I've always felt that Cole was the brains and leader of the James-Younger gang. He was older and more experienced than Jesse or Frank James. Along with other Confederate guerrila's like John Jarrett, George and Oliver Shepard & Arthur McCoy, he formed the early gang that robbed the Liberty bank in 1866, thru the Russelville bank in 1868. The James brothers if involved held minor roles. Their role certainly expanded after the older members died or left, but things were done by consensus by then. After Cole and his brothers were imprisoned in 1876, it was two full years before another robbery happened. Frank and Jesse were no doubt the leaders of the gang. However the type of men recruited were low caliber in comparison to the past.