90 Years Ago Today: The Bonnie and Clyde Ambush

On this day, 90 years ago, the infamous criminal duo Bonnie Elizabeth Parker and Clyde Chestnut "Champion" Barrow died after a Hollywood-style police ambush.

Pictured: the duo in 1932.

Bonnie and Clyde were lovers who were bandits and murderers that traveled throughout the United States with their gang during the Great Depression. 

The couple earned fame and a reputation as being 20th-century Robin Hoods, with many at the time praising them and claiming that the duo were standing up against banks and the oppressive authorities. 

Their fans in the 1930s believed that Bonnie and Clyde were sharing the booty obtained from their robberies with the poor and the oppressed. Pictured: Clyde in circa 1932.

However, as Smithsonian magazine points out, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were far from anti-establishment heroes. Rather than rob banks, they usually stole from small businesses and even funeral homes. Pictured: Bonnie circa 1932, possibly in Texas.

In fact, their criminal careers began about five years before the Great Depression, and they never actually shared their stolen riches with the poor.

According to National Geographic, in the 1930s, the police were desperate to catch the fugitive duo, particularly since it was believed they had murdered at least nine police officers and four civilians.

While the pair managed to evade the authorities for nearly 21 months, on May 23, 1934, Bonnie and Clyde's time was up. 

According to the book 'Ambush: The Real Story of Bonnie and Clyde' by Ted Hinton, on that day, a police posse was hiding in the bushes along the Louisiana State Highway 154 south of Gibsland toward Sailes, hoping to catch Bonnie and Clyde as they passed the area.

Pictured: Four members of the six-man posse, who ambushed and killed Bonnie and Clyde.

The police had been tracking the duos movement however they were about to give up after many hours of waiting when they heard a vehicle approaching at a high speed.

Clyde was at the wheel of a Ford Model 40 B Fordor Deluxe sedan (the same model pictured here) and slowed down to help Ivan Methvin, the father of Henry Methvin, a member of Bonnie and Clyde's gang. 

However, Ivan Methvin was secretly collaborating with the police in an attempt to save his son Henry (pictured) from the death penalty for his crimes.

Photo by FBI, Wikimedia Commons

The police took advantage of their opportunity and fired a total of at least 130 rounds, according to the Smithsonian, killing Bonnie and Clyde. Pictured here is the site of the ambush i 1934.

Photo by FBI, Wikimedia Commons

On the Smithsonian Channel's documentary 'America in Color: The Death of Bonnie and Clyde' actual film footage taken by one of the deputies after the ambush showed an astounding 112 bullet holes in Bonnie and Clyde's car, and approximately 1/4 of those rounds hit the criminal duo. 

According to the book 'Bonnie and Clyde: A Twenty-First-Century Update' by James R Knight and Jonathan Davis, it was revealed that an official report by the coroner listed 17 bullet wounds on Clyde and 26 on Bonnie, several of which were headshots.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

 It was a dramatic and violent end for Bonnie and Clyde, and 90 years later, their story is still compelling. 

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