They probably spent the night of June 8: Other books cite June 9 as the night Clyde, Bonnie, and W.D. spent in Vernon. But interviews with Doris Stallings and Harold Caldwell seem to establish that on June 9 the trio was already in Wellington. They probably left West Dallas a day earlier than has been previously realized.
the arrival of three well-dressed strangers: Harold Caldwell and Doris Stallings interviews.
Chapter 17: Disaster in Wellington, Murder in Arkansas
In 1980, Jack Pritchard gave an extended interview to members of the Collingsworth County Museum board about the events of June 10. These are amazing in that they’re in no way self-laudatory. Forty-seven years after the events, Pritchard told a plain story without embellishments in “Eyewitness Account of Bonnie & Clyde Escapade.” Wellington city marshal Paul Hardy also offered his account of what happened, and Winston Ramsey reprinted almost all of it in On the Trail of Bonnie and Clyde Then and Now. Cumie and Marie Barrow Scoma’s unpublished manuscripts provide Clyde’s version of what happened.
In 1997, James R. Knight, coauthor with Jonathan Davis of Bonnie and Clyde: A Twenty-first Century Update, published a well-researched article, “Incident at Alma: The Barrow Gang in Northwest Arkansas,” in the Arkansas Historical Quarterly, that includes much of the detail about the flight of the Barrow Gang to Fort Smith and the murder of Marshal Henry Humphrey in Alma.
The physical description of Wellington and its surrounding countryside come from personal observation. It is desolate out there.
Sam and Sallie Pritchard had their extended family over: “The Rounds of One Old Country Boy,” by Jack Pritchard as told to the Covington County Museum, 1980. Almost the entire description of the event from the perspectives of the Pritchards and the Cartwrights comes from this article.
Her right leg was coated with acid: Rhea Leen Linder interview.
the hide on right her leg was gone: Jones, “Riding with Bonnie and Clyde.”
Gladys began swabbing her wounds with baking soda: Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, p. 87.
He told W.D. to stay at the house: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 104.
Based on Alonzo Cartwright’s description: Ramsey, On the Trail of Bonnie and Clyde Then and Now, pp. 134–40.
Gladys Pritchard Cartwright worried that her baby: Pritchard, “The Rounds of One Old Country Boy.” In her unpublished memoir, Marie Barrow Scoma said the shooting occurred while Clyde was still down in the riverbed retrieving guns. But Jack Pritchard was there and Marie wasn’t.
When Bonnie was carried over to Buck’s car: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, p. 95.
But he was touched by how gentle they had been with Bonnie: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, pp. 106–7.
Wellington residents trooped out to the crash site: Harold Caldwell and Doris Stallings interviews.
Each day when they stopped, Blanche was dispatched: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, p. 97.
They rented two cabins: Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, p. 90.
he went to the office of Dr. Walter Eberle: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, p. 98; Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, p. 90.
Ted Hinton even visited the Barrows and Emma Parker: Hinton, Ambush, pp. 53–54.
But Clyde wanted Billie Jean: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 107; The Truth About Bonnie and Clyde as Told by Billie Jean Parker.
Around midnight Ted Hinton drove into West Dallas: Hinton, Ambush, pp. 54–55.
Things hadn’t gone well in Fort Smith: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 98–101.
Clyde insisted that his brother and W.D.: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 109.
Buck and W.D. left the Twin Cities Tourist Camp: James R. Knight, “Incident at Alma: The Barrow Gang in Northwest Arkansas,” Arkansas Historical Quarterly 56, no. 4 (Winter 1997), pp. 404–7.
he did relieve Ewell of thirty-five cents: Ramsey, On the Trail of Bonnie and Clyde Then and Now, p. 145.
As it happened, the fifty-one-year-old Humphrey: Knight, “Incident at Alma,” pp. 402–3, 404–7.
Another clipped off two of W.D.’s fingertips: Jones, “Riding with Bonnie and Clyde.”
By then, Crawford County sheriff Albert Maxey had another charge besides murder: Knight, “Incident at Alma,” pp. 407–20; Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 113.
Clyde quickly organized the gang’s escape: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 112; Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 101–4.
he didn’t want to steal their property: The Truth About Bonnie and Clyde as Told by Billie Jean Parker.
Chapter 18: The Last Interlude
Blanche Caldwell Barrow’s My Life with Bonnie and Clyde continues to be a valuable resource, but as the tragic events of Platte City/Dexter begin to play out, Blanche’s recollection of them becomes increasingly colored by self-pity and an ongoing obsession with blaming everything that happened there on Clyde. I don’t accept some of her more outrageous claims, including that just before the Platte City shootout Buck accused Clyde of a willingness to sacrifice everyone else to save himself. But her account can’t be completely dismissed—Blanche was there.
Dr. Julian Fields of Enid, Oklahoma: Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, p. 97.
he took Billie Jean just over the Texas state line: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, pp. 113–14; Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 106–7. Blanche writes that Clyde didn’t send Billie Jean home until after July 4, but Marie makes it clear she was back in West Dallas at least a week earlier. Marie is more reliable on dates than Blanche.
The Barrow brothers returned about 4 A.M.: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 107–8; Ramsey, On the Trail of Bonnie and Clyde Then and Now, pp. 153–55.
In a series of postcards to West Dallas: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 116.
Bonnie “never walked any more straight”: The Truth About Bonnie and Clyde as Told by Billie Jean Parker; Cumie Barrow unpublished manuscript.
W. D. Jones said later: Jones, “Riding with Bonnie and Clyde.”
the five of them showed up in Fort Dodge, Iowa: Ramsey, On the Trail of Bonnie and Clyde Then and Now, pp. 156–57; Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 99–100.
Buck didn’t want to stop for the night: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 109–10.
That was when a gang of mobsters: Helmer and Mattix, The Complete Public Enemy Almanac, pp. 352–54; Rick Mattix interview.
He pulled up at Slim’s Castle: Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, p. 100.
Buck and W.D. curled up on the floor of the Ford: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, p. 110.
they had never been the target of any organized pursuit: Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, p. 101.
Joplin chief of detectives Ed Portley sent a letter: Joplin Archives, July 18, 1933. Copy obtained from Texas Rangers Hall of Fame in Waco, Texas.
Though coordinated pursuit of criminals was practically unheard of on an interstate basis: Ben Procter and Mitchel Roth interviews.
Chapter 19: The Platte City Shootout
Blanche Barrow’s My Life with Bonnie and Clyde offers her detailed perspective on the horrific gunfight in Platte City, plus events leading up to and following the battle. Clyde Barrow gave his version of events to his family, and they are included in his sister Marie’s unpublished memoir.
There are two additional sources of fresh, insightful material. Crime historian Rick Mattix privately published The “Bloody Barrows” Come to Iowa, a fourteen-page, meticulously researched article about Platte City and Dexfield Park that includes material gleaned from interviews with several now deceased witnesses. Retired Missouri highway patrolman Thomas Whitecotton, a member o
f the posse that shot it out with the Barrow Gang in Platte City, recorded his reminiscences for the highway patrol archives in 2006.
N. D. Houser…was suspicious: Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, p. 100.
undoubtedly looted earlier in the day from the cash registers and gum machines: This is speculation, but still informed. A witness to subsequent Barrow Gang gas station robberies in Oklahoma said they routinely broke into gum machines as part of their holdups.
He gave her more loose change: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, p. 111.
He told his family later: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 117.
When Buck woke up: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, p. 112.
The Barrow Gang had no idea: Thomas Whitecotton, To Serve and Protect: A Collection of Memories (Missouri State Highway Patrol archives, 2006).
he didn’t get the hoped-for offer of cooperation: Francis Williams, “The Day Bonnie and Clyde Shot It Out with the Law in Ferrelview,” Discover North, March 1974, p. 4.
At some point, either Clyde or Blanche walked: This is a point of considerable dispute. According to newspaper accounts, witnesses remember Blanche going to the drugstore for medical supplies. Her jodhpurs made a distinct impression. But in her unpublished memoir, Marie Barrow Scoma says her brother Clyde not only ran the errand, he realized lawmen were gathering near the cabins, sneaked back, and told the others to pack and get ready to run. The attack occurred before they could get away. That doesn’t seem likely. Clyde had avoided going outside at all, and as leader of the gang he always told Blanche or W.D. to run errands. I suspect Clyde didn’t want his family to know that his poor decision to stay an extra night at the Red Crown cabins resulted in Buck being fatally wounded. By spinning a tale of how he alertly noticed the law preparing to strike and almost foiled the attack, he attempted to mitigate his guilt. The only reason not to completely discount Clyde’s version is that in her memoir, Blanche herself says Clyde went to get the medicine, taking W.D. with him. She may have been confused. What is certain is that Clyde did not sneak back to the cabins and tell everyone they had to go before the law descended on them. Patrolman Thomas Whitecotton’s testimony notes the attack was launched at 1 A.M., at least six or seven hours after Clyde would have gone to the drugstore. Clyde told his family the assault on the cabins occurred about 10 P.M.
Buck and Blanche talked about what they wanted to do next: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 112–13. Blanche adds that they also talked about dying and being buried together, but that is probably embellishment.
Around 1 A.M. on July 20, Baxter and Coffey gathered their men together: The description of the gun battle and the gang’s subsequent escape blends information from these sources: Whitecotton, To Serve and Protect; Mattix, The “Bloody Barrows” Come to Iowa, pp. 2–4; Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde pp. 115–24; Jones confession; Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, pp. 119–20; Rick Mattix interview.
Coffey’s nineteen-year-old son, Clarence, was one of the highway patrolmen: Most historians, writing about the Platte City shootout, indicate Clarence Coffey was a civilian witness. But his May 23, 1979, obituary in the Kansas City Star states he was a member of the highway patrol and participated in the gun battle.
Chapter 20: The Battle of Dexfield Park
Blanche Barrow’s My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, Marie Barrow Scoma’s unpublished memoir, and Rick Mattix’s The “Bloody Barrows” Come to Iowa are essential in describing the events in Dexfield Park on July 24, 1933. But there’s a third source of critical, insightful information. In July 2007, I interviewed ninety-three-year-old Marvelle Feller at an assisted living facility just outside Dexter. A charming man whose memory remained pristine, he enjoyed spending an hour recalling his meeting with Clyde, Bonnie, and W.D. in the aftermath of the park attack. Afterward, Feller’s daughter-in-law Doris, who currently heads the town’s historical society, took me on a tour of the former Dexfield Park as well as the farm once owned by her father-in-law’s family. Artifacts in the town museum were also instructive.
Based on reminiscences of her father-in-law and other longtime Dexter residents, Doris Feller has written an article titled The Beginning of the End for Bonnie and Clyde. Information from that article is also included in this chapter.
Clyde and W.D. dug a grave for Buck: Marvelle Feller interview.
She kept telling him she wanted to go with him: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, p. 126.
He made a clumsy attempt to disguise: Marvelle Feller interview.
W.D. confessed he was ready to give up: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 126–27.
Later it would become town lore: Doris Feller interview.
Clyde bought several shirts: Mattix, The “Bloody Barrows” Come to Iowa, p. 4; Marvelle Feller interview.
he might be able to fulfill a promise: Knight with Davis Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 105–6.
they’d tried to pluck it out with tweezers but failed: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, p. 128.
Henry Nye, a hired hand for one of the local farmers: Marvelle Feller and Doris Feller interviews.
he told store clerk and night marshal John Love about what he’d found: Mattix, The “Bloody Barrows” Come to Iowa, p. 5.
Bonnie, wracked with pain herself, generously offered: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, p. 128.
Back in Dexter, the lawmen convened to plan: Marvelle Feller interview; Mattix, The “Bloody Barrows” Come to Iowa, p. 5.
Then someone in the posse stepped on brittle brush: Mattix, The “Bloody Barrows” Come to Iowa, pp. 5–7; Marvelle Feller interview; Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 129–35; Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, pp. 122–24.
Bonnie told W.D. she wished she had a gun: Fortune, ed., Fugitives, p. 140.
nineteen-year-old Marvelle Feller wondered: Marvelle Feller and Doris Feller interviews.
that car was found abandoned in Broken Bow: Mattix, The “Bloody Barrows” Come to Iowa, pp. 7–8; Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 125.
Chapter 21: Buck and Blanche
Marie Barrow Scoma’s unpublished memoir offers the Barrow family take on what happened to Buck and Blanche. Blanche, of course, offers a firsthand account in My Life with Bonnie and Clyde. Billie Jean Parker described the scene at Buck’s deathbed in a 1968 interview. In Platte City a lovely woman named Lu Durham, the daughter of the doctor who treated Blanche in the Platte County Jail, was especially helpful in recounting her father’s description of how his famous patient looked and acted.
Doctors Keith Chapler and Robert Osborn were performing an early-morning tonsillectomy: Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 108–10.
At first the lawmen tried to keep them separated: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 135–36.
Schmid or one of his officers provided money: The Truth About Bonnie and Clyde as Told by Billie Jean Parker.
two Arkansas lawmen came to Perry: Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 113–14.
Buck was delirious whenever he was conscious: The Truth About Bonnie and Clyde as Told by Billie Jean Parker.
Emma tried to lend moral support to Cumie: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 125.
Marie Barrow told friends later: Jonathan Davis interview.
A Des Moines doctor extracted glass from her eyes: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 138–39.
Blanche was interrogated: Ibid., pp. 139–40; Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 113–14.
she had to face another, and far more terrifying, interrogator: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, p. 289 (editor’s note); Knight with Davis, Bonnie and Clyde, p. 114; Ann Hagedorn, Savage Peace: Hope and Fear in America (Simon & Schuster), pp. 327
–33, 370–71, 413.
On Tuesday afternoon, July 25, Blanche was handed over: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 140–41.
Dr. Durham liked Blanche: Lu Durham interview.
On Saturday, July 29, Blanche woke up in her Platte City cell: Blanche Caldwell Barrow, My Life with Bonnie and Clyde, pp. 142–43.
they found a poem titled “Sometime”: Ibid., pp. 197–98.
Chapter 22: Struggling to Survive
Because they lay low to heal from the injuries suffered at Dexfield Park, very little specific is known about Clyde and Bonnie’s movements during August 1933. There is also considerable confusion about what criminal acts they committed once they were back in Texas. In Ambush, Ted Hinton insists the duo reintroduced themselves in their home state by robbing an East Texas oil company office. Marie Barrow Scoma is just as certain they weren’t involved. Newspapers credited them with dozens of Dallas-area robberies, but again there’s no definitive proof of anything.
Details on the Sowers ambush are mostly gleaned from Marie Barrow Scoma’s unpublished memoir and Ted Hinton’s Ambush. Neither is entirely objective, but both of them were there.
Oklahoma historian Terry Whitehead interviewed Bessie Floyd, Pretty Boy’s sister-in-law, in December 1990. She recalled quite well her encounter with Clyde and Bonnie following the ambush in Sowers.
they were all wrapped in sheet: Jones, “Riding with Bonnie and Clyde.”
Clyde decided to throw off potential pursuit: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 128.
But W.D. told Clyde and Bonnie the same thing: Ibid., pp. 128–29.
The Barrows and Parkers were shocked at Bonnie’s appearance: Fortune, ed., Fugitives, pp. 145–46.
They planned to bury him alongside Buck: Marie Barrow Scoma with Davis unpublished manuscript, p. 140.
He volunteered to drive his mother and sisters: Ibid., pp. 133–34.
Jeff Guinn Page 48
