The Last Man
The Last Man: A Novel of the 1927 Santa Claus Bank Robbery, is available at Texas Star Trading Company, 174 Cypress St., in Abilene. The fictional account of the bank robbery was written by Thomas Goodman, who served as pastor of First Baptist Church in Eastland from 1993 to 1998. He has been pastor of Hillcrest Church in Austin since 2003.

By Loretta Fulton

As a pastor, Thomas Goodman is drawn to stories of undeserved grace “and the changed lives that can come from accepting the invitation to start over.”

As a history buff, he is drawn to stories from the past that have a timeless quality. He found both kinds of stories in a historical event that happened in Cisco in 1927. Goodman was pastor of First Baptist Church in Eastland from 1993 to 1998 when he first heard of the “Santa Claus Bank Robbery,” as it’s been known since the robbery of First National Bank in Cisco took place Dec. 23, 1927. 

Thomas Goodman

“When Santa Claus enters a Texas bank just before Christmas in 1927, no one expects him to pull a gun,” a blurb on the back cover says. “The fake white beard hides his identity from his neighbors while he and three others take everything.”

“The Last Man” refers to the imprisoned robber who received a conditional pardon in 1945 from Gov. and a full pardon in 1964. In the robbery, one bandit died in the getaway. Once was executed in the electric chair and one was hanged by a mob. “The last man finds a life he always hoped for…if only he can keep it” the blurb says. 

Goodman earned a master’s degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in the mid-1980s. When working on his degree, he was pastor of Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Mineral Wells. 

Loretta Fulton is creator and editor of Spirit of Abilene