The Texas Department of Corrections hired retired Texas Ranger Frank Hamer to track down Bonnie and Clyde and their gang. Hamer studied their methods and laid an ambush near Bienville Parish, Louisiana in May 1934. When Bonnie, Clyde, and two members of their gang drove by in a stolen Ford, Hamer and four other officers opened fire, killing Bonnie and Clyde. This marked the end of the two-year crime spree of the infamous outlaw couple through multiple states.

1. Bonnie & Clyde
HISTORIC INVESTIGATION – BY HARRY THOMSON
Historical Investigation Question:
What did police/authorities do to ultimately put an end to the infamous crime duo that
is Bonnie and Clyde

2. Bonnie Elizabeth Cooper
- Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (October 1, 1910 – May
23, 1934) born in Rowena, Texas.
- Bonnie attended the local schools there and was a
bright student who showed a keen interest in poetry
and literature, earning honours in her studies.
- During her youth there were no sings of the
criminal path that follows.

3. Clyde Chestnut Barrow
- Clyde Chestnut Barrow (March 24, 1909 –
May 23, 1934) was born into a poor farming
family in Ellis County, Texas a town just
southeast of Dallas. He was the fifth of seven
children.

4. How They Met
Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow met on January 5th 1930 at Clarence Clays house
(Mutual Friend). Parker was out of work and was staying in West Dallas to assist a
female friend with a broken arm. Barrow dropped by the girl's house while Parker was in
the kitchen making hot chocolate.
When they met, both were smitten immediately; most historians believe Parker joined
Barrow because she was in love. She remained a loyal companion to him as they carried
out their crime spree and awaited the violent deaths they viewed as inevitable.

5. Who was in the ‘Gang’
Throughout the 2 year crime spree, a gang had been formed between;
- The gang included Clyde's older brother Buck Barrow and his wife Blanche, Raymond
Hamilton, W. D. Jones, Joe Palmer, Ralph Fults, and Henry Methvin.
- Their exploits captured the attention of the American public during the "Public Enemy
Era," between 1931 and 1935.

6. First Crimes
Clyde Barrow and Ralph Fults assembled a gang. They began a series of small robberies, mainly of
stores and gas stations, their goal was to collect enough money and firepower to launch a raid of
liberation against Eastham Prison.
On April 30, Barrow was the driver in a robbery in Hillsbrow Texas during which the store's owner,
J.N. Bucher, was shot and killed.

7. What they did, how they did it
For the next two years, Bonnie and Clyde drove and robbed across five states: Texas, Oklahoma,
Missouri, Louisiana, and New Mexico. They usually stayed close to the border to aid their getaway,
using the fact that police at that time could not cross state borders to follow a criminal.
To help them avoid capture, Clyde would change cars frequently (by stealing a new one) and
changed license plates even more frequently. Clyde also studied maps and had an uncanny knowledge
of every back road. This aided them numerous times when escaping from a close encounter with the
law.

8. What the Police do to catch Bonnie
and Clyde
The Texas Department of Corrections contacted
former Texas Ranger Captain Frank A. Hamer, and
persuaded him to hunt down the Barrow Gang.
Although retired, Hamer had retained his
commission, which had not yet expired. He
accepted the assignment as a Texas highway
patrol officer, secondarily assigned to the prison
system as a special investigator, and given the
specific task of taking Bonnie, Clyde and the
Barrow Gang.

9. The death of Bonnie and Clyde
May 23rd 1934, wanted outlaws Clyde Barrow and
Bonnie Parker were shot by a posse of four Texas
officers Frank Hamer, B.M. "Manny" Gault, Bob Alcorn,
Ted Hinton and two Louisiana officers, as they attempt
to escape apprehension in a stolen 1934 Ford Deluxe
near Bienville Parish, Louisiana.

10. Answer

11. Bibliography
- Source 1: Website name: History.com. Date accessed 20/7/16 Author: (unknown) website link:
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/outlaws-bonnie-and-clyde-shot-to-death-in-stolen-
ford
- Source 2: Website name: About.com Date accessed 20/7/16 Author: website link:
http://history1900s.about.com/od/1930s/a/bonnieandclyde.htm
- Source 3: Website name: Bio. Date accessed 23/7/16 Author: website link:
http://www.biography.com/people/clyde-barrow-229532
- Source 4: Website name: Bio. Date accessed 23/7/16 Author: website link:
http://www.biography.com/people/bonnie-parker-9542045#synopsis
- Source 5: Website name: Wikipedia Date accessed 24/7/16 Author: (unknown) website link:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonnie_and_Clyde#1932:_Early_jobs.2C_early_murders