Ma Canfield's Café, where Bonnie and Clyde ate their last meal on May 23, 1934, before driving south to the lawmen's ambush — now a museum holding Bonnie's hat, Clyde's saxophone, and a replica death car.
2419 Main St, Gibsland, LA 71028
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$
Admission approximately $7-10 per person; check website for current pricing. Open daily 9am-5pm.
Access
Limited Access
Single-story storefront building; some display areas may be tight
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1934 · Bonnie and Clyde History · Depression-Era Outlaw Era · 1934 Ambush Last Meal Site · Louisiana Crime History
Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow had been the subjects of a 102-day organized manhunt when they arrived in Gibsland, Louisiana, in May 1934. The two had been robbing banks and killing law officers across the southwest since 1932; by 1934 they had been connected to at least thirteen murders.
On the morning of May 23, 1934, Bonnie and Clyde ate breakfast at Ma Canfield's Café at 2419 Main Street in Gibsland. It was their last meal. They drove south on Louisiana Highway 154 toward Sailes, where a six-officer posse — including former Texas Ranger Frank Hamer, recruited specifically for the manhunt, and Louisiana officers Henderson Jordan and Prentis Oakley — had positioned themselves in the brush along the roadside. The officers had been tipped that the two would drive that road that morning.
The ambush lasted approximately fifteen seconds. Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were struck by an estimated 130 rounds. Both died at the scene. A crowd gathered quickly; by the time authorities arrived to manage the scene, souvenir hunters had already cut pieces from Bonnie's dress and Clyde's shirt.
The café building later became the Bonnie and Clyde Ambush Museum, operated by L.J. 'Boots' Hinton, the son of one of the posse members. The museum holds Bonnie's hat, Clyde's saxophone, period photographs from the couple's time on the run, and a replica of the 1934 Ford V8 sedan that was destroyed in the ambush. Gibsland holds an annual Bonnie and Clyde Festival each May on the anniversary of the ambush.
Sources
The Bonnie and Clyde Ambush Museum does not emphasize haunted history; its draw is archival. The building is the actual café where the two ate their last meal, the hat is Bonnie's hat, and the museum's long-time operator L.J. 'Boots' Hinton was the son of Deputy Ted Hinton, one of the six officers in the ambush posse.
That said, the story's emotional dimensions are hard to miss: a 23-year-old woman and a 25-year-old man, wanted for murder, eating breakfast in a small café on a Tuesday morning and driving off into an ambush they didn't know was waiting. The site seven miles south on Highway 154 — the actual kill zone — draws more visitors than the museum in some accounts, and both sites together form a coherent dark-tourism itinerary.
Some regional accounts include reports of Bonnie Parker's presence in the museum and café space, consistent with the pattern of violent sudden death at a documented last-location. The museum itself keeps its framing historical. For visitors interested in the paranormal dimension, the ambush site on Highway 154 — a roadside pull-off open to the public at no charge — provides a more direct geographic connection to the deaths.
Notable Entities
Tour the former Ma Canfield's Café building, where Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow ate breakfast on the morning of May 23, 1934 — their last meal before driving south on Highway 154 to meet a six-officer posse. The museum holds Bonnie's hat, Clyde's saxophone, personal photographs, period newspapers, and a replica of the Ford V8 sedan (the 'death car') that was struck by approximately 130 rounds in the ambush.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
Gibsland, LA
On May 23, 1934, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow drove south on Louisiana Highway 154 from Gibsland after eating breakfast at Ma Canfield's Café. A six-officer posse concealed in the brush — including former Texas Ranger Frank Hamer — opened fire on their Ford V8 without warning. The two were struck by approximately 130 rounds and died at the scene. Two granite monuments mark the roadside pull-off; the markers have been repeatedly vandalized and were most recently replaced in October 2024.
Cherryvale, KS
Between 1871 and 1873, John Bender Sr., his wife, and adult children John Jr. and Kate operated a roadside inn and general store on the Osage Trail eight miles northeast of Cherryvale. They killed at least 11 travelers — possibly more — by seating victims near a canvas curtain while a family member attacked from behind, then robbing the bodies and burying them on the property. The family vanished in May 1873 before authorities arrived, and their ultimate fate has never been confirmed.
Liberty, MO
On February 13, 1866, a gang led by Frank and Jesse James robbed the Clay County Savings Association in Liberty, Missouri — the first successful peacetime daylight bank robbery in U.S. history. A bystander, 19-year-old William Jewell College student George Wymore, was shot and killed in the street as the gang fled. The original 1858 bank building has been restored to its 1866 appearance and operates as a museum.