Born Arizona Clark, Ma Barker raised four sons whose crimes made the family Americas most wanted gang. When the gang's hideout was nearly discovered, the FBI alleges Fred Barker and Karpis figured he had tipped off the police - intentionally or accidentally - and decided to dispose of him. He got away with it for almost a month before a copfinally caught up with him. Bloody Mama: Directed by Roger Corman. B.M. Karpis sentenced to 4 years but paroled after restitution made; Fred Barker also avoided jail sentence. 4 0 obj
Barker was born Arizona Donnie Clark in Ash Grove, Missouri, the daughter of John and Emaline (Parker) Clark; her family called her "Arrie". Yet, more witches were arrested in Andover than in Salem, 14 miles away - as the witch flies. January 16, 1922 Lloyd Barker received at. [3] By 1930, she was living with a jobless man named Arthur W. Dunlop (sometimes spelled "Dunlap"). Simone: This is Chris Enss, she's a history writer and co-author of Ma Barker: America's Most Wanted Mother. After the break, the real Ma Barker and big time crime in the 30s. And for the first time, Ma Barker was officially recognized as an accomplice to the gang by law enforcement. August 1, 1927 Herman Barker cashed stolen bank bonds at the America National Bank in Cheyenne, WY. They noted that George was not a criminal, but he was willing to profit from his sons' crimes after their deaths by claiming their assets as next of kin. Tradition averred that this Bercer was William de Calverhall; and his descendants, when after two hundred years they settled again the northern part of the county, at Claverley, Wolvcrton and Coleslrarst, seem to have reassumed the name of Covevf ll as an alias, so that they were known by both names. Early Origins of the Barker family. She is described as his wife on the 1930 census of Tulsa, Oklahoma. 11 0 obj
Most viewed outlaws with fear, but to many poor folks they represented the idea of the commoner taking a piece of the pie, and they became underdog heroes (via Mental Floss). ", http://www.vnla.com/vnl/gen/mcq/Barker.htm, (from http://books.google.com/books?id=k7UNAQAAMAAJ&dq=John%20Barker%20al Google eBooks, not in copyright). Middle Name. A strong-willed matriarch who allegedly helped organize her sons crimes, Kate Barker better known as Ma Barker was killed after a four-hour gun battle with FBI agents in Ocklawaha, Florida in 1935. Actress Shelley Winters played a villainous fictionalized version of her in the 1966 "Batman" television series, as well as 1970's "Bloody Mama," which also starred a young Robert DeNiro as Lloyd Barker. It was probably derived from the office, or rather appointment, of Bercar, a sort of Inspector or Chief Shepherd, whose duty it was to superintend the stint of sheep on the common lands of the manor, especially on Manors of the Royal Demesne. [ Ref ] [ Ref] He married second Mary Unknown. Kate (Ma) Barker (ne Clark October 8, 1873 January 16, 1935), better known as Ma Barker, and sometimes as Arizona Barker, was the mother of several criminals who ran the Barker gang during the public enemy era, when the exploits of gangs of criminals in the U.S. Midwest gripped the American pe . Patriarch Richard Barker, born in England circa 1621, was one of the original proprietors of Andover, arriving in the new world with his wife Joanna in the late 1630s. She wasn't a leader of criminals or even a criminal herself. The Barker deathhouse in Ocklawaha, Florida, was listed for sale on August 16, 2012. 1 0 obj
Arrie "countenanced their wrongdoings" while George refused to accept them. [4] After this, she was usually known to gang members as "Kate". by Elford H. Messer 1994 . Compare DNA and explore genealogy for William Barker Sr born 1646 Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts died 1718 Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts including parents + descendants + 2 photos + DNA connections + more in the free family tree community. Wikimedia CommonsThe FBI gunned down Ma and Fred Barker in this Florida cottage. /Contents 10 0 R
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There are already 1,027 users and over 5,000 genealogy profiles with the Barker surname on Geni. She was writing to him to tell him about a large, September 26, 1935 The supposed body of underworld doctor, November 7, 1935 Karpis and five accomplices robbed an Erie Railroad mail train at. Williams Timberhill Cemetery in Welch, Okla. [Newton, Michael. In 1892, she married George Barker in Lawrence County, Missouri, and the couple had four sons: Herman (18931927), Lloyd (18971949), Arthur (18991939), and Fred (19011935). Barker Genealogy, published by the Barker Society, of which I am a vice-president,1 I learn there are eight principal lines of the Barker family in this country. According to an FBI report, she enjoyed the life of luxury and bought expensive clothes and furniture. As they came of age, Ma Barkers sons turned to a life of crime, as evidenced by Hermans 1915 arrest in Joplin, Missouri for highway robbery. The home is famous for being the location of the longest gun battle in FBI history. In June 1933, they kidnapped William Hamm Jr. of the brewing family, getting a ransom of $100,000. But who was this woman, mostly known these days only by a single black-and -white photo reminiscent of a smirking, backwoods Mona Lisa? Allegedly, many local people came to watch the events unfolding, even holding picnics during the gunfire. Her stepdad, Reuben Reynolds, was a lawman who Kate did not get along with one bit. Perkins; Jack; Drummond, John; and Cara, Mark (1996), This page was last edited on 14 January 2023, at 22:03. The . 13a. This was about 26% of all the recorded Barker's in United Kingdom. Barker Family Tree Insert Logo Here Born: 12-14-1814 Death: 3-22-1878 m. Born: 1819 Death: 1894 John H. George Tyler Wallace C. Anna S. . January 30, 1921 Arthur Barker aka "Bob Barker" received at the Oklahoma State Prison (#11059); released June 11, 1921. Let's take a trip back in time to the very wild real-life story of Ma Barker. 722 1000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 0 444 556 444 0 500 556 278 0 556 278 833 556
Shortly after, Fred Barkerwas released from prison in 1931 and, per Biography, brought home a friend: former cellmate Alvin Karpis. 0 0 0 0 0 722 667 722 0 667 611 778 778 0 500 778 0 944 0 0 0 0 0 556 667 0
This event is supposed to have awakened her desire for adventure and life outside the law. Barker gained a reputation as a ruthless crime matriarch who controlled and organized her sons' crimes. "We'd leave her at home when we were arranging a job, or we'd send her to a movie. In fact, he might even be called the first settler of Andover. 1618 Nayland, Suffolk, England died 1693 Andover, Essex, Massachusetts including research + descendants + 15 genealogist comments + DNA connections + more in the free family tree community. Back in the 1930s, people would pose with the bodies of infamous criminals. Travis Barker's family has not made many public appearances, but he was born to parents, Randy Barker and Gloria Barker, with two siblings on November 14, 1975, in California. Born in 18 Apr 1886 and died in 9 Jan 1984 Boswell, Oklahoma Abigail "Ma" Crowder Barker She was buried in (3) 1645 in Rowley. Salt Lake City : Tradition Publications. /Length 4108
What could look more innocent? The special agent in charge of the operation approached the house and demanded that the occupants surrender. The troubles started small - rocks thrown through windows, wallets stolen from pockets at church - but soon escalated to greater and greater misdeeds. The first word of her simple, unassuming grave marker reads: "Ma. May 2, 1936 Karpis and accomplice Fred Hunter arrested in New Orleans, Louisiana. The gang managed to get away, and their reputation as a dangerous band of criminals grew. She held at least five different aliases over the years and may have helped stash goods, launder money, and, per the Orlando Sentinel, case banks. The father was a farmer. /FontDescriptor 11 0 R
In June, the Barker-Karpis Gang abducted William Hamm Jr., president of the Hamm Brewery Company, demanding a hefty ransom for his release. "What could look more innocent?". Both bodies were found in the front bedroom. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, St. Paul, Minnesota, was just that place. Her role was in taking care of gang members, who often sent her to the movies while they committed crimes. January 19, 1934 Gang wounds M.C. The riches she had always hoped her husband would bring her were now hers by way of her sons. Anytime a revival came through town she went. Ma, 63, was curled on the floor, cradling her Tommy gun. Sheriff Deputy, August 29, 1927 Herman Barker commits suicide in Wichita, Kansas after being pulled over by a motorcycle cop with a sidecar. [6] According to Claire Bond Potter, "Her age and apparent respectability permitted the gang to hide out 'disguised' as a family. [11] Karpis has suggested that the story was encouraged by J. Edgar Hoover[14] and his fledgling Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to justify his agents' killing an old woman. Plymouth Colony, MA d: 8 May 1763 dp: Scituate, Mass m: ca 1737 Mary Green b: 8 Mar 1710 bp: Plymouth, Mass d: 16 Mar 1756 dp: Barnstable, Barnstable Co, MA James Bird b: 1722 bp: Litchfield Co, CT Some say she was no more than a common hillbilly woman, others claim she was the mastermind of the entire Barker-Karpis Gang, who stole more money than John Dillinger, Bonnie and Clyde, and Vern Miller combined, notes author Chris Enss and left a trail of nearly a dozen dead law enforcement officers in their wake. Last Name. In 1910, per The Famous People, teenage Herman Barker ran over a child while fleeing the scene of a robbery in a getaway car, and the Barkers became constantly involved with the police. . July 26, 1932 Fred Barker, Karpis (with an augmented gang) robbed Cloud County bank at. ", "Note. Records of Ma Barker on Ancestry. The connecting links have been supplied from the Court Rolls of the Manors of Warfield and Claverley, and after about 1560 one begins to find parish church registers. April 26, 1932 Body of A.W. The updated Disco-Mix of Boney M. Hit "Ma Baker" with actual photos and mug shots of the real-life Ma Barker, matriarch of the notorious 1930s outlaw family.. "The name Barker, though not a very common one, made its appearance during the thirteenth century in parts of the country widely distant from each other, and it is not to be supposed that all those who bore it were in any way related to each other. Kate Barker's parents, Emeline and John Clark, were Scottish-Irish immigrants just trying to work their small farm and make ends meet, according to authors Chris Enss and Howard Kazanjian in their book "Ma Barker," Kate adored her father, but he died when she was just 7, and her mother remarried. Her name was Kate Barker, but she was notoriously known as "Ma" Barker, a Midwestern woman who became the FBI's most wanted mother of the 1930s. Cecil Barker is deaceased. In October 2016, the Ma Barker home in Ocklawaha, Florida, was relocated via barge across Lake Weir to Carney Island in Marion County in preparation for being opened to the public as a museum in late 2017 or 2018. In the ensuing shootout, one policeman was killed . According to Karpiss (per Chris Enss and Howard Kazanjian's book "Ma Barker"), Kate allowed Dunlop to "sponge off of her" and was a "pain in the ass." He was born in Straagewell, County of Suffolk, This was a success, earning them $100,000. Already a rebellious child, young Kate became enamored with the Midwest outlaws of the time. Alvin Karpis, thought to be the true leader of the gang, disagreed with Hoover. /Ascent 694
Some say she was no more than a common hillbilly woman, others claim she was the mastermind of the entire Barker-Karpis Gang, who stole more money than John Dillinger, Bonnie and Clyde, and Vern Miller combined, notes author Chris Enss and left a trail of nearly a dozen . In 1892, she married George E. Barker and began using the first name Kate. The Barkers were for many centuries almost exclusively connected with Shropshire, a county equalled by few others in England as to the number of its old historic families. Either she threw him out, as some say, or he left when life became intolerable with his criminal family. Ma saw a lot of movies." The lakefront Florida retreat where FBI agents gunned down gangland legend Ma Barker in 1935 is up for sale - bullet holes and all.. Alvin Karpis asserted that J. Edgar Hoover, who described Barker as the most vicious, dangerous, and resourceful criminal brain of the last decade, encouraged the creation of the myth to justify the killing of an older woman. Before they met him, the gang were nothing more than a "bumbling band of hillbilly burglars" who would have been captured or killed long before becoming nationally notorious. The family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1912. From 1927 to 1930, Kate Barker lived alone in what author Tim Mahoney describes in his book "Secret Partners" as a "dirt-floor shack" in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Compare DNA and explore genealogy for Richard Barker born abt. Barker has a half-brother, Kent Valandra, from Matilda's subsequent re-marriage. On New Year's Eve, there was a gala attended by many top mobsters, including Capone's associates and Isadore "Kid Cann" Blumenfeld (per authorTroy Taylor). A funeral mass was held on Monday, September 12th 2022 at 11:00 AM at the St. Augustine's Parish (43 Essex St, Andover, MA 01810). A .45 caliber automatic pistol was found next to Freds body, and a machine gun lay at Ma Barkers left hand. We collect and match historical records that Ancestry users have contributed to their family trees to create each person's profile. Wrong username or password. Ocala, Florida. ", While she didn't do any of the heavy lifting, Kate still had a role in the gang's activities. They made no exception for Fred and Ma Barker after they were brought to a morgue in Ocala, Florida. She felt he treated her and her three siblings worse than his two biological children. They obtained $100,000 in ransom by abducting William Hamm, then arranged the kidnapping of Edward Bremer which netted them a $200,000 ransom. Getty ImagesMa Barker, shown here sitting with her friend Arthur Dunlop, died at age 61 in a shootout with the FBI. Kate Barker (born The second kidnapping of the Barker/Karpis gang targeted a wealthy banker named Edward George Bremer, Jr., who was snatched in St. Paul, Minnesota on January 17, 1934. City, State. endobj
January 15, 1921 Arthur Barker aka "Claude Dade" involved in attempted bank robbery in Muskogee, Oklahoma; arrested (#822). [13], The popular image of Ma as the gang's leader and its criminal mastermind is often portrayed in films such as Ma Barker's Killer Brood (1960), Bloody Mama (1970), and Public Enemies (1996). According to ChrisEnss and Howard Kazanjianin "Ma Barker," Ma Barker attended church every Sunday and took her boys with her. Biography of Ma Barker and her Sons. [11] Other sources say that it was lying between the bodies of Ma and Fred. The Family of Richard Barker of Andover, Massachusetts Paradigm of Seventeenth Century Colonial Puritanism. Does anyone have info on George Barkers family, where born, siblings, cousins etc.Any info would be helpful, and would help me make the connection. /FontName /EQNEBL+Times-Bold
History remembers her as Ma Barker: the ruthless mother of four of the nation's most dangerous Depression-era criminals. Ma Barker's Killer Brood: Directed by Bill Karn. The Barker-Karpis gang of the early 1930s was one of the most notorious collections of villains to plague America during the Age of Gangsters. After about a four-hour gun battle, gunfire stopped coming from the house. Short, blue-eyed, and dark-featured, George was quiet, as per Biography, and lacked the ambition Kate wanted, allowing her to dominate the relationship, notes the Kansas City Star. January 18, 1932 Lloyd Barker received at Leavenworth Prison. My favorite part was touring the house and seeing it like it was when the shoot out happened. September 10, 1932 Arthur "Doc" Barker released from prison. Karpis claimed that Ma Barker was just an old-fashioned homebody from the Ozarks a simple woman, adding that Ma was superstitious, gullible, simple, cantankerous, and, well, generally law-abiding. Delma Barker, Marion Barker, Versie Barker are all deaceased. The Barker family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The tumultuous life of Kate Clark - simple farm girl turned gangster matriarch - is a lesson in this inevitability. With Lurene Tuttle, Tristram Coffin, Paul Dubov, Nelson Leigh. The surname Barker was first found in Yorkshire where Ralph Berker was a Knights Templar in 1185. This tragedy took a toll on both Kate and George Barker - but they handled it differently. The Ma Barker Story. Get info on Richard E Barker - Agawam, Massachusetts - (413) 782-0169. By 1928, all three remaining Barker brothers were incarcerated, with Lloyd serving time in a federal prison in Leavenworth, Kansas, Arthur in an Oklahoma State Penitentiary, and Fred in a Kansas State Prison. %PDF-1.4
The Barker gang is rooted in the family of Arizona "Ma" Clark Barker (1873?-1935) and her four sons, Herman (1894-1927), Lloyd (1896-1949), Arthur "Dock" (1899-1939), and Fred (1902-35). "The most ridiculous story in the annals of crime is that Ma Barker was the mastermind behind the Barker-Karpis Gang," he said in a 1979 interview (via Toronto Sun). "[She was] queerly able to present the appearance of a mild, even-tempered lady," Cooper added. Was Ma Barker a typical midwestern mother of four or a bloodthirsty criminal mastermind? They made no exception for Fred and Ma Barker after they were brought to a morgue in Ocala, Florida. Roger and Alva had Joseph Barker, Cecil Barker, Larry Barker, Wayne Barker, Delma Barker, Marion Barker, Versie Barker, Dalton Barker. ", United States Department of Justice,Wikimedia Commons, The Hunt for the Last Public Enemy in Northeastern Ohio, Hunt for the Last Public Enemy in Northeastern Ohio. We encourage you to research and examine these records to determine their . Both Ma and Fred, it was soon learned, were dead," according to the website. [10] Gunfire from the house finally stopped, and the FBI ordered local estate handyman Willie Woodbury to enter the house wearing a bulletproof vest. [10] According to the FBI's account, a Tommy gun was found lying in her hands. Skip . The gang apparently believed that Dunlop's loose lips had given them away, and they murdered him while traveling. In Domesday Book, Nigellus, a clerk, was lord of the manor of Calverhall or Coverhall, after which it passed into the king's hands, and he gave it to William de Dunstanville, who sublet it under the feudal system to these de Calverhalls. "It's no insult to Ma's memory that she just didn't have the know-how to direct us on a robbery," he wrote in his memoirs (via Crime and Investigation). In August 1933, gangsters attacked a vehicle carrying the money. He was arrested and locked up in the Tulsa County Jail. Based on the lack of evidence tying her to any crime, most historians agree with Karpis. Barker didnt discourage her sons from their criminal enterprises, nor did she discipline them.