking a photo of Frank Cochran and a lead popped up on ancestry.com. A closer family member posted this shot in 2013: In the foreground is Ab Jenkins. In the background, wearing aviators, is supposedly Frank Cochran. I'm hoping someone here can confirm that it is someone else? He certainly looks like a Cochran with his big head, short neck, and barrel chest... I believe the shot was taken in 1935, but I'm not even sure of that. I'm learning that these kinds of things are REALLY hard to verify... and that Frank Cochran did not like to have his photo taken.
Oh... and here's two separate physical descriptions I have of Frank: From the Baby Face Nelson: Portrait of a Public Enemy book: "...a slender, square shouldered ex-pilot with an angular face and narrow, dimpled chin..." From his FBI profile: "6', broad shouldered, medium build, barrel chested." They sort of contradict each other when I read them.
Ab Jenkins you say? In 35 he was involved with this too, at least I think it was 35. I'll look it up later but A quick edit, it was 1935. Impressive read here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mormon_Meteor
Ryan - You sir, have a genuine hotrod pedigree. I hope you keep sharing as you discover more. I find this kind of thing to be very interesting. Don't be too hard on old Frank. Those were tough times. If an opportunity to make some good scratch presented itself, a lot of folks took it. My family was mixing up liquor in the bath tub (grain alcohol with coloring and flavorings), putting it in fancy bottles wrapped in straw, transporting and selling it. They were assisted by members of the Los Angeles Police Department.
Providing moonshine to a thirsty public is one thing... Helping scum bags like Nelson and Dillinger is another thing all together. Think of all the kids that grew up without a dad simply because those two existed... Frank Cochran enabled them to exist. Remember, they weren't just bank robbers. Those guys were murders. Further, Frank Cochran was tipping off Nelson as to what the FBI was up to. He was playing both sides of his hand. Had he come forward and been straight with the feds, there's a real chance that the last two FBI agents that Nelson killed would have lived their lives. Yeah, it appears Frank was a pretty good hot rodder for sure... And I think he had a whole lot more to do with early Bonneville racing (and I mean a WHOLE LOT more) than I can prove right now, but that doesn't change the fact that he made a portion of his living supporting murderers. I haven't slept much in the past week because I've been doing so much damned research on this stuff. I think I've finally reached a point where I can stop searching for a while... and that's mostly because I don't like a whole lot of stuff that I've found.
The Jalopy Journal
