Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow have become one of the most overly-romanticized couples in history. Media tends to focus on their loyalty and love for each other, including Bonnie’s willingness to follow Clyde into a hard life of violent crime that would inevitably end in death.
As this criminal relationship may be idolized by some, it’s important to remember that Bonnie and Clyde were cold-blooded killers. During their crime journey, the couple murdered nine police officers and four civilians. The two also enjoyed robbing stores and the occasional bank. During the Great Depression, the press would pick up on the stories of Bonnie and Clyde to show the world just what the crime couple was up to.
Mutual Meeting
Bonnie and Clyde both grew up in impoverished areas around Dallas, Texas. They first met in January 1930 through a mutual friend. After their first meeting, the two seemed to instantly fall in love and began spending all of their free time together.
When they first met, Clyde was already wanted by the police for several crimes. Since growing up in poverty, Clyde had found that thievery was a proven method of obtaining the things he wanted.
Despite falling in love with Clyde, Bonnie was already married. However, Bonnie’s husband had been imprisoned, and Bonnie had not seen or spoken to her husband since a year before meeting Clyde. Although they were never divorced, Bonnie never spoke to her husband again after meeting Clyde.
Choosing The Crime Life
Shortly after he had fallen in love with Bonnie, Clyde was found and arrested by law enforcement. He would serve two years in prison, until he intentionally cut off two of his toes to avoid hard labor. Clyde walked with a limp for the rest of his life.
Clyde’s mother eventually helped secure an early release, though his family thought of him to be more hardened and bitter after prison. Clyde even claimed his first murder while in prison.
Following his release from prison, Clyde immediately met back up with Bonnie. He promised Bonnie that he would find a legitimate job and live an honest, clean life.
However, as the Great Depression had set in, Clyde found it very difficult to find a real job (especially as an ex-convict). Left with little options, he soon resorted back to his old criminal lifestyle. Out of fear of losing him, Bonnie decided to join alongside Clyde. Together, the Bonnie and Clyde crime journey had begun.
The Crime Journey
Beginning in 1932, the couple would endure their crime journey for the remainder of their days. During this time, Bonnie and Clyde robbed several banks, though they preferred to rob small stores and gas stations instead. As they drove across several states in the MidWest, especially rural areas, they would stop at small establishments and rob them at gunpoint, sometimes killing the owners within.
Eventually, a few of Clyde’s siblings and friends joined the couple in their crime spree. They collectively became known as the Barrow Gang. The other gang members assisted in robberies, getaway chases, kidnappings, and murder.
Although she was a criminal, Bonnie may not have been the cigar-smoking, machine-gun wielding gunslinger that the newspapers made her out to be. One image of Bonnie, depicting her holding a revolver with a cigar in her mouth and leaning on a car, was found by police in one of the gang’s abandoned hideouts. The police used this image to show the public just how dangerous Bonnie Parker was. Nevertheless, whether she personally committed the crimes or not, Bonnie was present for over 100 felonies that Clyde and the Barrow Gang committed.
Hunting The Gang
The gang was able to evade law enforcement many times. However, their luck would soon run dry.
After many failed attempts to catch the Barrow Gang, the Texas Department of Corrections hired former-ranger Captain Frank Hamer to hunt down Bonnie and Clyde. Though he was retired, Hamer returned to duty for this special assignment. He was chosen due to his experience and reputation within law enforcement. It’s also believed that other deputies would not shoot a woman (Bonnie) if necessary, yet Hamer was willing to.
Hamer immediately began to track the gang, following their every move as they traveled from state to state in their ongoing crime journey. He became known as the “Barrow Gang’s Shadow” as he followed closely behind them.
In April 1934, the Barrow Gang traveled from Texas to Oklahoma to Kansas, killing two highway patrol officers and one civilian. The gang also kidnapped a police chief, who was later released. By then, Hamer had been tracking the gang for over two months.
Hamer found that the gang was exploiting a state line rule which prevented law enforcement from pursuing fugitives in another state. As the gang traveled from one state to another, Hamer studied their movements and predicted where they would show up next.
The Turbulent Ending
Despite their violent crime spree, the Barrow Gang also made a priority of visiting family members. By mid-May, they were due for a family visit, and Hamer knew about it. On May 22nd, Hamer and his posse set up an ambush along Louisiana State Highway 154.
A former-Barrow Gang member, Henry Methvin, aided Hamer by parking his truck on the side of the highway. This was in hope that, while driving, Clyde would notice Methvin’s truck and pull over to chat. Clyde was typically the driver for the gang, and had no idea that Methvin was assisting the police.
Events unfolded exactly as planned. After waiting a full day in position, Hamer’s posse spotted Bonnie and Clyde speeding down the highway in their stolen Ford V8. Once Clyde saw Methvin’s truck, he pulled over next to it. Just as Clyde began to slow down, the posse opened fire.
Clyde was killed instantly. Police officers later reported hearing Bonnie scream. The shooting did not stop. The posse emptied their guns into the car to ensure that the job was complete. Bonnie was killed shortly after Clyde. In an image taken shortly after the ambush, and later released to the public, Bonnie’s body can be seen inside of the shot-up V8. She was still wearing her wedding ring from her husband, whom she was technically still married to.
Conclusion
In just two years, Bonnie and Clyde were able to commit a crime spree that would become one of the most well-known in American history. Following their popularity, many couples have gone on to say “you’re the Bonnie to my Clyde,” referring to Bonnie’s strong love for Clyde. Her love had been enough for her to give up an honest life for a hard criminal and law enforcement that wanted her dead.
