Jim Cole
The visit that the notorious outlaws Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow made to Victoria on a Saturday in August 1932 has been reported a number of times.
This month, however, is the 85th anniversary of their visit, so it seems appropriate to reminisce once again about their short-lived visit.
There is some evidence that the pair, accompanied by another man later identified as Raymond Hamilton, visited near Corpus Christi. Afterward, it seems they spent a night in Schroeder. The next morning, the three piled into the Ford coupe they were driving and came into Victoria.
They stopped for a beer at Fossati's but didn't stay long. Possibly they feared being recognized.
Meanwhile, Mrs. C. H. Hawkins, whose husband was district agent in Victoria for Sinclair Oil Company, had just parked her new 1932 Ford Sedan in the garage.
The Hawkinses lived in a four-unit apartment building called "The Tracy Apartments," 508 N. Glass St., at the corner of Glass and Stayton. The four-car garage was situated off Stayton.
The outlaws may have watched Mrs. Hawkins as she parked her car, or they may have simply driven by and noticed the new car in the garage. In any case, it was a "target of opportunity" for them. They stole the car.
It was common in those days for keys to be left in the car. Even if Mrs. Hawkins didn't leave the keys, Clyde Barrow would have had no difficulty at all in "hot-wiring" the ignition. He was an accomplished car thief, among other things. Both Mr. and Mrs. Hawkins and a neighbor witnessed the theft.
The three outlaws drove away, with Raymond Hamilton driving the coupe. Bonnie and Clyde were now much more comfortable in their new Ford sedan.
The neighbor gave chase in his own car. The thieves sped away to Rio Grande Boulevard and headed out to the Houston Highway. The neighbor followed in hot pursuit.
However, he had car trouble and gave up the chase. Noted Victoria historian Sidney Weisiger reported "after he found out who he was chasing, his complexion got pretty pale."
By this time, Victoria police had been notified and they, in turn, notified police in Wharton. A roadblock was set up at the Colorado River bridge.
Gunfire was exchanged at the bridge, and the trio turned around and headed out Rancho Grande Road (present-day Farm-to-Market Road 961). The coupe was found abandoned shortly afterward, its windshield shattered, evidently by bullets.
The three outlaws, now traveling together in one car, went through Glen Flora and Egypt and on to Eagle Lake.
When they reached Bell- ville, there was another shootout with police, but they escaped.
At Cedar Hill, south of Dallas, Bonnie and Clyde robbed a bank.
The Ford Sedan, stolen in Victoria on Saturday, Aug. 13, 1932, was eventually recovered in Carthage, Mo., on Sept. 19, 1932. Apparently it was undamaged except for possibly a bullet hole here or there.
Sidney Weisiger reported "fingerprints found in the coupe, abandoned a few miles from Wharton, (positively) identified the outlaws as Clyde Barrow, Bonnie Parker and Raymond Hamilton, three of the most ruthless law-breakers that Texas has ever produced."
Jim Cole, a retired civil engineer, is a Victoria Preservation Inc. board member. He can be reached via email, jim@colemines.com.
