Clyde Chestnut Barrow (1909 - 1934)

Born 24 Mar 1909 in Telico, Ellis, Texas, United States

Ancestors

Died 23 May 1934 at age 25 in Gibsland, Bienville, Louisiana, United States

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Biography

Clyde Barrow is Notable.

Clyde Barrow was born on March 24, 1909, into a poor farming family in Telico, Texas.^[1][2][3] Under the influence of his older brother, Clyde began a life of crime at an early age. In 1930, he met Bonnie Parker. The couple and their affiliated gang eventually went on an almost two-year crime spree that spanned several states, with various gang members committing acts of murder. After sustaining a bedraggled, on-the-run life, Bonnie and Clyde were killed in a police ambush in Louisiana on May 23, 1934.^[4][5][6] Their story has been heavily romanticized by the media, inspiring famous screen and stage treatments.

Early Life

Clyde Chestnut Barrow was born on March 24, 1909, in Telico, Texas.^{[1][2][3][5][6]} He was the fifth of seven children born into a poor but close-knit farming family. His family's farm failed due to drought and they eventually moved to Dallas, Texas. Clyde, who was a small and unassuming boy, attended school until the age of 16 and had ambitions of becoming a musician, learning to play both the guitar and saxophone.^[2]

However, under the influence of his older brother, Buck, Clyde soon turned to a life of crime. Beginning with petty thievery, then graduating to stealing cars, Clyde soon escalated his activities to armed robbery. By late 1929, at the age of 20, Clyde was already a fugitive from the law, wanted by authorities for several robberies.

Bonnie and Clyde

In January 1930, Clyde met a 19-year-old waitress named Bonnie Parker through a mutual friend and was immediately smitten. But after spending much time together during the following weeks, their budding romance was interrupted when Clyde was arrested and convicted on various counts of auto theft.

Once in prison, Clyde's thoughts turned to escape. By this time, he and Bonnie had fallen deeply in love, and Clyde was overtaken by heartache. Sharing his sentiments, much to the dismay of her mother, a lovesick Bonnie was more than willing to help the man she called her soulmate, and soon after his conviction she smuggled a gun into the prison for him. On March 11, 1930, Clyde used the weapon to escape with his cellmates, but they were captured a week later. Clyde was then sentenced to 14 years of hard labor, eventually being transferred to Eastham State Farm, where he was repeatedly sexually assaulted by another inmate.

While Clyde was serving his sentence, he and Bonnie began a passionate correspondence with each other, and once again, Clyde's thoughts turned to escape. Hoping to be relieved of his grueling work detail and paroled, Clyde had his big toe and part of another toe cut off in an "accident.' (As a result, he would walk with a permanent limp and be forced to drive in his socks.) Unbeknownst to Clyde, his desperate scheme was unnecessary—his mother had already convinced the judge in his case to grant him parole. He was released two weeks later, in February 1932.

Deadly Crime Spree

After his release from prison, Clyde was reunited with Bonnie and made a brief effort to go straight, working at a Dallas glass company. But when police harassment caused him to lose his job, Clyde gave up, formed a gang and resumed his criminal activities, with Bonnie eventually joining him. In the months that followed, Clyde and a changing gang committed a series of robberies at various small businesses and banks. Clyde killed a police officer and store owner during his group's crime spree, and thus became a highly wanted man with a price on his head.^[7][8][9]

(Clyde & W.D. Jones)

Deciding to maintain a low profile, in the spring of 1933 Clyde and Bonnie along with gang member W.D. Jones lived briefly with Clyde's brother Buck and his wife Blanche in Joplin, Missouri. But when neighbors grew suspicious of their presence, police arrived at the house and a shootout ensued. The four outlaws escaped, but they left behind two dead officers as well as a roll of film containing pictures that Bonnie and Clyde had taken together. The pictures were published in newspapers around the country, alongside the details of their exploits.

As their crime spree continued, Clyde, Bonnie, Buck, Blanche and Jones were constantly pursued by law enforcement. In July 1933, police officers found them in Platte City, Missouri, and another shootout ensued, during which Buck was seriously wounded. When police caught up with them again several days later, Bonnie and Clyde escaped along with Jones, but Buck and Blanche surrendered. He died of his wounds shortly thereafter, and she was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Jones, after separating from Bonnie and Clyde, would be captured by authorities in November.

In January 1934, Clyde helped orchestrate an Eastham jailbreak for a former accomplice. A prison guard was killed in the process, with Clyde escaping with his friend and several other inmates. Among the escapees was a convict named Henry Methvin, who soon became part of the Barrow gang. With a posse that included former Texas Ranger captain Frank Hamer in pursuit, Methvin and Clyde killed two highway patrolmen on April 1, 1934, in the area of Grapevine, Texas, with Methvin killing a constable just days later in Commerce, Oklahoma. These murders set into motion the events that would lead to Bonnie and Clyde's demise.

Death and Legacy

Bonnie and Clyde eventually sought refuge at Methvin's family farm in Bienville Parish, Louisiana. But when Hamer and his posse learned of their whereabouts, Methvin's father betrayed the famous outlaws in exchange for amnesty for his son. On May 23, 1934, Bonnie and Clyde were driving down a Louisiana back road when they saw Methvin's father standing by his broken down truck. Unbeknownst to them, a posse of officers led by Hamer were lying in wait. When Bonnie and Clyde stopped to help the elder Methvin, the police opened fire. The duo were killed in a hail of bullets.^{[4][5][6][10]}

By the time of their deaths, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were so famous that souvenir-seekers at the scene attempted to make off with locks of their hair, pieces of their clothing and even one of Clyde's ears. Their bodies were eventually returned to Dallas, and Clyde was buried next to his brother, Buck, at Western Heights Cemetery.^[5][6]

Despite their violent crimes and the dogged, ramshackle realities of their existence, Bonnie and Clyde have been heavily romanticized by the media. Their sensational story has seen numerous retellings, including the 1967 Arthur Penn film Bonnie and Clyde,^[11] which starred Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty in the title roles; a 2011 Broadway musical;^[12] and a 2013 made-for-TV miniseries starring Holiday Grainger as Bonnie and Emile Hirsch as Clyde.^[13] Their bullet-riddled car remains on display at a Whiskey Pete's Hotel & Casino outside of Las Vegas, Nevada.^[14]

In March 2019, the Netflix film, The Highwaymen, was released in limited theaters across the U.S., then went digital on Netflix. This Bonnie and Clyde story was told from the point of view of the authorities tasked to stop their crime spree. Among its featured stars were Kevin Costner, Woody Harrelson and Kathy Bates.^[2][15]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Wikipedia contributors, "Bonnie and Clyde," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bonnie_and_Clyde&oldid=714443251 (accessed April 10, 2016).
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3} A&E Television Networks. The Biography.com Website, "Clyde Barrow Biography," https://www.biography.com/people/clyde-barrow-229532
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} Wikiwand. "Bonnie and Clyde," http://www.wikiwand.com/en/Bonnie_and_Clyde (last accessed April 22, 2018)
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} "Louisiana Deaths, 1850-1875, 1894-1960," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FS18-WSW : 10 March 2018), Clyde Chestnut Barrow, 23 May 1934; citing Gibsland, Bienville, Louisiana, certificate number 6207, State Archives, Baton Rouge; FHL microfilm 2,113,573.
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3} "BillionGraves Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VT7T-MFT : 24 June 2015), Clyde C Barrow, died 23 May 1934; citing BillionGraves (http://www.billiongraves.com : 2012), Burial at Western Hills Cemetery, Dallas, Dallas, Texas, United States.
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3} Find A Grave, database and images (findagrave.com : accessed 9 September 2019), memorial page for Clyde Barrow (24 Mar 1909–23 May 1934), Find A Grave: Memorial #58, citing Western Heights Cemetery, Dallas, Dallas County, Texas, USA, maintained by Find A Grave; includes gravestone images
7. ↑ Sherman (Tex.). [Clyde Champion Barrow Wanted Poster, 1932 - Sherman, Texas], legal document, Date Unknown; (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth78880/: accessed April 22, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Municipal Archives.
8. ↑ Dallas (Tex.). Police Department. [Clyde Champion Barrow and Marvin Barrow Wanted Poster, 1933 - Joplin, Missouri], legal document, Date Unknown; (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth78879/: accessed April 22, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Municipal Archives.
9. ↑ Maxey, Albert. ["Barrow Gang" Wanted Poster, 1933 - Van Buren, Arkansas], poster, Date Unknown; (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth78881/: accessed April 22, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Municipal Archives.
10. ↑ Newspapers.com. "Bonnie and Clyde Killed: May 24, 1934," https://blog.newspapers.com/bonnie-and-clyde-killed-may-23-1934/ (last accessed April 22, 2018)
11. ↑ IMDb. "Bonnie and Clyde (1967)," https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061418/ (last accessed April 22, 2018)
12. ↑ "Bonnie & Clyde on Broadway," http://www.bonnieandclydebroadway.com (last accessed April 22, 2018)
13. ↑ IMDb. "Bonnie & Clyde," https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2707792/ (last accessed April 22, 2018)
14. ↑ Cult of Weird. "The Death Car of Bonnie and Clyde," http://www.cultofweird.com/crime/bonnie-clyde-death-car/ (last accessed April 22, 2018)
15. ↑ IMDb. "The Highwaymen," https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1860242/ (last accessed September 9, 2019)

See also:

• "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/MK1N-S39 : accessed 18 January 2017), Clyde C Barron in household of Henry B Barron, Justice Precinct 2, Ellis, Texas, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 126, sheet 4A, family 54, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982), roll 1550; FHL microfilm 1,375,563.

• Fort Worth (Tex.). Police Dept. [Clyde Champion Barrow Fingerprint Chart, 01/22/1928- Fort Worth, Texas Police Department], legal document, Date Unknown; (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth78876/: accessed April 22, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Municipal Archives.

• Dallas (Tex.). Police Department. [Clyde Champion Barrow Fingerprint Chart, 1934 - Dallas, Texas Police Department], legal document, Date Unknown; (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth78877/: accessed April 22, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Municipal Archives.

• FBI. FBI Records: The Vault, "Bonnie and Clyde," https://vault.fbi.gov/Bonnie%20and%20Clyde (last accessed April 22, 2018)

• "Clyde Barrow Genealogy," https://thednatests.com/clyde-barrow-family-tree