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A DEADLY BOND
22" X 30" Oil Painting
Video
The Ma Barker shootout at Lake Weir, near Oklawaha. January, 1935.
During the worst years of the Depression, one of the most notorious
of the gangland figures was Kate "Ma" Barker. As the matron of the
Barker-Karpis gang, a band of bank robbers and kidnappers that
included her four sons, operated throughout the midwest of America.
With one son in prison and the rest facing the increasing concentration of lawmen and
the FBI, the gang elected to split up and wait until the pressure
subsided. In 1934, Ma and her son Fred, with some others of the gang,
arrived in the little Florida town of Oklawaha. There they rented a
comfortable home on the shore of Lake Weir and lived as quiet,
reclusive vacationers.
The FBI eventually learned of this retreat and early on the morning
of January 16, a band of agents, along with other lawmen, approached the
door of the house. The lawmen called for Fred, but Ma quickly shut them
out... the four hour battle began.
Ma and Fred were the only two at home
that morning. Possessing an arsenal of machine guns, shotguns and pistols,
the two kept the lawmen at bay for hours with their marksmanship and
firepower, but the overwhelming number of armed lawmen, along with the use
of tear gas, would eventually prevail.
The shooting stopped. The agents ordered the hired man of the Barker house
to approach and enter the dwelling to inform them on the condition of the
fugitives. The mother and son were found dead of massive gunshot wounds,
their guns at hand, amidst a clutter of weapons and spent shells. The
little town of Oklawaha, known for its quiet, easy living and good fishing,
would never again see a day like that January morning in 1935... when history came
to call.
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