Eric and I love learning new things as we travel.
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Our drive took us near Gibsland, so we stopped to visit The Bonnie and Clyde Ambush Museum & learn about the outlaw lovers.
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A picture of Bonnie Parker
& Clyde Barrow.
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Eric & I learn of Bonnie Parker &
Clyde Barrow's backgrounds &
follow their cross-county
crime spree in the town where
they ate their last meal...
Clyde Barrow was born on a Tenant Farm near Telico, Texas in 1909. The family moved to West Dallas where his father opened a Gas Station. Clyde and an older brother, Buck took to thieving and got into trouble with the police for stealing turkeys and cars.
Bonnie Parker was born in Rowena, Texas in 1910. Bonnie dropped out of school when she was 16 and married Roy Thornton. It was an unhappy marriage. Roy was sent to prison for five years for robbery, leaving Bonnie to fend for herself as a waitress.
Bonnie met Clyde in January 1930 at the home of mutual friends. The attraction was instantaneous. Clyde was sentenced to prison for two years for previous crimes. Bonnie was devastated.
She smuggled a gun into Clyde which he used to break out of prison. Clyde was re-captured and sentenced to 14 years in Eastham Prison Farm near Weldon, Texas. He was paroled after a short stay.
Working odd jobs didn't appeal to Clyde. He returned to his criminal career, robbing stores because they were plentiful and didn't have security, like banks. Things went wrong during a General Store Robbery in April 1932 and the owner, John Bucher was killed.
Clyde had added murder to his list of crimes. He would be hunted down and returned to prison. Clyde vowed he'd never return to prison and made plans to get out of town. If Bonnie went with him they would be wanted fugitives on the run...
For the next two years, Bonnie and Clyde robbed dozens of stores, gas stations, and banks. They also stole cars as they made their way across Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Louisiana, and New Mexico, The duo acquired pistols and rifles during their spree.
Bonnie and Clyde committed their crimes near state borders and would flee to the nearest state because the police couldn't follow them into another state's jurisdiction.
They were hunted relentlessly by the police, involved in shootouts, and escaped lawmen several times. The police found rolls of film and Bonnie's poetry at an apartment they raided in Joplin, Missouri.
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published and their fame grew...
The Museum's collection includes some of the photos the police developed and published in the newspapers across America.
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Bonnie, with a cigar in
her mouth & holding
a pistol
Bonnie and Clyde would meet Clyde's brother, Buck, other members of the Barrow family, and other members of the Barrow Gang. Sometimes they committed crimes and traveled together.
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Bonnie, showing off her
outfit in front of a
stolen car
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Bonnie & Clyde enjoying
the sun...
Bonnie and Clyde escaped an attempted ambush near Platte City, Missouri in July 1933, and continued their crime spree as they fled the police.
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Bonnie, pointing a
rifle at Clyde
In May 1933 a warrant was issued in Texas for Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow for the interstate transportation of a stolen car from Illinois into Dallas, Texas, and Oklahoma. The FBI joined the chase for the notorious duo.
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Clyde cleans a gun as
Bonnie sits nearby at
their campsite.
Bonnie and Clyde's multi-state crime exploits were followed closely by the American public. In January 1934 the duo attacked Eastham Prison Camp to free Clyde's brother, Buck, sister-in-law, Blanche, Raymond Hamilton, W.D. Jones, and Henry Methvin.
Retired Texas Ranger Frank Hamer was hired by the Texas Prison officials to track Bonnie and Clyde. In April 1934 an FBI investigation provided information that the couple was in the Ruston area. It was only a matter of time until the lovers met their end...
I return to the Bonnie & Clyde
Ambush Museum because
next door is where the
notorious duo ate their last
meal.
Bonnie and Clyde started their last day, May 23, 1934, at Ma Canfield's (now Canfield's Cafe) in Gibslsand, Louisiana.
They entered at 8:00 am on May 23, 1934. Bonnie and Clyde sipped coffee and ate doughnuts for breakfast and ordered a Fried Baloney Sandwich and a BLT to go.
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The Canfield Cafe's Counter
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Paintings of photos of
Bonnie & Clyde
cover the walls.
Bonnie and Clyde returned to their stolen car and drove south on Highway 154 out of Gibsland. Clyde had an uncanny ability to navigate country roads. Two and a half miles later he made the decision to stay on Highway 154, passing by Highway 517. Five miles down the road at GPS Coordinates 32.4414, -93.0926, near Sailes, a posse of Louisiana and Texas State Police waited in the bushes for their prey. When Bonnie and Clyde's stolen car appeared, they opened fire. Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were killed instantly.
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A photo of the car that
Bonnie & Clyde died in.
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Retired Texas Ranger
Frank Hamer
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A display of the weapons
that were found in
Bonnie & Clyde's car
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the duo's death.
Their bodies were kept under
guard in Dallas, Texas.
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The Death Car went on tour...
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Eric & I spent time in
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Bonnie & Clyde wanted to be
buried together, but Bonnie's
mother would not allow that.
Clyde is buried in Western
Bonnie is buried in Crown Hill
The poem above their grave's display was written by Bonnie...
Someday they'll go down together;
And they'll bury them side by side;
To few it'll be grief ~
To the law a relief ~
But it's death for Bonnie and Clyde.
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It was taken across America
for millions to view.
America likes its 'bad boys and bad girls.' There was a lot written about Gangsters during Prohibition. Gangster movies became popular in the early 1930s. Lovers on a crime spree is a great story. Many books have been about Bonnie and Clyde. I remember when the 1967 Bonnie and Clyde film was in the theaters.
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starred in the 1967 movie
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The replica car used in the
movie was painted yellow
so the audience could
see the bullet holes.
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Gibsland hosts the
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the Gift Shop.
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Eric says goodbye to
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My favorite souvenir is the
Bonnie & Clyde Lunch Box.
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Mr. Kitty.
Perry Carver, in the
background runs
this unique museum.
If you're traveling on Interstate 20 in Louisiana, make the time to visit The Bonnie and Clyde Ambush Museum. You'll be glad you did.
Eric and I return to the motorhome and drive south to the memorials at the site where Bonnie and Clyde died in a hail of bullets 88 years ago.
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