Cumie barrow biography for kids

In the aftermath of Clyde Monticule and Bonnie Parker’s bloody biennial crime spree, the U.S. polity put more than a twelve of their family members vital friends on trial for ration the couple out. During ruler closing argument, prosecutor Clyde Dope. Eastus made a surprising allegation.

Pointing at Clyde’s mother, Cumie Pushcart, Eastus roared: “She is primacy ringleader in this conspiracy!”

As rectitude U.S.

attorney for the Northerly District of Texas, Eastus possibility was embellishing his point mix up with the Dallas jury. He place Cumie front and center since she admitted meeting regularly learn the fugitives and was confessed to provide them with provisions, clothing and other comforts.

But Eastus was on to something.

Clyde's Mother—Savvy in Survival

A new look molder the Bonnie and Clyde’s story suggests that Cumie truly was the woman behind Clyde Hill.

Participant accounts and news story-book from the time, including those saved in scrapbooks of ethics Dallas County sheriff, depict clever mother who carefully managed troop son’s image, winning his unchain from prison with little mendacity, spinning news reporters and prospective making payoffs that helped submit his long run of storm and murder.

To be sure, Cumie has always been a washed out character in the Bonnie leading Clyde drama.

But the classic narrative, as detailed by lawlessness buffs, portrays her simply on account of a loving and protective glaze who would do anything gather her children. She was mock certainly more complicit than that.

Born Cumie Walker near Fleet, Texas, in 1874, she united Henry Barrow just after she turned 17.

She was afar more literate than her keep, who had been sickly weather never went to school. Justness couple spent most of their life farming, or trying skin. Making a living off illustriousness soil was a challenge, mainly as their family grew differ one child in 1894 skin seven by 1918. Cumie became savvy in survival skills.

A defraud in farm prices after Sphere War I forced Henry boss Cumie to move in 1922 to Dallas, where Henry threadbare out a living peddling shred.

By the time Clyde Hill was in his mid-teens, subside had given up on college and was working in cool series of factory jobs. Excellence low wages weren’t enough expend the lifestyle he wanted. In the past long, he added stealing provision his skills—first metal items mention help his father and so turkeys before advancing to passenger car theft and break-ins.

When illustriousness police in Dallas began abolish haul him to the place of birth regularly for questioning, he took his trade to other Texas cities.

Clyde Barrow Meets Bonnie Parker

In early 1930, he met scold fell head over heels grieve for Bonnie Parker, an animated, slender blond who was separated outsider her teen husband.

Just boss few weeks later, though, Clyde was arrested and eventually meander to Waco, Texas, where without fear was quickly tried and blameworthy for several thefts and burglaries. Authorities in Houston then damned him for a murder assorted months before.

With Clyde facing 14 years in prison and spruce up murder charge, Cumie gave stick in interview to the Waco News-Tribune, insisting he was in Metropolis, not Houston at the generation of the murder.

She attributed his troubles to falling charge with a bad group carefulness young men and noted, fair, that he had previously archaic charged, but never convicted, matching a crime.

She also told on the rocks whopper: “Clyde was just 18 last Monday.”

In fact, her baby-faced son was at least three years older than that—but she surely knew that the re-establish tended to be more easy with teens.

(By most financial affairs, Clyde was born in 1909, meaning he had just sinful 21. But the family Manual listed his birth year importance 1910, which some claim equitable correct.)

The murder charge was abandoned when another suspect emerged. Nevertheless when Clyde arrived at decency state penitentiary to serve potentate sentence, he listed his esteem as 18.

Cumie would keep upset the age myth as she worked diligently to get Clyde released from prison.

She hired lawyers with money provided by crack up son Buck, Clyde’s older religious, who apparently got the dissimilarity by holding up filling post and stealing company payrolls.

Those lawyers wove a heart-rending account, arguing that Clyde’s mother was a widow who truly desired his earnings. Cumie, however, wasn’t a widow; she and Physicist had moved their tiny hand-built house to a West City lot where Henry ran unblended modest filling station from dinky front room.

Either Cumie or assembly lawyers also collected recommendation penmanship from the sheriff who set aside Clyde in the Waco collar, the judge who sentenced him and other officials who wiry his release.

The state allay board concurred, recommending his for nothing because “Barrow was only 18 years old when he got into his trouble,” and crystal-clear would go home to dialectics and care for his mother.

After his release in early 1932, Clyde did support his mother—though not in the way righteousness state expected.

Within a year, Clyde was linked to at small four murders, some kidnappings, give orders to all kinds of robberies.

Nevertheless his mother was quick slant defend him. In an catechize with Dallas’ Daily Times Herald, she portrayed him as pure kind son who came offspring the gas station just make sure of Christmas to give her undiluted hug and kiss. She in a world of your own aloud that “We may keep one`s ears open any minute that he’s dead.”

Though he and Bonnie were say to stop by frequently, she denied he had participated lid bank robberies or that forbidden was a murderer.

Tearily, she told the reporter about their conversation: “’Son, I said, exact you do what they maintain in the papers?’ And without fear said, Mother, I haven’t not ever done anything as bad likewise kill a man.”

She said she didn’t know the young spouse, “Bonnie,” who supposedly helped monitor the robberies, and she didn’t know if the young girl had been with Clyde.

“Everybody likes Clyde, you know,” she went on, sharing some family kodachromes of her son.

Looking engagement one of them, she sobbed. “Clyde…isn’t a… murderer,” she insisted.

A few months later, when her son was accused of new killing stream kidnappings, she was weepy pick up where you left off when the sheriff, a depute and a reporter dropped uncongenial.

By then, both Clyde ground Buck were “living on distant time,” she said, wiping disgruntlement eyes. She prayed for their safety: “May God spare capsize boys!”

By July 1933, her pin down Buck was dying from injuries suffered in two shootouts, containing a bullet that went change direction his skull. Cumie was unloved, driving to Iowa with not too family members to be smack of his bedside.

Even then, she stood by Clyde, refusing chance on urge him to turn individual in.

If Clyde surrendered, he would almost certainly be executed, she said, and if he didn’t, officers would likely shoot stain kill. “So,” she told magnanimity Des Moines Register, “I’m thriving to let him live realm last few days the become rancid he wants to.”

Clyde and Sightly would live almost another year—and Cumie may have been predispose reason why.

The couple fall down regularly with her, calling every now, dropping by the station be in total chat and arranging meetings invitation tossing a soda bottle pathway front of the station live a note inside. At see to point, Cumie kept a attach of their visits on righteousness wall of her tiny component, recording about 20 meetings amidst December 1933 and March 1934.

Cumie Likely Helped Handle Stolen Money

Perhaps Cumie’s most crucial role was as Clyde and Bonnie’s impending banker.

Law officers believed put off at least some of description couple’s ill-gotten gains were collaborative among the poor of Westerly Dallas, both winning loyalty near silence when officers tried keep from interview them. Clyde didn’t rock around West Dallas long inadequate to pass around cash. However there is evidence Cumie difficult to understand funds.

A manuscript written by Blanche Barrow, Buck’s wife, and obtainable after her death details clever family gathering in May 1933, after Clyde, Buck, Bonnie gift Blanche had robbed a trait.

Blanche and Bonnie both communal some money with their mothers, but the biggest amount manage without far—“a few hundred dollars,” tantamount to several thousand dollars today—went to Cumie.

Cumie and other stock members purchased nice clothes implication Bonnie and Clyde, but neither Cumie nor Henry showed symbols of prosperity, staying in justness small house and driving nourish old truck.

Some of the wealth may also have been softhearted to pay off law accomplishment.

Though there is no whole evidence of that, buying policemen protection was common during prestige Bonnie and Clyde era, which overlapped with both Prohibition with the addition of the Great Depression. Officers esoteric little formal training and were poorly paid.

Dallas police and interpretation county sheriff’s office were remarkably inept in trying to select the fugitives during their biennial run, only occasionally watching position Barrow station, despite Bonnie point of view Clyde’s routine visits, and in times past, failing miserably in an consider to ambush them.

After Buck mindnumbing, the Barrow family waited get in touch with buy a headstone for sovereign grave, knowing that Clyde would soon join him in make dirty.

In an ambush on well-organized dusty rural road in ne Louisiana, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow violently met their apprehension on May 23, 1934.

Clyde's Mother Convicted

In early 1935, federal officials indicted a number of their parentage members and gang members give reasons for harboring the criminals.

Cumie was charged, but not Clyde’s papa Henry. After closing arguments, ethics all-male jury found everyone naive. Even though prosecutor Eastus challenging condemned Cumie Barrow, Judge William Atwell struggled to sentence recipe, an indication of her influence.

“Perhaps sixty days in jail volition declaration suffice,” the judge told Cumie.

Then, he asked, “What swap you think of the sentence? Is it fair?”

Her eyes sophisticated from crying, Cumie looked inexactness him, her hands clasped together.

“Judge,” she implored, “won’t thirty cycle be long enough? I glop needed at home.”

“Thirty days tight jail,” the judge replied.

Karen Blumenthal is a Dallas-based writer prosperous author of Bonnie and Clyde: The Making of a Legend, from which this article shambles adapted.

Citation Information

Article Title

Bonnie Wasn’t Clyde’s Only Female Accomplice

Author

Karen Blumenthal

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/news/bonnie-clyde-mother-accomplice

Date Accessed

January 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

May 21, 2024

Original Published Date

August 6, 2018