A lightly edited transcription of a page 1 article in the 7 Apr 1921 issue of the Simcoe Reformer.
 

Hartford Store Keeper Shot

About 9.30 last Tuesday night, two masked men held up Jos. Howard, the storekeeper at Hartford, shooting him in the right side.

At the time of the hold-up, Mr. Howard was in the barn, tending to some livestock.

The men entered and pushed a gun up against him. When he turned, he was faced by two men and told to "stick his hands up."

Howard made a quick grab and got the gun in his hands, but the robber pulled the trigger.

The bullet lodged is his right side, about 1½ inches from the lung.

The bandits immediately made off and up to the present time their identity is unknown.

Mr. Howard was able to call out and his wife hearing him, went to the barn. She found him on the floor in a weak condition. A doctor was called and he stated that Mr. Howard would recover, but that it would take some time.

The police at Brantford were called on Tuesday night and up until Wednesday noon they had not made their appearance on the scene. From the report, the robbers did not get away with any valuables.
 

A lightly edited partial transcription of the Hartford column on page 4 of the 14 Apr 1921 issue of the Waterford Star.

Hartford

Mr. Joseph Howard, the Hartford store keeper, who was shot by masked men when they attempted to hold him up and rob him, is making a good recovery and hopes to be out of the hospital in about two weeks. He was taken on Wednesday morning, 6 Apr 1921 to St. Joseph's hospital, Hamilton, accompanied by Dr. McCracken of Hagersville, and his brother Mr. Howard.

The bullet was found to have split into two pieces, one of which penetrated the shoulder blade and the other followed the bone of the arm. Dr. Perry of Hamilton extracted the bullet and although complications were feared at first, Mr. Howard is practically out of danger.

On Saturday evening Constable Barber and Detective Greer of Simcoe arrested two Indians, Sherry and Henry, on the reserve near Sixty Nine Corners. They were brought back handcuffed and all stopped at Mr. Howard's store before going to Simcoe. The two bandits, who are both large, husky fellows, admitted owning the revolver and being in Hartford on Tuesday night. Later the detectives got a third man named Webster, who was supposed to have planned the hold-up.

They were traced through the revolver, an old-fashioned 32 calibre, marked in such a manner as to be readily recognized by any one who had seen it before. The revolver had only two cartridges in it, the one the robbers used and the one that failed to go off when Mr. Howard got possession of the revolver.

Mr. and Mrs. Thos. Burton are staying with Mrs. Jos. Howard while Mr. Howard is in Hamilton hospital recovering from the effects of a revolver bullet in his shoulder. Mrs. Joseph Howard and Mr. Wm. Howard were in Hamilton on Friday, calling on Mrs. Howard's husband, who is in St. Joseph's Hospital there.

  
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