One of the worst gun battles in the history of the City of St. Louis occurred during a year when millions of people visited the city for the World's Fair including criminals with a bent on profiting from the event. The city prepared for the event by hiring extra police officers and forming a special squad of detectives. On August 1, 1904 three suspects robbed an Illinois Central Train, robbing passengers in each of three passenger coaches and blew up a safe before abandoning the train. In September 1904 Detective James of the St. Louis Police Department received information from a former Jefferson City prison guard about the robbery implicating three ex-convicts as the suspects. Detective James and Detective Doyle learned the suspects were holed up in a rooming house at 1324 Pine Street, currently the location of the Soldier's Memorial. The two detectives requested the help of Detective McCluskey, Detective Thomas Dwyer, and Detective John Shea. At 4:00 pm on October 20, 1904, responded to the Pine Street address and recognized one of the suspects, Harry Vaughn, coming out of the building. Vaughn was apprehended at the scene and taken to police headquarters with Detectives Dwyer, Shea and McCluskey remaining behind to arrest the other two suspects. The detectives entered the darkened room and were met with a barrage of gunfire. The gun battle carried on for about 5 minutes resulting in both suspects, Albert Rose and William Morris, and all of the detectives sustaining gunshot wounds. Detective Shea sustained two gunshot wounds, one over his nose and one above his heart, staggered to the hallway and died at the scene. Detective Doyle returned to the hospital as the shootout ended and helped Detective Dwyer to a drug store at Fourteenth and Pine where he was placed on a stretcher and rushed to City Hospital where he died one hour later. Detective McCluskey died at City Hospital the next day.

Suspect Rose died at the scene and Morris died from his injuries two weeks later. Suspect Harry Vaughn was tried by a jury and sentenced to 27 years. Vaughn later led a prison revolt on November 24, 1905 resulting in the deaths of Officer John Clay and Officer Ephriam Allison, of the Missouri Department of Corrections, were killed. Vaughn, along with two other inmates, were hanged on June 27, 1907 for their involvement in the riot.

Detective McCluskey, 33. Interred: Calvary Cemetery, St Louis, MO.

Detective Dwyer, 33. Interred: Calvary Cemetery, St Louis, MO.

Detective Shea, 34. Interred: Calvary Cemetery, St Louis, MO.