Bonnie and Clyde Death Site - Gibsland, LA - Roadside Attractions on Waymarking.com

It was multiple murders that got Bonnie and Clyde on the radar -- despite their legend, they were amateurish thieves at best, drawing the scorn of bigger criminals like "Pretty Boy" Floyd -- but the organization of the posse to catch them is a lengthy account, best left to the reader and a copy of Jeff Guinn's "Go Down Together". The 1967 movie, while entertaining, takes extreme liberties with the facts, such as Frank Hamer's leading the posse to catch Bonnie and Clyde after having been captured and humiliated by them: Hamer never saw the two until their car came over the hill on May 23, 1934.

As seen in the movie, though, Bonnie and Clyde were set up by associate Henry Methvin's father, Ivy, in an attempt to work out a deal with Hamer in which Methvin would not get the death penalty for the murders by Methvin and Clyde Barrow of two policemen in Grapevine, TX. Ivy Methvin's truck was placed on the highway in such a way as to not only impede access, but to also appear to have a flat tire. Against his objections, Ivy himself was placed at the truck, and he had to fib to helpful passers-by that he was about finished putting the tire back on, thanks for the offer of help. By about 9:15 AM, Bonnie and Clyde came over the hill from the north in their Ford, and spotting the disabled vehicle, they slowed down.

Waiting for them was a posse of four Texas lawmen -- Frank Hamer, Ted Hinton, Manny Gault, and Bob Alcorn -- and two Louisiana lawmen -- Henderson Jordan and Prentiss Oakley -- and they were well-armed, given the Barrow gang's own propensity towards having considerable firepower. As Bonnie and Clyde slowed, a logging truck coming from the south also slowed, pulling to the side to allow the Ford to pass, but Clyde stopped the car to see what was happening with Ivy Methvin.

There may have been an agreement that Hamer was to step out and yell for Bonnie and Clyde to surrender, but that opportunity escaped when Prentiss Oakley stoop up and began to fire his Remington Model 8 semi-automatic rifle. Still in the driver's seat, Clyde Barrow was hit in the head and killed instantly. Hearing the shots, the other members of the posse, arranged nearby, began to fire at the now-rolling Ford, and Bonnie Parker screamed as they put about 130 rounds into the car and the couple, all in the space of about sixteen seconds. Hamer himself took no chances, and delivered a final coup de grâce through the windshield into Bonnie.

The remains of the duo were left in the car, described as "wet rags", and the lawmen divided up the contents of the car among themselves. The car was towed towards Arcadia, essentially leading a parade of gawkers, and unfortunately, students of the Gibsland school were treated to a macabre sight when the tow-truck broke down in front of the school.

After the two families retrieved the bodies, separate funerals were held, drawing thousands of people. Bonnie was buried in Fishtrap Cemetery in West Dallas -- she has since been moved to Crown Hill Cemetery in Dallas -- and Clyde was buried with his brother, Buck, in Western Heights Cemetery, nearby.

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