LIFE ON THE RUN FOR BONNIE & CLYDE


The life of a fugitive isn't very glamorous. The Barrow gang was forced to bathe in
the icy cold country streams, often racing back to the warmth of their car, which
literally had become their home. When nature called, they had to take to the privacy
of the woods. The luxury of using a bathtub or toilet happened rarely. They had to be
light sleepers, listening for any unusual sounds for fear of nocturnal ambushes.
Many times depending on people that they could trust or family members to take their
clothing to the cleaners or buying them new clothes. The simple act of getting a haircut
or perm at the local barber shop could prove fatal, especially since more and more of
their photographs started surfacing. Care had to be taken when cooking, as a campfire
at night or the smoke from a campfire during the day could arouse suspicion. This left
them to feast on cold beans, weiners, biscuits or canned goods. I'm sure that living
in such close quarters would test the nerves of anyone! Often quarreling or fighting
off the boredom of many lonely days and nights. Imagine if you will, spending the night
cramped up in the confines of a small car in pitch darkness on a lonely back road during
a violent thunderstorm or having to leave the windows rolled down to get relief from
the heat of a summer's night, only to be tormented by the bites of the ferocious insects.









When they weren't busy, robbin' and killin',
all they had, was the long road ahead of them.
Lonely nights in the woods and endless highways...



OH, THOSE ROADS!






Today we have those wonderful, rugged all terrain tires, which replaced the low-pressure balloon tires of the 1930s.
Two obstacles that were a burden to drivers, were the muddy roads and the constant flat tires. Clyde many times found
himself needing to be pulled out of muddy ditches or changing tires, hoping to have a good spare on hand!



TIRE EVOLUTION - BOY OH BOY!












EVERY JOURNEY ON THE ROAD BEGINS WITH ROAD MAPS!






OCCASSIONAL STAYS AT TOURIST COURTS






U-Smile Tourist Camp





JUST KNOWING THE THE END IS NEAR!
TURNED TO BOOZE
Between the dispair and her accumulated injuries, Bonnie took to heavy drinking to ease her pain.

still from the Sean Hughes film "The Barrow Gang"


In the photo below, taken within the last few weeks of their lives, you can see the look of dispair
on Bonnie's face as Clyde cleans his weapons, preparing them for what might be their last battle.



Close-up Here




Photo says it was taken by Carey D. Harvey. He was known to perform
"Down the Old Road to Home" with Jimmie Rodgers - Bonnie's favorite singer


Notation shows Jimmie Rodgers' and Carey D. Harvey's song copyrighted May 25, 1934
just two days after the ambush of Barrow and Parker in Bienville Parish, La.








ITEMS THAT CAME IN HANDY FOR THE BARROW GANG



GUN CLEANING KIT
Clyde cleaned his weapons every chance he got, and had names for every one of his guns!






INDIAN CAMP BLANKET
The Barrow gang had used indian camp blankets for several reasons. As a lap blanket in the car when it got cold,
to cover up the assorted rifles, and to spread out on the grass when camping in the fields outdoors. It's likely that
their camp blankets came from the Pendleton Wool Mills which was popular back in the 1930s, or from the Beacon mills.
A camp blanket was recovered from the death car and used to cover Clyde's body following the ambush in Louisiana.







REFRIGERATOR CAMPING BASKET
The Hawkeye woven refrigerator picnic basket - circa 1930s, had a quarter of the inside metal liner divided up for being
used as a refrigerator. They would then put ice and salt in that section to keep the perishable items frozen back then.





AKA "Hoover Hog"





PHYSICIANS BAG
Several of the cars stolen by the gang had belonged to physicians. As a bonus, most often the physician's bag - along with
it's contents was included in the theft. These bags contained items such as hypodermic needles, pain killers and antiseptics
which often came in handy whenever one or more of the gang found themselves in need of some form of medical assistance.







FIELD GLASSES
Military field glasses were obtained from National Guard Armories and used by the gang to scope their surroundings.


Breen family collection recovered from the Red Crown Tavern after shootout there.





CRAMPED QUARTERS

Back seat of "death car"


What little room there was, sitting in the back seat, became even more cramped by the arsenal strewn across the floorboard.









Barrow, also fond of "Billie the Kid", had a 1926 Hardcover Edition of "The Saga of Billie the Kid' by Walter Noble Burns
recovered from the car in which he was killed. I hope ol' Clyde was able to finish the book before the laws finished him!







COSMETIC CASE
This is Bonnie Parker's cosmetic case which was recovered from the death car following the ambush.







What's that fragrance coming from the woods? Could it be Blue Waltz that Bonnie might have bathed herself in?







OTHER ITEMS RECOVERED FROM THE DEATH CAR




According to Marie Barrow, Clyde used his screwdriver more than his weapons, constantly changing license plates.




This 15 cent aspirin tin was recovered from the Barrow death car.
Hey! Even Bonnie and Clyde had headaches.








AND A BULL DURHAM BREAK
I guess that Clyde did find the time to enjoy his Bull Durham roll your owns when not fighting it out.






The Day I Met The Real Bonnie & Clyde







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