Henry Methvin
| Henry Methvin | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
April 8, 1912 Louisiana, United States |
| Died | April 19, 1948 (aged 36) Sulphur, Louisiana |
| Cause of death | Killed in train accident |
| Occupation | Bank robber |
| Criminal penalty | 10 years imprisonment Life imprisonment |
| Criminal status | Escaped in 1934 Paroled in 1942 |
| Parent(s) | Ivan Methvin and Avie Stephens |
| Conviction(s) |
Armed robbery Murder |
Henry Methvin (April 8, 1912 – April 19, 1948) was an American criminal, a bank robber, and a Depression-era outlaw. He is best remembered as the final member of Bonnie and Clyde's gang and whose father, Ivan Methvin, was handcuffed to a tree and used his log truck to slow them down so they could shoot them to their deaths at the hands of a posse headed by Texas lawman Frank Hamer in 1934. His role in the gang has often been misattributed to teenage gang member W.D. Jones as both men were portrayed as composite character "C.W. Moss" in the film Bonnie and Clyde (1967).
Henry Methvin was born in Louisiana on April 8, 1912, to Ivan "Ivy" T. Methvin and Avie Stephens. He was serving a 10-year prison sentence at the Eastham prison farm in Huntsville, Texas when Bonnie and Clyde came to break out Raymond Hamilton on January 16, 1934; one guard was killed and another wounded in the jailbreak. In the confusion, Methvin and three other inmates took the opportunity to escape with Hamilton. Though Hamilton initially ordered them to go back, Clyde welcomed the convicts and offered to let them join the gang. Though the three men chose to take their chances alone, Methvin accepted Clyde's offer to stay. He remained with the gang until their end five months later.
A month after the breakout, Methvin joined Hamilton and Clyde in stealing guns and ammunition from a National Guard armory in Ranger, Texas, under the cover of darkness on February 19. Eight days later, the men used the weapons to steal $4,138 from a bank in Lancaster. Bonnie and Clyde agreed to drive Methvin to visit his father near Gibsland, Louisiana, on March 1. Methvin was present when, the following month, the gang shot and killed Texas state troopers E.B. Wheeler and H.D. Murphy on April 1, 1934. Conflicting reports from relatives and allege eyewitnesses have implicated each of the four gang members. Clyde himself was inconsistent on who he believed was the shooter. He wrote to relatives blaming Methvin, who he claimed had misunderstood Clyde's suggestion that they "take" the troopers, meaning to disarm and take them for a "joyride", and instead opened fire. In a later letter to authorities, however, Clyde named Hamilton as the killer.
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