“Roo Ties Everywhere: Austin College and the Legend of Bonnie and Clyde.”
Chapter 1: Ma Ferguson & George Butte
Texas Governor Jim “Pa” Ferguson was furious. Ferguson had demanded
the removal of seven University of Texas professors he found
objectionable. Longhorn president Robert Vinson refused, citing
academic freedom. Vinson was an Austin College Kangaroo, class of 1896.
Ferguson responded by line item vetoing all University of Texas
appropriations.
The Ferguson administration was famously corrupt,
and the request to remove the professors was politically motivated.
The response to Ferguson’s line item veto was swift. An investigation
by Attorney General Dan Moody led to impeachment charges in the Texas
House and Ferguson’s removal from office by the Texas Senate. Moody
replaced Ferguson in the Governor’s office after Ferguson’s 1917
resignation; Governor Moody would appear at Austin College two years
later alongside AC President Thomas Clyce to welcome former US President
William Taft at Sherman Hall.
The Supreme Court of Texas barred
“Pa” Ferguson from ever holding office in Texas. But “Pa” had an ace up
his sleeve. The law did not bar his wife Miriam “Ma” Ferguson from
running as a proxy. In 1924, “Ma” ran for the Democratic nomination and
made it clear that she and her husband were a team. Her campaign
loudly boasted “two for the price of one, and her supporters proudly
declared “Me for Ma, and I Ain’t Got a Durned Thing Against Pa.” The
Fergusons won the Democratic nomination. It was assumed that the
general election would be an afterthought. Texas, a yellow dog
Democratic party state since the Civil War, had never elected a Yankee
Republican for Governor.
George Butte had other ideas.
George Charles Butte was an Austin College Kangaroo, class of 1895. His
studies after Sherman had taken him to Universities as far as Europe.
Butte returned to Texas in 1914 as a professor at the UT School of Law.
There, he led the opposition alongside President Vinson against
Ferguson’s attacks on academic freedom. On Texas Independence Day 1917,
Butte delivered the address “In the Spirit of 1836” to reply to
Ferguson’s line item veto of UT expenditures. With Ferguson’s removal,
Roos Vinson & Butte had won on behalf of the University of Texas.
Butte returned to his duties at the UT Law School. In 1920, at the
insistence of President Vinson, the Austin College Kangaroos resumed a
football series with the Longhorns of Texas after a seven-year break.
Butte organized the squad that welcomed the arrival of the AC team in
Austin, ensured transportation to Clark Field for the game against the
Horns, and hosted a reception for Austin College alumni, students, and
team at the Driskill Hotel. After a long weekend, Butte saw the team
depart back to Sherman.
The experiences of Vinson & Butte
made them keenly aware of the threats posed by the Ferguson family.
When “Ma” Ferguson surprisingly captured the Democratic nomination in
1924, Butte decided he would challenge her in the general election……..as
a Republican. The Republican party was a Yankee party, and had never
come close to triumphing in Texas during its 60+ year history.
Nationally, however, 1924 was a Republican year within a Republican
decade. Also, disgust with the Fergusons was high within the Democratic
party; many found a Butte candidacy appealing. 1924 just might be the
year.
On October 4, 1924 in a speech in Grayson County, Butte was clear in his campaign about the stakes:
“You my friends in Sherman, who watched me through my five years of
student life here at Austin College, never dreamed then any more than
did I thirty days ago that I would be standing on this platform tonight
as a candidate for the highest executive office in……Texas.”
“I
seemed to hear the whispers of the heroic souls that gave their lives at
San Jacinto and at Goliad that Texas might be free; I seemed to hear
again Travis’s call for reinforcements at the Alamo. I knew the turmoil
and fearful condition prevailing in all our Texas institutions in 1917
(during the “Pa” Ferguson impeachment).”
“Fellow citizens, have
those circumstances not arisen? A former Governor, impeached and
convicted, disqualified by the law and the Constitution from holding the
office again, has obtained the Democratic nomination, by proxy and by
accident.”
“If Mr. Ferguson is put in a position where he can
directly or indirectly exercise or control the exercise of any of the
functions of the Governor’s office in Texas, it will be the most
startling example of irresponsible personal government ever known in
this Republic.”
In Waco, the Cotton Palace was King. Texans from
across the state made their way annually to this festival to take in
exhibits, parks, and other amusements. The highlight of the Cotton
Palace was a football game, and in 1924 the Baylor Bears hosted Austin
College. Both Democratic and Republican candidates spoke on October
24th to partisan crowds before kickoff. Ironically, Butte was an Austin
College Kangaroo and “Ma” Ferguson was a Baylor Bear. The Roos upset
Baylor 7-3 with Butte in attendance; the Republican nominee was probably
hoping for more of the same on election day 10 days later.
It
was not to be. Butte’s 41% of the vote was by far the best effort by a
Republican nominee in history, and would continue to be so until 1968.
But it was not enough to overcome the one-party status of the state of
Texas. “Ma” Ferguson was sworn in as the first women ever elected to a
governorship in the United States. Her two-year term was plagued by
Fergusonism corruption. She lost her bid for the Democratic nomination
and re-election in 1926. Butte’s showing in Texas impressed party
officials in Washington; an appointment by Republican President Calvin
Coolidge soon followed.
Both Ferguson and Butte continued to be
active in Texas politics into the 1930s. That was good news for
Ferguson and bad news for Butte. FDR’s New Deal coalition meant a
strengthening of the Democratic party in Texas and an end to the
possibility of a Republican governor that decade. Butte did secure the
nomination of his party in the 1930s, but it went nowhere. “Ma”
Ferguson did the same in 1932, and cruised to the second of her two
terms in the Governor’s mansion. Like her first term, her second was
not free of controversy. 40 Texas Rangers quit upon her re-election.
Legendary Texas Ranger Frank Hamer was one. Those who remained were
soon fired and replaced with political cronies.
Nevertheless, by
1934, a wiser and more self-confident “Ma” Ferguson governed the state
of Texas. Her second term was less “Pa” and more “Ma”; it was also
considerably less chaotic. The third term of the Ferguson family was
the best.
Then came the prison break that changed everything.
Bonnie Parker & Clyde Barrow had been on the run for years, robbing
banks and eluding authorities across the country with arms, speed, and a
good deal of luck. On January 16, 1934, the situation changed
dramatically when the Barrow gang decided to take on Texas Law
Enforcement. The Huntsville prison break on January 16th kicked off a
127-day period that would end with their demise and transform the duo
into infamous American legends.
In January of 1934, Governor Ma Ferguson became preoccupied with one overriding goal. Finding Bonnie & Clyde.
Tomorrow: Chapter 2: Lee Simmons & Lile Bustard
“Roo Ties Everywhere: Austin College and the Legend of Bonnie and Clyde.”
Chapter 2: Lee Simmons & Lile Bustard
I was unaware of Lee Simmons until Ruth Nuckols Cox Williamson shared a Texoma Living article in March written 9 years earlier by Dr. Light Cummins. Ruth may not have been the origin of this Roo Tale, but she sure did ensure it reached critical mass. Thank you Ruth!
The first half of the life of Austin College’s Lee Simmons was full of
turmoil. Born in 1873 in East Texas, Simmons moved with his family to
Grayson County and was raised near Sherman. He attended Austin College
for two years in the 1890s before finishing his studies at the
University of Texas. At the age of 21, however, his life took a
dreadful turn.
A dispute with a former colleague turned violent.
So violent in fact, that Lee Simmons shot and killed the man. The
incident occurred in broad daylight in front of bystanders, and Simmons
immediately turned himself in. He claimed self-defense, arguing that
the other man had drawn his gun first; a jury agreed and set him free.
The incident, however, changed him for good. Scarred by the anarchy of
violence and the near loss of his freedom, Simmons turned to law
enforcement. The occupation would define his life.
After nearly a
decade in Sherman, Simmons was encouraged to run for Grayson County
Sheriff in 1912. Concerns about crime spikes and allegations of shady
activity on the part of the incumbent sheriff led to the recruitment,
which paid off. Simmons narrowly won the election. Two days after
election day, he was resting at his Sherman home and preparing for his
new role. Hearing his name called out on the street, Simmons exited his
house and approached an idling car. “Are you Lee Simmons?,” a woman in
the car asked? “Yes I am,” replied the sheriff elect.
Five
shots rang out and the car sped off quickly. Two missed their mark, but
three did not. Simmons was gravely wounded, and was rushed to a nearby
hospital. Miraculously, he recovered. An investigation later
determined that the shooter had ties to the recently defeated incumbent
sheriff. Simmons refused to let the assassination attempt win, and was
sworn into office in early 1913 still recovering from his wounds. He
probably hoped that January of 1913, his first month in office, would
give him some rest. It did not. On January 21, 1913, Sheriff Simmons
was woken by a neighbor with some distressing news.
Austin College was burning.
Old Main had stood at the center of campus since the 1880s, and was one
of the oldest college buildings west of the Mississippi. Its complete
destruction on January 21st was a devastating blow to the college:
“Austin College on fire and every particle of wood reduced to ashes—and
walls rendered totally unfit for use. Oh, dies irae, dies irae! The
dear old building in which I have labored for twenty-four years, gone!
What traditions, memories, griefs, joys, were associated with it! The
carpenters were approaching the completion of their work. The new
English room was completed, the library room was soon to be ready. They
literary societies lost everything. I lost all books, or, [those] in my
class room. The laboratories were almost a total loss. Fortunately, the
library, records, and office furniture were all in the new Y.M.C.A.
building.”
“Before the fire had begun to die out, the Senior
class called the student body together and they pledged themselves by
classes in writing to stand by the Faculty and the College, and that no
one would leave. The Faculty also met shortly after and unanimously
decided to continue college work the next day as usual, meeting their
classes in places designated. Probably not another institution in the
State could have done this. But the old College building is gone
forever!!!”
– Austin College Professor Davis Foute Eagleton.
AC faculty and students vowed to continue the academic year in the YMCA
building next door, and not a single class was cancelled. The fire
gave birth to a Roo tradition that continues 100 years later: No matter
the weather, emergency, or crisis, Austin College classes are never
cancelled.
Meanwhile, Sheriff Simmons began his investigation to
find the culprit. Interviews were conducted, leads were pursued,
motives questioned. The investigation was just getting started when it
abruptly ended. A Sherman prep school student, homesick for Oklahoma,
was caught attempting to torch the YMCA building. He had hoped that the
destruction of Old Main would allow him to return home, and the
continuation of classes at the YMCA led to a second arson attempt on
AC’s new building of refuge.
Simmons arrested Lile Bustard, the
minor whose arson had destroyed Old Main. His investigation yielded a
conviction and sentence in Grayson County Court; the boy was transferred
to a juvenile facility in Gatesville, TX. From the Sherman Democrat:
“Sheriff Lee Simmons left this afternoon for Gatesville, Tex., taking
with him Lile Bustard, the boy who was convicted here of burning the
administration building of Austin College a few weeks ago. He was given
a five-year sentence and a charge against him of attempting to burn the
YMCA building of the college was dismissed.”
Simmons served two
terms as sheriff, and then retired in 1917. A short career in Sherman
banking was followed by his election to the Sherman Chamber of Commerce,
a position he held for most of the 1920s. His connections with law
enforcement continued deepened. Simmons became a member of the Texas
Prison Commission and advised Texas governors on law enforcement.
In early 1930, Simmons left Sherman for Huntsville. He was appointed
general manager of the Texas prison system by Democratic Governor Dan
Moody, who had succeeded Governor Ma Ferguson in 1927. Simmons reforms
in Huntsville were numerous, including the introduction of the wildly
popular prison rodeo. Lee Simmons continued his relationship with
Austin College while in Huntsville, working to raise funds for Austin
College athletics during the Great Depression.
Then came the prison break that changed everything.
Bonnie Parker & Clyde Barrow had been on the run for years, robbing
banks and eluding authorities across the country with arms, speed, and a
good deal of luck. On January 16, 1934, the situation changed
dramatically when the Barrow gang decided to take on Texas Law
Enforcement. The Huntsville prison break on January 16th kicked off a
127-day period that would end with their demise and transform the duo
into infamous American legends.
In January of 1934, Prison
chief Lee Simmons traveled to Austin, TX. He came to convince the
Governor of Texas to give him the authority to find someone who would
track down the fugitives. Governor Ferguson reluctantly agreed.
Lee Simmons became preoccupied with one overriding goal. Finding Bonnie & Clyde.
“Roo Ties Everywhere: Austin College and the Legend of Bonnie and Clyde.”
Chapter 3: Frank Hamer & P.B. Hill
On February 24th of this year, Claude Webb Jr.
wrote about Frank Hamer, Sherman, and the upcoming movie “The
Highwaymen.” If you are wondering how this Roo Tale was born, you can
thank Claude for getting the ball rolling. I should thank him too, for
suggesting I head over yesterday to listen to Sam Baker at the Saxon Pub
in Austin.
You know Sam Baker, right? His older siblings are
Roos; his brother even briefly played AC football. Baker’s family has
ties to the Coffins, as in Coffin Hall. His tragic experience in Peru
is one of many inspirations for some incredible song writing; “Broken
Fingers” is my favorite. John Cotton
joined us, and we all got to chat with Sam. We also tried real hard to
not tell any Roo Tales, but failed miserably. It was great to briefly
close the distance and get together.
Back in 1910, Pierre Bernard (P.B.) Hill & Frank Hamer were about as far away from each other as one could imagine.
Hamer was appointed City Marshall of Navasota, TX, in 1910. Navasota, a
small town south of Texas A&M University, was known for a wild west
culture of anarchy. Hamer had made it his mission to bring order to
Navasota’s lawless ways. His methods were harsh and controversial, and
citizens were sure to make that clear in complaints. Many of those same
citizens openly wondered whether Navasota had any alternatives. Within
a few years, Navasota had been restored to a modicum of stability.
Hamer returned to his role as a Texas Ranger.
In 1910, P.B. Hill
was in Korea. Born in 1877, the Presbyterian minister had found his
calling as a missionary on the peninsula. Hill’s efforts to proselytize
his faith were not warmly received by his Korean hosts. However, the
Koreans found in Hill a kindred spirit who also harshly opposed the
excesses of the Japanese military regime that ruled the country. Korea
under occupation proved to be too much difficulty for the Hill family,
and they eventually made their way to the Texas Hill Country of Frank
Hamer.
Hamer was born in 1884 in the Texas Hill Country, and was
raised near Oxford, TX in Llano County. The town of his youth would
later become a source of humor for Hamer; he often referred to himself
as an “Oxford educated Texas Ranger.” Like his friend Lee Simmons
(Austin College Kangaroo circa 1895), Hamer’s turn towards a career in
law enforcement would be heavily influenced by a violent encounter in
his youth.
A Hill Country neighbor named McSwain offered to pay a
young Hamer if he would end the life of a business partner. Hamer
refused, and announced his intentions to report the request to
authorities. A surprise ambush by McSwain left Hamer with multiple
gunshot wounds and clinging to life. Hamer escaped, recovered, and
dedicated himself to a law enforcement career. The experience had
permanently soured his view of rogue individuals who were a law unto
themselves.
Frank Hamer’s career with the Texas Rangers began in
1906, and continued off and on depending upon the whims of Texas
politics. The corruption and cronyism of the Jim “Pa” Ferguson
administration led to and early retirement; the temporary defeat of
Fergusonism brought him back. Miriam “Ma” Ferguson’s 1924 election
victory on behalf of “Pa” over Kangaroo George Butte resulted in another
self-imposed exile, as the Fergusons were determined to reign in the
Rangers and fill positions with loyalists. Ferguson’s defeat in 1926
saw yet another return of Hamer to duty. That duty included a trip to
Sherman, TX in 1930, on behalf of new Texas Governor Dan Moody.
The 1930 lynching of Mr. George Hughes by the citizens of Sherman was
one of the most disgraceful acts by any community in Texas history.
Hughes, an African American, had been unfairly accused of inappropriate
behavior around an Anglo woman. The rumors that began to spread,
combined with the knowledge that Hughes was being tried downtown, led to
an ever growing mob presence. Hamer was dispatched to defuse it.
Hamer’s arrival briefly helped. He announced that unless the crowd
dispersed, many of Sherman’s citizens would be going home in body bags.
He fired warning shots to keep the crowd at bay. At first the tactics
seemed to work, as no resident had any desire to take on Frank Hamer and
his deputies. But there was one enemy that Hamer could not fight.
Fire.
Sherman citizens burned their own courthouse down. Hamer’s
men attempted to douse the flames, but locals cut the hoses of
firefighters. Hughes, locked in a vault inside for his own safety,
suffocated on the smoke. Residents spent hours working to extract his
body, before parading it around town in a macabre spectacle seen in
every lynching. The National Memorial for Peace and Justice, dedicated
to the victims of lynching in the United States such as Mr. Hughes,
opened in 2018. The Governor of Texas declared martial law in Sherman
and Hamer departed, noting that “he had never been so disgusted in
anyone more than [the citizens of] Sherman.” His disgust was matched by
P.B. Hill.
Hill and his family returned from Korea to Texas
after WW1, and settled north of San Antonio. There, the Reverend began
to grow his flock as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, just a few
blocks north of the Alamo. Hill’s integration into the Texas
Presbyterian family grew. He became a member of the Austin College
Board of Trustees in the late 1920s, a position he would hold for over a
decade. Hill was a Trustee in 1930, and was present in Sherman when
Hamer made his failed trip to disperse the mob.
Hill’s kids
began to arrive at AC during his stint on the Board of Trustees. In
1929, son and track star Sam graduated from AC; Sam would eventually
follow in his father’s footsteps and become a Presbyterian minister.
P.B. Hill later suggested to his younger son David that he transfer from
Texas A&M to Austin College. Roo diploma in hand, David “Tex” Hill
would become one of the most decorated fighter pilots in World War 2
with the Flying Tigers in Asia. A third son, Johnny, was also an Austin
College Kangaroo. Johnny had brushes with the law as a youth, but a
conversation with J. Edgar Hoover at the suggestion of his Dad turned
the youngster towards the straight and narrow.
In 1928, P.B. Hill
became a Texas Ranger. The Rangers trace their origin to 1823, when
the outfit was established by AC’s namesake Stephen F. Austin. Hill was
Ranger Chaplain; he was also a poet. His most famous work, “The
Ranger’s Prayer,” is still quoted by officers. During his years as a
Ranger, Hill became close to colleague Frank Hamer. The two would often
spend time in Austin, San Antonio, or hunting and fishing in their
beloved Hill Country.
Hamer retired from the Rangers a third time
in 1932, one week before Miriam “Ma” Ferguson returned to the
governor’s office for a second term. Over forty Rangers resigned
alongside Hamer; all correctly suspected that “Ma” would once again
tighten the leash on the Rangers and fill open positions with loyalists.
At retirement, the commander of the Texas Rangers allowed Hamer to
retain a Special Ranger commission. He’d need it for his next
assignment.
Then came the prison break that changed everything.
Bonnie Parker & Clyde Barrow had been on the run for years, robbing
banks and eluding authorities across the country with arms, speed, and a
good deal of luck. On January 16, 1934, the situation changed
dramatically when the Barrow gang decided to take on Texas Law
Enforcement. The Huntsville prison break on January 16th kicked off a
127-day period that would end with their demise and transform the duo
into infamous American legends.
Empowered by Governor Ferguson
in January of 1934, Lee Simmons paid a visit to the residence of Frank
Hamer in Austin, TX. He convinced the former Ranger that Ferguson would
give him the full authority and time needed to complete the task.
After some deliberation, Hamer accepted the job.
Frank Hamer became preoccupied with one overriding goal. Finding Bonnie & Clyde.
Tomorrow: Chapter 4: Bonnie Parker & Clyde Barrow
“Roo Ties Everywhere: Austin College and the Legend of Bonnie and Clyde.”
Chapter 4: Bonnie Parker & Clyde Barrow
The Trinity river separates West Dallas from downtown. It’s only a
distance of about a mile, but it often appears to be light years. West
Dallas, historically referred to as the “Devil’s front porch,” is an
historic home for the Dallas natives without means. West Dallas
struggled mightily during the Roaring 1920s. When the Great Depression
began to hit in 1930, struggle turned to despair.
The Barrow
family lived at those margins. The family owned a gas station just a
mile from the Trinity river, but business never seemed to meet up with
family needs. Young Clyde, always in and out of school with frequent
brushes with the law, was the charmer of the family. In January of
1930, just months after the October 1929 stock market crash, Clyde met a
young Bonnie Parker in West Dallas. Both were instantly and
permanently smitten. Their relationship was immediately cut short,
however. Clyde was arrested for auto theft and sent to Eastham prison
near Huntsville. The Eastham prison, along with all other state of
Texas incarceration facilities, was run by Austin College Kangaroo Lee
Simmons.
Barrow may have been destined for the dark path he and
Bonnie Parker eventually chose. Then again, that path may have
partially chosen him. Although Clyde Barrow had not yet committed a
single violent felony, his time at Eastham was excruciating. He was
sexually assaulted, and eventually murdered his tormentor (his first
murder). To avoid the hard labor of prison, he amputated two toes; the
amputation gave him a permanent limp. Days later, he got some
surprising news. His mother had secured an early release. The
amputation had been completely unnecessary.
Barrow left Eastham
in February 1932 at the trough of the Great Depression and just a month
before the inauguration of Franklin Roosevelt, the man who had pledge
to fight it. Did Barrow enter Eastham in 1930 as a troubled youth or a
violent offender? It’s a difficult question to answer. We do know from
Barrow family members that he departed a man changed for the worse.
According to John Neal Phillips, Barrow’s primary motivations were not
fame or fortune from robbing banks, but rather revenge against the state
of Texas prison system.
Back in West Dallas, Barrow reunited
with Parker. Their romance blossomed, as did their desire to live life
on their own terms without regard for the lives of others. Over a
24-month period from February 1932 until January 1934, Bonnie &
Clyde committed increasingly violent crimes over a huge swath of
America. The two would return periodically to West Dallas under cover
of night, usually taking the Lamar-McKinney Bridge (since renamed the Ron Kirk Pedestrian Bridge after the former Roo and former mayor of Dallas) through downtown.
A considerable number of their crimes took place in or near their home
state of Texas. Kaufman, Hillsboro, Temple, and Sowers were all Texas
towns where Bonnie & Clyde crimes were reported.
So was Sherman, TX, the home of Austin College.
The Sidney R. Little Grocery in Sherman stood on the corner of Wells
and Vaden, less than a mile south of the AC campus. Howard Hall was
employed by the Littles as a meat market manager. October 11, 1932 was
a Tuesday. The Austin College football team had just returned from
Lubbock, victims of a defeat to Pete Cawthon and his Texas Tech Red
Raiders. Around 6:30 p.m., Clyde Barrow walked through the front door
on Vaden St. After placing food and supplies on the counter, he drew
his gun on one of Hall’s assistants. Hall intervened, and a
confrontation ensued that took both men through a side door onto Wells
street. Outside, Barrow fired three shots point blank at Hall, mortally
wounding him.
Barrow then raced for his automobile parked just
off Wells street, and quickly departed. Hall was carried by colleagues
across the street to the St. Vincent’s Sanitorium & Community
Hospital on Wells. Efforts to save his life failed. Before it’s
destruction, Roo Tom Nuckols had his tonsils removed at St. Vincent’s.
Years later, St. Vincent’s was torn down and replaced with an apartment
complex used frequently by Austin College students.
With numerous
crimes under their belts by late 1932, Barrow and Parker were
immediately suspected. The type of crime fit their style. The act was a
robbery of a small grocery store, combined with a get away vehicle.
Hall’s assistant also identified Barrow as the perpetrator.
Another reason to suspect the duo? Clyde’s little brother, L.C. Barrow,
was sitting in a Sherman jail that very day. Like many in the Barrow
family, L.C. had run afoul of the law and was awaiting arraignment by
Grayson County officials. It was simply assumed that Bonnie & Clyde
were in the area in an attempt to make contact with L.C. or perhaps
organize a break out.
Wanted posters were issued for Barrow’s capture:
“$200 Reward. Murder – Robbery”
“Clyde Champion Barrow”
“WANTED in Sherman for the brutal murder of Howard Hall, grocery clerk,
following the Robert of S.R. Little’s store at 6:30 p.m., October 11,
1932. All officers in the Southwest should be on the lookout for this
man. Sheriff Reece of Grayson Co., District Attorney Joe Cox, and S.R.
Little offer $200 reward for the arrest and conviction of the slayer of
Howard Hall.”
No arrest came. Nobody could find Bonnie & Clyde.
Bonnie & Clyde evaded capture for the 24-month period due to a
combination of skill, luck, and timing. Automobiles had finally
progressed to a performance and reliability that permitted both speed
and comfortable living. Clyde was famous for his driving skills and his
knowledge of backroads. The pair also made sure to keep their crimes
sporadic, with a focus on low dollar victims. Their skill was combined
with a good deal of luck. On numerous occasions, the pair were just
minutes away from being captured or killed. When that luck began to run
out, members of the Barrow gang suffered from death of capture. But
not Bonnie & Clyde; those two always seemed to avoid the worst.
And they had help from their Great Depression suffering compatriots.
Before 1934, their crimes were viewed with some sympathy among
Americans suffering through the worst economic crisis in US history. In
an era of Joad family misery at the hands of heartless, foreclosing
bankers, Americans were going to side with the Joads. Bonnie &
Clyde were Robin Hoods, taking from the business and finance communities
who were in turn causing the austerity induced pain felt across the
nation. The voters that had put in sweeping New Deal majorities in
Washington were Joad family supporters. Americans willing to give
Bonnie and Clyde some benefit of the doubt as their crime sprees took
them across the country, from one American town to another.
Turns out, Sherman, TX was not one of them after all.
The October 11, 1932 murder of Sherman resident Howard Hall was likely
NOT committed by Bonnie & Clyde. We know this today in part because
of the voice of historians, including former Austin College professor
of history Dr. Light Cummins:
“Thursday marked the 80th
anniversary of the legendary robbery/murder in Sherman by Clyde Barrow.
The infamous bandit of the Bonnie and Clyde duo is said to have killed a
store clerk. But 80 years later, historians – like Austin College
history professor Dr. Light Cummins – no longer believe Clyde was the robber.”
“’Digital research and the availability on the internet and the
availability to consult jail records, arrest records, and other search
documents made it possible for historians to conclusively prove that
Clyde Barrow was not at Sherman at the time of the robbery.’ He said
about 15 years ago, historians began to doubt Clyde’s involvement. ‘They
however weren’t even in the area at the time,’ he said. ‘Clyde and
Bonnie were on their way back from Michigan.’
Even if the two were not in Sherman in 1932, Bonnie & Clyde had the sympathy of much of the nation at that time.
Then came the prison break that changed everything.
Bonnie Parker & Clyde Barrow had been on the run for years, robbing
banks and eluding authorities across the country with arms, speed, and a
good deal of luck. On January 16, 1934, the situation changed
dramatically when the Barrow gang decided to take on Texas Law
Enforcement. The Huntsville prison break on January 16th kicked off a
127-day period that would end with their demise and transform the duo
into infamous American legends.
Ma Ferguson, Lee Simmons, and
Frank Hamer were put on their tail. After the Eastham prison break in
Huntsville, it was just a matter of time.
“Roo Ties Everywhere: Austin College and the Legend of Bonnie and Clyde.”
Chapter 5: Eastham
Of all the cities in Texas with Roo ties, none compare to Huntsville.
The Brazos Presbytery’s debate over the location of Austin College
ended after Daniel Baker was won over by the enthusiasm of the citizens
of Huntsville. From “Austin College: A Sesquicentennial History,” by
Dr. Light Cummins:
“[Baker] delivered a glowing report on the suitability of Huntsville as
the best location because ‘no place in Texas so far as known to the
committee presents greater advantages for the establishment of a
literary institution of high character.’”
At the time of AC’s
establishment in 1849, Huntsville was a thriving town. It was also the
home of Sam Houston, an early Austin College Trustee just years removed
from the battle of San Jacinto. The new Board chose a small hill south
of downtown for the college campus, and began work on the first
building. That structure, Austin Hall, was completed in 1851 and still
stands today. It is the oldest building west of the Mississippi used
continuously for educational purposes.
1849 was also the birth of
the state prison in Huntsville. William Barrett, who constructed
Austin Hall, was also tasked with building the new prison near downtown.
The AC Board of Trustees contracted with a Huntsville firm to supply
the bricks needed for construction of Austin Hall; that same firm was
used by Barrett to build the Texas state prison.
After years of
struggle during and after the Civil War, Austin College made the painful
decision to leave Huntsville for the greener pastures of Sherman in
1876. 100 years later, a Roo educated in Sherman would return to
Huntsville.
Carroll Pickett graduated from Austin College in
1954. Like many Roos, he attended AC with the intent to become a
Presbyterian minister. Unlike many Roos, he was an elite tennis player.
Pickett advanced to the NAIA national tournament in 1954, placing 3rd.
The award for the most outstanding AC tennis player each year is named
for Carroll Pickett.
Pickett felt a calling in the 1970s and
accepted the position of Chaplain of the Texas State Prison in
Huntsville. His new role coincided with the Supreme Court once again
legalizing the death penalty, which Texas quickly adopted. Pickett
suddenly found himself intimately involved with the administration of
capital punishment in the state.
Carroll Pickett was a proponent
of the death penalty in the 1970s. The murder of his grandfather and
his involvement in the Carrasco Prison Siege in 1974 were significant
influences. By the time of his retirement in the 1990s, he had become a
death penalty opponent and advocate for its abolition. This change was
in part due to his certainty that several men whose execution he
oversaw were not guilty of the capital crimes in which they were
convicted. Pickett’s book “Within These Walls” is a highly recommended
Roo Tale page turner.
Between 1876 and 1976, a third Roo called
Huntsville home. After two decades in Sherman, former Austin College
student Lee Simmons finally accepted Governor Dan Moody’s request to
head the Texas State Prison in 1930. Simmons oversaw both the prison
itself in downtown Huntsville, as well as a number of work labor farms
outside of the city. One of those farms was called Eastham.
Clyde Barrow had been sentenced to Eastham in the early 1930s for crimes
that arguably didn’t warrant the harsh environment at the farm. So bad
was his experience that he amputated two toes in order to be
transferred back to the “Walls Unit” in downtown Huntsville. Barrow
harbored a hatred of Eastham for the rest of his life, so much so that
he resolved to break out some friends in early 1934.
On January
16, 1934, Eastham prisoners working on the farm found the pistols placed
earlier by Bonnie & Clyde. They were used to murder two prison
guards and escape to a pre-arranged rendezvous spot where the duo
awaited. The breakout was a success, but the full weight of Texas law
enforcement would soon respond. Before he passed, Lee Simmons promised
one of the two prison guards that he would make it his life’s work to
capture Bonnie & Clyde.
Simmons left for Austin to meet with
Governor Ma Ferguson. There, he asked for full authority to hire a team
of Texas Rangers led by Frank Hamer with the sole purpose of finding
Bonnie & Clyde and putting an end to their violence. Ferguson
listened to Simmons’s request in late January and told the Prison Head
that she’d think it over. That was fine with Simmons; he had other
business to attend to.
He had to go raise money for Austin College athletics in Sherman, TX.
From the February 1, 1934 Paris News:
“The first formal meeting of the Kangaroo club, an organization of
Sherman businessmen to further interest of Austin College and Austin
College athletics, will be held Monday night at Hotel Grayson with 70
players of the college and Sherman high school as guests. A number of
out of town speakers have been invited including Pete Cawthon of
Lubbock, former Austin College coach; Ray Morrison of SMU; Pat Hooks of
Itasca; and Lee Simmons of Huntsville.”
After the meeting of the
Kangaroo club, Simmons returned to Austin. The Governor agreed to his
plan, and Simmons then traveled to Frank Hamer’s residence across the
Colorado river to ask the Ranger to take the job. Hamer accepted.
Hamer and his partner Manny Gault began their mission in early February
of 1934. Simmons returned to Huntsville, where Hamer kept him
constantly updated that spring. Little progress was made initially,
until the murder of two police officers on a lonely Grapevine, TX road
on Easter Morning in 1934.
The Roo ties with Huntsville run deep,
from Sam Houston to Lee Simmons to Carroll Pickett. The Carroll
Pickett award continues to be awarded annually. The 2019 recipient, Josh Granberry, was a 1st Team All-SCAC player who graduated just this past May.
The 1990 Carroll Pickett Award recipient? That was won by some guy who spends way too much time writing Roo Tales. 😉
“Roo Ties Everywhere: Austin College and the Legend of Bonnie and Clyde.”
Chapter 6: Easter
The kiddos of Meredith Clayton Allen and Kelly & Janna Carver
are teammates in the Grapevine/Southlake area. Today, these towns are
well developed D/FW suburban communities known for outstanding local
football teams. I drove up with my daughter a few years ago to support
those kiddos at a football game and catch up with the parents. Ms. M.
and I took Route 114 to the Carroll Middle School football field, which
sits just off of Dove Road.
Back in 1934, Grapevine and Southlake
were rural farming communities. On the early morning of Easter Day
that year, Grapevine patrolmen H.D. Murphy and Edward Wheeler slowly
approached a stalled vehicle on Dove Road near the intersection with
Route 114. A farmer happened to be watching when Bonnie & Clyde
opened fire on the officers without warning. According to the farmer,
Bonnie Parker approached the dying officer, mocked him, and shot him
point blank.
Public opinion immediately turned on both Bonnie
& Clyde because of the farmer’s account. It deepened when the
public learned that H.D. Murphy’s fiancée had worn her wedding dress to
his funeral. The accounts of the farmer were likely inaccurate; it is
today believed that accomplice Henry Methvin fired the first lethal
shots after a miscommunication. Bonnie Parker was probably in the car
the entire time.
Nevertheless, the unplanned incident caused the
pair to flee north to Oklahoma immediately. Frank Hamer & his
partner Manny Gault quickly got the news from Lee Simmons, and began a
pursuit north on a hunch. Soon, both hunter and hunted were in Grayson
County.
Grayson County was a refuge for Bonnie & Clyde. The
two were familiar with the backroads there, a necessity before the
dangerous crossing of the Red River. They also had family ties in
Denison. Clyde’s sister Artie Barrow had married the circulation
manager of the Denison Herald newspaper (today merged into the
Sherman/Denison Herald Democrat), and operated a beauty salon downtown.
The Cinderella Beauty Shop was located on the corner of Sears &
Burnett, just a block north of the First Presbyterian Church.
Artie and other family were known to assist Clyde, and treated Bonnie
like family. The Barrow family had already established secretive
communication methods in times of emergency, and Easter Day 1934 was
definitely one of those times. Family in Denison was also a convenient
jump point to the Carpenter’s Bluff bridge across the Red River, which
in 1934 headed straight for Durant, OK. That’s exactly where Bonnie
& Clyde were spotted by Hamer & Gault, and their partners Bob
Alcorn and Ted Hinton.
From “Go Down Together: The True, Untold story of Bonnie & Clyde,” by Jeff Guinn:
“Almost immediately, the Texans discovered that they were on the right
track. Stopping at various service stations from Sherman into Oklahoma,
they learned from attendants that three people in a Ford V-8, including
a man and woman matching the descriptions of Clyde and Bonnie, were
driving ahead of them on the same road.”
“…on Wednesday
afternoon, April 4, the two-car posse arrived in the bustling town of
Durant. They drove along Main Street, which was busy with traffic
moving steadily in both directions. Suddenly, Alcorn startled Hinton by
blurting, “Here they come!” Driving in the opposite direction, first
approaching and then passing Hinton and Alcorn’s car, were Clyde and
Bonnie.”
Bonnie & Clyde had a long run of luck as outlaws.
Heavy Durant traffic on a crowded Main Street kept their long run going.
The two soon disappeared as quickly as they had appeared. Their luck,
however, was about to run out.
The kiddos of Roo Meredith
Clayton Allen, Roo Kelly Carver, & honorary Roo Janna Carver may
provide more athletic highlights as they transition to Southlake Carroll
High School in the years to come. Hopefully I’ll get to enjoy more
moments like that football game off of Dove Road a few years ago. The
next time the Parrishes visit to root them on, I may include an
additional stop: the intersection of Dove Road and Route 114, where one
can find a memorial to H.D. Murphy and Edward Wheeler.
“Roo Ties Everywhere: Austin College and the Legend of Bonnie and Clyde.”
Chapter 7: End of the Line
Bonnie & Clyde had a long run of luck as outlaws. That luck,
however, eventually ran out. Frank Hamer & Manny Gault had already
become familiar with Bonnie & Clyde’s preferred paths that stretched
north to Oklahoma and east to Louisiana. They had also begun working
the Louisiana family member of Barrow gang in exchange for leniency from
Governor Ferguson and Lee Simmons. A trap was set on a lonely road in
northern Louisiana. On May 23rd, 1934, the duo drove right into that
trap. For Bonnie & Clyde, it was the end of the line.
History is messy and doesn’t play nice. Nearly 90 years have passed
since Bonnie Parker first met Clyde Barrow and gave America a tale of
which it cannot get enough. The story has been told in numerous ways,
all with an attempt to find appropriate heroes and villains. It’s a
difficult task.
The 1967 movie “Bonnie & Clyde” starring
Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway was a smash hit. Filmed during an era
when America was questioning governing authorities that delivered an
unjust racial system at home and controversial war abroad, the movie
featured the duo as heroines and law enforcement as incompetent stooges.
Frank Hamer in particular was treated with disdain, so much so that
his family sued the studio for defamation. The 1967 flick strayed far
from historical accuracy.
The 2019 movie “The Highwaymen”
starring Kevin Costner and Woody Harrelson probably came somewhat closer
to the truth. Told from the perspective of Frank Hamer and Manny
Gault, the movie portrays law enforcement as the real good guys. Yet
this movie also takes exceptional liberties. The Easter murder scene is
inaccurate. The injustices (both economic and penal) endured by the
Barrows are ignored. The controversial past of Hamer on matters of race
are swept under the rug. Also unmentioned is the corruption of
Governor Ferguson and the prison administration excess of Austin
College’s Lee Simmons in Huntsville.
The Highwaymen movie does,
however, get it just about right in one compelling scene. Hamer
(Costner) visits the Barrow gas station for a conversation with Clyde’s
Dad. There, the father explains that his son was not born with a dark
soul, but acquired it after being “dogged by the law.” Hamer mentions
his own acts of lawlessness in the past. The two discuss a young
Clyde’s theft of a chicken.
“You ever think that maybe there was something in Clyde that made him steal that chicken in the first place.”
“Maybe he was hungry. We were all hungry.”
“I’ll give you that.”
The truth is that the 1930s were a horrible time for America and the
world. Democratic institutions were under siege, and economic
catastrophe seemed to unfold with greater horror by the month. It’s no
wonder that in a time when heroes were not to be found, there would be a
desperate attempt to find someone……..anyone……..who could provide some
semblance of inspiration.
We wish the world were like the movie
“La La Land,” a fairy tale story where dreams are realized and everyone
looks fabulous. In reality, the world is more like the movie
“Moonlight,” a gritty, complicated, coming of age story that resembles
humanity as it truly is. Nobody is more aware of the folly of confusing
the two than Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, who mistakenly awarded the
2017 Oscar for Best Picture to “La La Land,” instead of the correct
“Moonlight.”
After 1934, Frank Hamer retired to a quiet life in
Austin at his Riverside home near the banks of the Colorado. In the
movie “The Highwaymen,” Simmons asks Hamer to track down Bonnie &
Clyde at his house. Amazingly, this scene is accurate. In later
interviews, Simmons does confirm that he asked Hamer at his home in
Austin. Even more interesting? Hamer’s house still stands. His
address was published in newspapers reviewing Hamer’s autobiography. I
drove by it on the way to work last month, wondering if the current
owners had any idea of the house’s previous resident or his interaction
with Simmons on the porch in early 1934.
Hamer’s passing in 1955
attracted a long line of family, friends, and Texas law enforcement.
His pallbearer was AC’s Lee Simmons. Services were conducted by Texas
Rangers chaplain and former Austin College Trustee P.B. Hill. Hill, the
father of Kangaroo fighter pilot legend “Tex” Hill, paid tribute to law
enforcement in his remarks:
“You know, many people don’t
understand law officers. I wonder if we really appreciate what these
men do. How poorly they’re paid, what risks they run. We sleep soundly
because of these men.”
Lee Simmons was promoting his book
“Assignment: Huntsville” in 1957 when he unexpectedly passed while
visiting in Austin. Simmons is buried in West Hill Cemetery in Sherman.
All proceeds from his book went directly to charitable and educational
purposes. A good portion went directly to AC. Just weeks earlier,
Simmons had received a Meritorious Service Award from the Alumni
Association of Austin College. Led by Cynthia Heyn today, the AC Alumni Association counts 42 former Roos as representatives. My good friend Wayne Whitmire is one.
Determining heroes and villains in a story can be a challenge. Yet you
can bet that any good Texas story will also include ties to the oldest
small college in the state. That’s just baked into the cake for an
institution that is nearly as old as the state itself. There are Roo
ties everywhere in any good Texas tale, and the story of Bonnie &
Clyde is yet another.
Roo Tom Nuckols
was raised in Sherman, and knows a good deal about Bonnie & Clyde’s
links to Grayson County. He sent me an item which happens to be a good
way to wrap up this story:
Bonnie’s younger sister Billie Parker
also ran afoul of the law, like many from the Barrow and Parker
families. She was in a jail cell on May 23, 1934, when her sister’s
life came to its short end. Billie was given the news by law
enforcement, and broke down in tears. After composing herself, she then
calmly mentioned that she had known this day would come for a long,
long time. The officer happened to ask her about the last time she had
seen her sister Bonnie. Billie Parker quietly mentioned that she had
last seen both Bonnie & Clyde a few months earlier.
In Sherman, TX.
Hope you enjoyed this little Roo Tale. More good stuff to come. The
next tale, and many previews that precede it, will be all about
Galveston, TX.
