Bonnie & Clyde and Other Notorious Lovers
MELLOW YELLOW ROAD TRIP, CHAPTER 15: IN WHICH WE FIND MORE THAN WE BARGAINED FOR
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Didn't even have a clue to guide the search |
Letterboxing has taken us to some interesting spots we wouldn't have known about otherwise. Today we visited Gibsland, Louisiana, where the infamous Bonnie and Clyde were killed in an ambush May 23, 1934, on a desolate road near their Bienville Parish hideout.
Bonnie and Clyde were shot by a posse of Texas and Louisiana officers. According to deputies who were part of the posse: "Each of us six officers had a shotgun and an automatic rifle and pistols. We opened fire with the automatic rifles. They were emptied before the car got even with us. Then we used shotguns ... There was smoke coming from the car, and it looked like it was on fire. After shooting the shotguns, we emptied the pistols at the car... We kept shooting at the car even after it stopped. We weren't taking any chances."
Bonnie and Clyde were shot by a posse of Texas and Louisiana officers. According to deputies who were part of the posse: "Each of us six officers had a shotgun and an automatic rifle and pistols. We opened fire with the automatic rifles. They were emptied before the car got even with us. Then we used shotguns ... There was smoke coming from the car, and it looked like it was on fire. After shooting the shotguns, we emptied the pistols at the car... We kept shooting at the car even after it stopped. We weren't taking any chances."
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Historic marker at ambush site |
Just like the outlaws themselves, the "Ambush of Bonnie and Clyde" letterbox was challenging to find and a bit of a struggle to retrieve. No shots were fired, however, in the detection and retrieval of this letterbox.
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Nabbed Bonnie and Clyde...letterbox |
Although we haven't been plagued by flies again, we encountered a different breed of insect when we entered Louisiana today--Plecia nearctica, also known as the lovebug. The bane of the Gulf Coast, the lovebug is a member of the march fly family. Most of the year these critters are beneficial little larvae, living in grassy areas and feeding on dead vegetation within the thatch left after grass is cut. Thus they help to release nutrients back into the soil and reduce excessive thatch. However, in their adult stage, they are a bit of a nuisance, flying in groups so large they look like clouds. Millions of these "double-headed bugs" lose their lives in late summer, ambushed by autos, trucks, and other vehicles across the South.
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You know you're on the Gulf Coast. |
We finished the day in Laurel, Mississippi, enjoying dinner at the new Sweet Peppers restaurant (owned by stepdad Morris' grandson) and visiting Morris at the hospital.
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Ken and Nanamama try the new cuisine. |
SATURDAY, 20 SEPTEMBER 2008