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Home/North Louisiana/Bonnie and Clyde
front grill of yellow antique car

Bonnie and Clyde

It’s been 90 years since a posse of lawmen caught up with the outlaw couple Bonnie and Clyde.  They were ambushed and killed on a north Louisiana road.  But their story is still very much alive in the small town of Gibsland, Louisiana.

a fascination with the outlaw couple

photo of bonnie and clyde with woman holding shotgun pointed at man in front of car
Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow pose for a photo

Perry Carver’s fascination with Bonnie and Clyde started with the car. His grandparents in Georgia were friends with the man who owned the car that Bonnie and Clyde were killed in.  Carver recalls that he was allowed to play in the car and was given a shoebox full of shattered glass from the car’s windows and a doorhandle.  “One day I’m sitting in the front seat and he walks out there with a little box knife and he cuts me out a square of the front seat and gives it to me”, Carver said.  “It’s got their blood on it,” he adds.   Those items and many more artifacts are on display at the Bonnie and Clyde Ambush Museum in Gibsland.

pieces of history from bonnie and clyde

pair of old black men's shoes, pistol and clothing
A pair of Clyde Barrow’s shoes found in the couple’s car.
red women hats on mannequin heads and other artifacts in display case
Bonnie Parker’s hats
Pocket watch, silver dollar and other personal items from Clyde Barrow.
an old black purse and other women's items
Display of Bonnie Parker’s purse and other items at Ambush Museum

An appropriate site for the ambush museum

The museum is located in a building that once housed Canfield’s Café.  Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker stopped here on the morning of May 23, 1934, to get food. Carver now owns the Bonnie and Clyde Ambush Museum.  “Clyde went in, got him a fried bologna sandwich, got Bonnie a BLT while she sat in the car,” Carver said.  After leaving the café, Clyde left the cafe and drove seven and a half miles away to the place where they were ambushed and killed in a hail of gunfire.

tan building with yellow and red sign bonnie and clyde ambush museum
The Bonnie & Clyde Ambush Museum in Gibsland, LA
old photograph of building with sign canfield's cafe
Old photo of Canfield’s Cafe in Gibsland, LA.

museum’s connection to the past

The Ambush museum was founded by Boots Hinton, the son of Dallas County Deputy Sheriff Ted Hinton, who was part of the posse that killed the outlaw duo.  Before he died in 2016, Boots sold the museum to Carver.  I interviewed Boots in 2010, and he recounted the ambush story he heard from his father.  “He said one thing ran through every one of those officers’ minds simultaneously,” Hinton recalls.  “This clown’s gotten out of eleven traps, is this number twelve. And with that, everybody unloaded,” Hinton said.  Based on his research, Carver dismisses the notion that the fugitives were given a warning.  “The adrenalines going, they’re a nervous wreck. They know Clyde has hand grenades,” Carver says. 

Bonnie and Clyde ambush featured on tv

Watch this Heart of Louisiana story on the Ambush Museum.

death car replica on display

The Gibsland museum now has a replica of the death car, complete with bullet holes, shattered windows and seats splattered with red paint.  Carver says the recreation is pretty accurate, “Honestly, I’ve never counted how many holes are in this car,” he explains, adding, “There’s 167 holes in the real car”.  The real car has been on display at a Las Vegas Casino.

man in white shirt and blue coveralls walks past antique yellow car with bullet holes in museum
Perry Carver and his version of the Death Car

a growing collection of artifacts

interior of museum with female mannequine and other displays
Museum displays

Since purchasing the museum, Carver has expanded the amount of artifacts that are on display, including numerous weapons, items of clothing and photographs of Bonnie and Clyde before and after the ambush.  Carver is eager to share stories and the facts he has uncovered and also debunk some of the popular myths about the outlaws.  And you can grab a sandwich in a diner Carver and his wife have reopened at this historic location. 

the ambush site of bonnie and clyde

gray monument along highway lined with trees
Historical marker at ambush site on LA 154/Parish Road 300 south of Gibsland, LA.

The site of the ambush is a ten-minute drive south of Gibsland on Parish Road 300/La Hwy 154.  The site has two granite monuments and a small gravel area to pull over and stop.  On both of my visits, someone had left flowers at the base of the marker.  The marker, damaged by vandals’ bullets, was erected by the Bienville Parish Police Jury, and has been cleaned and painted due to graffite.

gray stone marker to death location of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow
Marker at the death site of Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker.

90th anniversary in gibsland

The town of Gibsland is marking the 90th anniversary of the ambush with what is called The Authentic Bonnie and Clyde Festival.  Activities are scheduled from 6pm Friday, May 24 through 5pm Saturday May 25, 2024. Click here for more information on the festival: Festival Facebook Page

getting there

The Bonnie & Clyde Ambush Museum is located at 2419 Main St., Gibsland, LA. Phone (318) 843-1934. Click here for museum facebook page: Museum

2419 Main St, Gibsland, LA 71028

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        Written by:
        Dave McNamara
        Published on:
        December 26, 2024
        Thoughts:
        3 Comments

        Categories: Featured, North Louisiana

        Reader Interactions

        Comments

        1. Ben Norbert Cardenas

          May 16, 2024 at 12:06 pm

          Nice

          Reply
        2. Deborah goodwin

          July 12, 2024 at 12:36 pm

          I just love going to Gibsland seeing all the re-enactments. But I feel so bad when I see the ambush I just want to cry my heart out because they were so young

          Reply
        3. Connie Jackson

          September 28, 2024 at 4:16 pm

          I remember all of this as I was born in Arcadia Louisiana and raised in gibsland Louisiana.

          Reply

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