Hello Friends! Welcome to the latest installment of Bonnie & Clyde in Missouri. When I originally started this journey of the famous outlaws in the Show-Me-State I was only going to focus on Southwest Missouri. You can read about Bonnie & Clyde in Reeds Spring, Missouri by clicking here or the outlaws in Springfield, Missouri by clicking here.
However, I would be remiss to leave out one of the pivotal moments in the gang’s history. Ladies and Gentlemen, let me introduce you to Platte City, Missouri.
As of the 2020 census, Platte City has a population of 4,784 and is a part of the Kansas City Metropolitan area. If you are in the Kansas City area and are near the airport, you are not far from Platte City.
You may be wondering, why is this small town such a big deal in the story of Bonnie & Clyde. Platte City holds so much significance because this was where Bonnie & Clyde had a major shootout with law enforcement. Now, that in itself is not unusual, especially if you have done any amount of reading on the outlaws, but Platte City was where it was the beginning of the end for two of the gang.
In July of 1933, Bonnie & Clyde are finding themselves in need of rest. Bonnie is suffering from severe burns she obtained in a car crash the previous month. It has only been a few months after the shootout in Joplin, Missouri (May 1933) and they are still traveling with their companions Buck & Blanche Barrow, Clyde’s brother and sister-in-law, and W.D. Jones, a friend. To read my post about Joplin, please click here.
At this point, according to Blanche Barrow’s memoir “My Life with Bonnie & Clyde,” Buck and Cylde were fighting about their next move and Buck wanted out of this life on the road. Buck was nervous about being so near Kansas City and the potential of wandering into a trap with the law; the law looking for them, or the law looking for someone else. Either way, Buck was uneasy and wanted out. Blache remembers Buck telling Clyde,
“But I am not going to stay with you any longer than it takes to get a car so Blanche and I can leave you. We don’t have to put up with it. We can live a lot longer away from you that we can with you.”
My Life with Bonnie and Clyde page 110
Those words would soon prove very true. The Barrow gang found the Red Court Tourist Camp and quickly took cabins with a garage between them. Clyde paid for the two rooms and Blanche was sent to purchase food for the gang. She was given small change to pay with and was continually afraid of being recognized.
Their one-night stay was turning into two nights and Blanche once again had to make all the arrangements and get more food for the gang. Clyde was unwilling to leave or move Bonnie. She was burned so badly that she was unable to walk and continually needed her burns tended and redressed. To keep their stolen car away from prying eyes, Clyde hitched into town to purchase more medical supplies to keep Bonnie comfortable.
It is hard to imagine from my place in history in 2024, how terrifying it would be to be in Blanche’s shoes. She is scared, known by the law from the Joplin incident, must act like all is well and normal, buy food for 5 people, and not arouse any suspicion. There is tension between the brothers. Bonnie is severely injured, in great pain, and one can imagine not in great spirits. They are near a large city with large law enforcement resources, now adding more interaction with the management was making matters worse.
According to her memoir, she tells about her experience in this light.
” I went to the station to get some toilet soap and fresh towels. Before I entered the station, I noticed everyone in the place was doing a lot of talking. I could hear them and see several of them sitting around a table. But when I walked in everyone stopped talking. The place was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop. It was just as quiet as a death chamber. I knew something must be wrong. The girl who waited on me stood and stared at me for a few seconds, as if she had seen a ghost. And when she did speak, she seemed to be extra polite. I told her what I wanted. “Yes, deary,” she said. “I’ll get them. Is there anything else you need?”
While she was gone, I stepped on a pair of scales and dropped a penny in them. Some young fellow walk up close to me and looked to see how much I weighed. He tried to start a conversation with me. he said something about how small I was, tipping the scales at ninety-one pounds, and how I was dressed in riding boots, trousers, and a shirt. Soon the girl came back and handing me the fresh towels. Everyone acted as though I might pull a machine gun and turn on them at any minute. As soon as I stepped outside, the talking started again but I couldn’t understand anything that was said.”
My Life with Bonnie & Clyde- pages 113-114
Blanche thought her experience was an indicator of suspicion regarding the gang. She told both Buck and Clyde about her experience, but both men thought waiting until morning would be the best. As Buck told her, “If anything was going to happen, you can’t stop it until it starts.”
It is important to note that the Red Crown at this time was also known as “The Junction” and word had spread that Bonnie & Clyde were in town and staying at “The Junction.” While Blanche was telling her tale to Buck and Clyde, the Platte City officers were telling a tale of their own, to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department. The Platte City men were asking for reinforcements, again, what happened in Joplin was probably fresh on their minds and they did not want a repeat of what happened there. Armored cars were supplied, with steel shields and plenty of machine guns were all gathered and brought to the Red Crown. The stage was set for a battle. Thirteen lawmen stood at the ready.
At about 10 pm, officers pounded on the door of Blanche’s cabin and demanded to speak to the men. Blanche full of terror tried to stall and wake the others up to the danger. The armored car tried to break into the garage, and the outlaws, sleepy and desperate to gather their guns were on the defense.
The cabins must have been in chaos. Blanche is screaming, Buck is armed and ready to murder if needed, Bonnie is unable to walk, and Clyde is trying to put her in the car, defend his family, and get everyone out alive. Clyde is shouting to W.D. to load things, move things, and be ready to shoot things all at once. The battle was about to begin.
The book “The True Story of Bonnie and Clyde” as told by Emma Parker (Bonnie’s mother) and Nell Barrow Cowan (Clyde’s sister,) with Jan Fortune, tells a similar account of that night. Clyde sprayed the closed garage door with bullets, hoping this action would get the car blocking the garage door to move back, and it worked. One officer, Ben Throne, was hit by gunfire that pierced through the armored car, which caused the officers to rethink the car’s location and back up away from the gunfire. The outlaws now had a path to escape, but where were Buck and Blanche? Were they alive? Injured? Clyde had no choice but to go into the other cabin and look for them.
“The way was open, but Clyde dared not leave. Buck and Blanche were still in the cabin. He had no way of knowing if they had been killed or not. “I’ll have to go after them,” he shouted to W.D. Just at this moment Blanche staggered out, half carrying Buck. He had been shot twice through the head, and was unconscious, blood flowing from his wound. Blanche dragged him a few feet in that whithering fire, and collapsed with him. “I can’t do it,” she screamed, “He’s dying.”
The True Story of Bonnie and Clyde- also know as the Fugitive. Page 154
Clyde rushed to her aid and Buck was loaded into the back seat with the injured Bonnie.
I try to imagine the sights and smells of these few minutes. The gunsmoke, the screams, the muzzle flashes…it had to be terrifying for all parties involved. By this point, Cylde had a reputation of being almost invincible and the officers were unwilling to lose the outlaws on their watch. Every precaution had been taken, the officers were not going to be outdone again. However, once again, Clyle managed an escape…an escape but not a victory.
“Clyde leaned low, shot the gas to the engine and they roared through the barrage toward safety, the posse scattering as they came on. Bullets crashed through the windows, and Blanche screamed once, high and clear. They all heard her. She pitched forward over Buck’s limp form, blood streaming from her face and her eyes blinded. There was no time to stop and attend the wounded.”
The True Story of Bonnie and Clyde- also know as the Fugitive. Page 154
I have read multiple sources about the life of Bonnie & Clyde and it is through the lens of these multiple points of view that you almost get to see the true story. Blanche has a slightly different take on the glass that blinded her as they drove away.
“I was holding his (Buck’s) head as close to my breast as I could, and had both my arms wrapped around him, trying to protect him should the officers shoot into the car, as I was sure they would do. My face was turned toward the right side of the car and I had my head bent as near Buck as I could. Then a hail of bullets was fired into the right side of the car. I couldn’t protect my face because I was trying to shield Buck as much as I could. Glass broke. Something hard hit the side of my head, just above the temple. It seems to burn its was across the side of my head. I was also struck in my right arm, though I didn’t feel it at the time. But none of the glass or lead hit Buck.
Then my vision suddenly faded out. All was dark. I thought my eyes had been damaged by bullets and glass. But I felt no pain. I was past feeling pain. Then, when hot blood began to stream down on my face, I thought some of it was water from my shattered eyes.
“They got my eyes!” I said. ” I can’t see!”
No one heard me.”
My Life with Bonnie & Clyde- pages 119-120
If the gang in the car heard or didn’t hear Blanche cry out, it didn’t change the injury. The car was full of the wounded and the dying. Once again, Clyde was able to escape capture but not tragedy. Buck later died in Dexter, Iowa from his injuries in Platte City and from further injuries that occurred in another shootout with the law at Dexfield Park. Blanche, unwilling to leave Buck, was captured in the park and taken back to Platte City for trial. Buck died on July 29, 1933. Blanche received a ten-year sentence for her association with Bonnie & Clyde but was eligible for parole after two years. She underwent surgery in September 1933 to remove a glass fragment from the pupil of her eye. Another surgery in July of 1934 confirmed all glass had been removed.
Bonnie, Clyde, and W.D. managed to escape capture in Iowa and were once again on the road, but continued to be hunted by lawmen in multiple states.
In 1933, after the shootout, spectators gathered at the Red Crown to see the bullet holes and the damage caused by the altercation between outlaws and lawmen.
The Red Crown Tourist Court remained an establishment for many years until a fire in the kitchens in 1967 put an end to the buildings. The site was demolished in 1968.
Now, the former site is part office building and part parking lot. Nothing remains that would have resembled the former cabins or the tavern that the Barrow gang would have seen. Rather a historical marker exists now where the Red Crown once stood. The full address for the site is 12200 NW Ambassador Drive Kansas City, MO.
I hope you have enjoyed Bonnie & Clyde in Missouri. If you are looking for further reading on Bonnie & Clyde, I have listed some recommendations below.
As always, drop me a comment and let me know what you think of Bonnie & Clyde and their Missouri adventures.
Till next time,
Kimberly
Bonnie & Clyde Recommended Reading:
- My Life with Bonnie & Clyde- by Blanche Barrow Caldwell & John Neal Phillips
- The True Story of Bonnie and Clyde- by Emma Parker, Nell Barrow Cowan with Jan Fortune
- Go Down Together- by Jeff Guinn
- Running with Bonnie & Clyde: Ralph Fults Story- by John Neal Phillips