Mitchell Prudhomme
American History
November 26, 2012
Bonnie Parker Before dawn on May 23, 1934, six police officers from Texas and Louisiana—each armed with high-powered rifles—hid in the bushes along a country road in Gibson, Louisiana. At approximately 9 A.M., the officers heard a fast car approaching and prepared themselves for what was about to occur. In the car were two of America’s most notorious criminals, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, her accomplice, unknowingly racing to the scene of their death. Bonnie Parker was born on October 1, 1910 in Rowena, Texas. She was the second child of Charles and Emma Parker’s three children. The Parker family was Baptist, and they participated in social activities of the church. Bonnie’s father died when she was only four years old, so her mother moved the family to Dallas, Texas, to live with their grandparents until she could find work. Bonnie was highly intelligent and excelled in school. She was, however, violent at times, threatening anyone who expressed trouble towards her. There was an incident in elementary school where she held a razor blade to a boy’s throat and threatened to cut him if he ever bothered her again. While capable of bad behavior, Bonnie was filled with affection for her family—especially her mother. At age fifteen, Bonnie became interested in a man by the name of Roy Thorton. She was so infatuated with him that she had his name tattooed on her thigh. Bonnie and Roy married a year later, when Bonnie was only sixteen. The couple lived very close to her old home. Bonnie immediately became overwhelmed at being separated from her mother and convinced Roy that they should move in with her. Roy soon developed such feelings of discontentment towards sharing a house with Bonnie’s mother that he would stay away for days at a time. His absences put a strain on their marriage and the two separated in December of 1927. Roy returned more than a year later, and Bonnie realized that she no longer loved her husband. Their relationship ended when Bonnie and her mother kicked Roy out of their home. Months after their separation, Roy robbed a bank and was sentenced to five years in prison. In early 1930, Bonnie moved in with her friend in West Dallas to help with housework, for her friend had a broken arm. One day, a man named Clyde Barrow stopped by to offer his assistance to Bonnie’s friend. Bonnie instantly fell in love with him and was thrilled to take him home to meet her mother. On the night that Clyde met Mrs. Parker, police found him at Bonnie’s home and arrested him for multiple burglaries in the state of Texas. Bonnie was devastated after Clyde’s arrest, and was willing to do whatever it took for the two of them to be together. She smuggled a gun into Clyde’s cell, so that he could escape the jail with two other prisoners. This was Bonnie’s first criminal act and certainly not her last. Clyde was eventually found by the police and sent back to jail where he received a fourteen-year prison sentence. Under certain circumstances, he was put on parole and was released on February 2, 1932. Following his release, Bonnie and Clyde were reunited at last. Bonnie joined Clyde and his associate, Raymond Hamilton, in their life of crime; the three of them were known as “the Barrow Gang.” In a stolen car, they unsuccessfully tried to rob a store in Kaufman, Texas. They were quick enough to escape the scene; however, cops were able to chase them down muddy dirt roads. The gang’s car eventually became buried in the mud, and the three bandits were forced to escape by running through cane fields in different directions; Bonnie was caught. She was eventually released from jail due to lack of evidence, and rejoined the Barrow Gang. Traveling in stolen vehicles through Texas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahomah, the