"Machine Gun" Kelley

During the Prohibition Era, organized crime increased. Big-name gangsters like Al Capone ruled the streets while public enemies such as Bonnie and Clyde swept across the country. One of the most infamous criminals of this time was George Francis Barnes Jr., also known as George B. “Machine Gun” Kelley. Born on July 17, 1900, in Chicago, Barnes grew up in Memphis. He briefly held a job and family, but following divorce and the loss of his job, he fell into bootlegging. He built up a nasty reputation, being jailed numerous times, and headed westward by the late 1920s. In 1930, he met the widow Kathryn Thorne. They eventually married, and joined together to go on crime sprees of higher and higher magnitudes, robbing banks across the south and midwest. Kathryn was known to be a good shot with various firearms, and eventually bought a Thompson machine gun for her husband, earning him his nickname. George and Kathryn robbed banks for years, gaining large amounts of money and notoriety. On July 22, 1933, the couple set out to kidnap Charles Urschel, an oil baron in Oklahoma City. They held him at the farm house of Kathryn’s stepfather Robert “Boss” Shannon in Wise County until the ransom of $200,000 was paid. However, in August the couple was caught and arrested. During one of the first court cases under the new Lindbergh law on kidnapping, George, Kathryn, and much of the Shannon family were given life sentences in prison, although boss was granted clemency after 11 years. George died of heart disease in Leavenworth Prison on July 18, 1954. George Barnes was buried here by Boss Sannon as nobody from George’s immediate family claimed the body.

"Machine Gun" Kelley is a historical marker in Cottondale, Wise County, dedicated in 2015. It is one of 89 historical markers documented in Wise County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 159 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 33.0648, -97.7065 near Cottondale. The nearest cataloged historic site is Cottondale (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Old Cottondale Cemetery, Dallas, Pacific & Southeastern Railway, and Paschall.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5507018184. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.