Texas Ranger: The Epic Life of Frank Hamer, the Man Who Killed Bonnie and Clyde
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- Create Date：2021-05-23 10:51:20
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：John Boessenecker
- ISBN：1250623936
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Summary
To most Americans， Frank Hamer is known only as the "villain" of the 1967 film Bonnie and Clyde。 Now， in The New York Times bestselling Texas Ranger， historian John Boessenecker sets out to restore Hamer's good name and prove that he was， in fact， a classic American hero。
From the horseback days of the Old West through the gangster days of the 1930s， Hamer stood on the frontlines of some of the most important and exciting periods in American history。 He participated in the Bandit War of 1915， survived the climactic gunfight in the last blood feud of the Old West， battled the Mexican Revolution's spillover across the border， protected African Americans from lynch mobs and the Ku Klux Klan， and ran down gangsters， bootleggers， and Communists。 When at last his career came to an end， it was only when he ran up against another legendary Texan: Lyndon B。 Johnson。
Written by one of the most acclaimed historians of the Old West， Texas Ranger is the first biography to tell the full story of this near-mythic lawman。
"Frank Hamer， last of the old breed of Texas Rangers， has not fared well in history or popular culture。 John Boessenecker now restores this incredible Ranger to his proper place alongside such fabled lawmen as Wyatt Earp and Eliot Ness。 Here is a grand adventure story， told with grace and authority by a master historian of American law enforcement。 Frank Hamer can rest easy as readers will finally learn the truth behind his amazing career， spanning the end of the Wild West through the bloody days of the gangsters。"--Paul Andrew Hutton， author of The Apache Wars
From the horseback days of the Old West through the gangster days of the 1930s， Hamer stood on the frontlines of some of the most important and exciting periods in American history。 He participated in the Bandit War of 1915， survived the climactic gunfight in the last blood feud of the Old West， battled the Mexican Revolution's spillover across the border， protected African Americans from lynch mobs and the Ku Klux Klan， and ran down gangsters， bootleggers， and Communists。 When at last his career came to an end， it was only when he ran up against another legendary Texan: Lyndon B。 Johnson。
Written by one of the most acclaimed historians of the Old West， Texas Ranger is the first biography to tell the full story of this near-mythic lawman。
"Frank Hamer， last of the old breed of Texas Rangers， has not fared well in history or popular culture。 John Boessenecker now restores this incredible Ranger to his proper place alongside such fabled lawmen as Wyatt Earp and Eliot Ness。 Here is a grand adventure story， told with grace and authority by a master historian of American law enforcement。 Frank Hamer can rest easy as readers will finally learn the truth behind his amazing career， spanning the end of the Wild West through the bloody days of the gangsters。"--Paul Andrew Hutton， author of The Apache Wars
Reviews
Jakob Topper
，
The author unabashedly sets out to ‘correct’ the legacy of Frank Hamer。 It’s written to make Hamer a legend， not a person。 Not a terrible read， but know what you’re getting into。
John Winch
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Mr。 Boessenecker delivers a meticulously researched and astounding tale of Hamer's life and accomplishments。 Hamer was one of the last frontier lawmen， who spent most of his life fighting robbers， smugglers， lynch mobs， bootleggers， crooked cops， and corrupt politicians。 Having been in over 50 gunfights， Hamer was the perfect lawman to take on Bonnie & Clyde， whose demise was only the crowning achievement in a decades long career。Boessenecker sticks to the facts and shows Frank Hamer as he was-- Mr。 Boessenecker delivers a meticulously researched and astounding tale of Hamer's life and accomplishments。 Hamer was one of the last frontier lawmen， who spent most of his life fighting robbers， smugglers， lynch mobs， bootleggers， crooked cops， and corrupt politicians。 Having been in over 50 gunfights， Hamer was the perfect lawman to take on Bonnie & Clyde， whose demise was only the crowning achievement in a decades long career。Boessenecker sticks to the facts and shows Frank Hamer as he was--a man of remarkable bravery but also one who made mistakes and reflected the sometimes archaic and prejudicial attitudes of his day。 Having read other books by Mr。 Boessenecker， I am familiar with his excellent work。 I'm getting extra copies of this to give to friends。 。。。more
Jonathan
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This might be my new favorite book on Frank Hamer。 A detailed look into his life， tendencies， hard times and unending focus on justice。
Mark
，
This is a good book。 I think the author takes the Texas Rangers to task for their many sins and I don’t think he exonerates Hamer for his known misdeeds or takes him off the hook for anything he may or may not have been a part of。 I think it’s fact that Hamer was probably one of a kind （pockmarks and all） for his profession at the time of his life in Texas， which was still a relative wild frontier through the Second World War。
Ron Ross
，
The Epic Life of Frank Hamer is a must read for anyone interested in the old West to modern law enforcement。 Frank Hamer （pronounced HAY-MER） was a Texas Ranger involved in several of the notorious tales of Texas from dealing with the corruption of the Ma and Pa Ferguson governor era to the 1948 LBJ Senator ballot stuffing to win by fraud his first Senate Seat for LBJ。 Hamer is probably best remembered as the Law man that planned the capture of Bonnie & Clyde which became their death in Louisian The Epic Life of Frank Hamer is a must read for anyone interested in the old West to modern law enforcement。 Frank Hamer （pronounced HAY-MER） was a Texas Ranger involved in several of the notorious tales of Texas from dealing with the corruption of the Ma and Pa Ferguson governor era to the 1948 LBJ Senator ballot stuffing to win by fraud his first Senate Seat for LBJ。 Hamer is probably best remembered as the Law man that planned the capture of Bonnie & Clyde which became their death in Louisiana。 Unfortunately， Hamer is probably remembered in the fictitious 1967 movie about Bonnie & Clyde where Bonnie （played by Faye Dunaway） and Clyde Barrow （played by Warren Beatty） played the good guys and Hamer （played by Denver Pyle） played the bad guy the law。 This movie failed to state that Bonnie and Clyde had killed 9 law enforcement officers in cold-blood as well as several innocent people。 The author gives a full account of Frank Hamer’s life the good and the bad， he explains how times have changed in the South and dealing with the Klan and the rights of all people。 This book is about 500 pages and a quick read， very well researched and hard to put down。 。。。more
Mark Warren
，
Why is Frank Hamer not one of the five most famous lawmen in American history？ John B's research is wonderful and he puts together a book that reads with the ease of fiction。 Nothing dry here。 I highly recommend！ Why is Frank Hamer not one of the five most famous lawmen in American history？ John B's research is wonderful and he puts together a book that reads with the ease of fiction。 Nothing dry here。 I highly recommend！ 。。。more
Jay
，
Very well researched and objective portrayal of a legendary lawman。 It’s hard to imagine someone starting their career on horseback with lever action action rifles and ending it while driving cars and carrying machine guns。 It’s not a sensationalist book， but rather an even history of a legendary lawman who was good but had flaws。 Definitely recommend the book。 Only reservation is the cover。。。Frank Hamer should be in much bigger type than Bonnie and Clyde。 That’s odd。
William Galvin
，
As a career LEO， I enjoyed this book very much。 It shows how the profession has evolved over the years。 But it's just the same circus now， just different clowns。 As a career LEO， I enjoyed this book very much。 It shows how the profession has evolved over the years。 But it's just the same circus now， just different clowns。 。。。more
Larry Busino
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Truly enjoyed this book。 Texas Ranger Hamer was quite the man。 A man of his time for sure with high principals yet tinged with social norms of the time。
Mark Dunn
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Pretty good book until page 457， the author calls Frank Hamer a white supremacist， I got really sick of the author's virtue singling。 Pretty good book until page 457， the author calls Frank Hamer a white supremacist， I got really sick of the author's virtue singling。 。。。more
Annette
，
My Thoughts:The 2019 film， The Highwaymen is about Frank Hamer and Maney Gault’s hunt for Bonnie and Clyde。 I recommend this film if you have not seen it。 It’s currently playing on Netflix。 But， consider this film to be a Frank Hamer， basic class 101 of the true historical person。If you decide to visit Waco， Texas to see Chip and Joanna Gaines’s Magnolia Market， swing by the Texas Ranger Museum。 The museum is easy to find。 It’s on the north bound side of I-35 near the Brazos River。 I don’t know My Thoughts:The 2019 film， The Highwaymen is about Frank Hamer and Maney Gault’s hunt for Bonnie and Clyde。 I recommend this film if you have not seen it。 It’s currently playing on Netflix。 But， consider this film to be a Frank Hamer， basic class 101 of the true historical person。If you decide to visit Waco， Texas to see Chip and Joanna Gaines’s Magnolia Market， swing by the Texas Ranger Museum。 The museum is easy to find。 It’s on the north bound side of I-35 near the Brazos River。 I don’t know what the hours are because of COVID， but it is an easy to access， park， and walk through museum。 I highly recommend the place for history buffs。The first thing I want to mention is this book is not just Frank Hamer’s hunt and killing of Bonnie and Clyde。 This part of the story is in the later part of the book。 This story is about Frank Hamer’s life。 This story is about Texas history during the late 19th century and first half of the 20th century。 I’ve read a few reviewers didn’t like reading about his whole life， but only wanted to read about Bonnie and Clyde。What I love about this book:~A strong account of Texas history in the last of the 19th century and the early part of the 20th century。~Detailed research of Frank Hamer， law enforcement， racial injustice， Texas ranching， the people groups in Texas， Texas politics， lynching history， Jim Crow laws， Mexican Border War， and the Democratic National Convention in Houston-1928。~Information about Bonnie and Clyde that is accurate， not speculation or legend。~The personal life of Frank Hamer。Surprises:~The Sherman Texas Riot in 1930。 I’d not heard about this horrible history。~The lynching history of blacks in 1920s Texas。~I didn’t know the KKK also abducted and abused white citizens。 If a white man was an adulterer he was subject to abduction， flogging， or tar and feather。~Rape was a capital offense until 1972。 An interesting article about this: Timeline。~A brief history of Miriam A。 Ferguson （Ma Ferguson）。Final Thoughts:~The Epic Life of Frank Hamer is told with honesty about a historical figure who was not perfect; yet， he was humble and had great courage。~The book is detailed and graphic。 This is not a story about a tame Texas。~There is tension and conflict both with Hamer and the environment。~I feel the title aptly defines the story。 Frank Hamer had an epic life。 。。。more
Brian
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Without looking through my list， probably the best book I can recall reading。
Jerry
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As any biography goes， it is full of people， places， travels and events but it is worth finishing if you want to know Frank Hamer as his life was full of all those things。 No man is perfect but Frank Hamer's heart was bigger than Texas， his effect on the Texas Rangers is even bigger and his victories were far greater than his controversies。 I thoroughly enjoyed reading about this man who should be remembered as the "greatest lawman of the twentieth century。" As any biography goes， it is full of people， places， travels and events but it is worth finishing if you want to know Frank Hamer as his life was full of all those things。 No man is perfect but Frank Hamer's heart was bigger than Texas， his effect on the Texas Rangers is even bigger and his victories were far greater than his controversies。 I thoroughly enjoyed reading about this man who should be remembered as the "greatest lawman of the twentieth century。" 。。。more
Daniel Farabaugh
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This book suffered from a number of issues。 First， it read like a laundry list of the criminal investigations which all blended together after a while。 More importantly though， was the fact that it worked to make the figure at the heart a hero when he was on the wrong side of the law as often as he was on the right。 His methods were often illegal at the time to say nothing of today。 This could have been more effective if the author looked at it with a more judicious eye。
Jeremy Cory
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Cool book。 Awesome depiction of a great American lawman。
Zane Sterling
，
Outstanding Story！I knew a few stories about Frank Hamer， but I had no idea about the whole story。 A very impressive and entertaining book。 Definitely a must read！
Tom Sells
，
Very good read，He did his job。 He showed up early， stayed late， rode hard， long distances， strong believes， fixed values and an excellent gun hand。 Frank Hamer had a long career with notable results。 He deserves our support。
A。D。 Hopkins
，
This book clears up some myths and corrects a major libel。 Frank Hamer was not the villainous， badge-heavy bastard he was depicted in the blockbuster movie "Bonnie and Clyde。" He was tough as an overdone steak but also a scrupulously honest man who could have participated in the corruption then rampant in Texas， but refused。 Though he held the beliefs common in his time that white Anglo-Saxons were superior to all other models of humanity， he also insisted that the other models were entitled to This book clears up some myths and corrects a major libel。 Frank Hamer was not the villainous， badge-heavy bastard he was depicted in the blockbuster movie "Bonnie and Clyde。" He was tough as an overdone steak but also a scrupulously honest man who could have participated in the corruption then rampant in Texas， but refused。 Though he held the beliefs common in his time that white Anglo-Saxons were superior to all other models of humanity， he also insisted that the other models were entitled to the equal protection of the laws， and many times risked his life to protect some of them from lynch mobs numbering in thousands。 This biographer does not gloss over Hamer's few faults and mistakes， but puts them in perspective。 The research seems faultless; I give it four stars instead of five only because the writing is dry。 Probably an unintentional consequence of sticking to unvarnished facts。 。。。more
Robert M。 Roth MD
，
A very enjoyable book This a highly readable and well researched book on the life and times of Frank Hammer From his early years as a Texas Ranger astride his horse patrolling the Mexican border， to the death of Bonnie and Clyde， it is presented in extraordinary depth and detail。 At the time， the Texas Rangers were heavily politicized， and his career takes twists and turns with each change in governors。 The author does a good job in the depiction of Mr。 Hamer and he paints a complete picture of A very enjoyable book This a highly readable and well researched book on the life and times of Frank Hammer From his early years as a Texas Ranger astride his horse patrolling the Mexican border， to the death of Bonnie and Clyde， it is presented in extraordinary depth and detail。 At the time， the Texas Rangers were heavily politicized， and his career takes twists and turns with each change in governors。 The author does a good job in the depiction of Mr。 Hamer and he paints a complete picture of the man。 。。。more
Robert Melnyk
，
I waivered between giving this a 3 or a 4。 Probably should be a 3。5， so I gave it a 4。 Very well researched， and very detailed account of the life and career of Frank Hamer。 While the detail is great in that it helps to really give you an insight into the man， his personality， his relationships， and his character， I just felt that at times it was so detailed that it seemed to get a bit draggy。 I think it could have been done in 100 less pages and still been an excellent book。
Chris F。 DeNamur
，
A very good read and certainly an interesting history of an impressive Texas Ranger。 The story at times can be slow， but I don’t think this is the author’s fault because as I understand it there isn’t a lot of elaborating from Hamer to work with。 Frank Hamer was a no nonsense man！
Christopher Taylor
，
After watching The Highwaymen on Netflix， I wanted to know more about the story and found this book highly recommended。 It is the biography of Frank Hamer （hay-mer）， the greatest lawman in American history you've probably never heard of。He was a Texas Ranger from the late 1800s to the early 1900s， through many of its most difficult， impressive， troubled， and storied years。 Hamer himself was a flawed but very great man who was fixated on justice， opposed to cruelty and violence， particularly to m After watching The Highwaymen on Netflix， I wanted to know more about the story and found this book highly recommended。 It is the biography of Frank Hamer （hay-mer）， the greatest lawman in American history you've probably never heard of。He was a Texas Ranger from the late 1800s to the early 1900s， through many of its most difficult， impressive， troubled， and storied years。 Hamer himself was a flawed but very great man who was fixated on justice， opposed to cruelty and violence， particularly to minorities， hated corruption， and had absolutely zero fear or back down in him。Hamer's career is almost jaw-dropping in its breadth and scope， and the book takes a close look at every aspect of it。 If all you know of the man is from the 1967 Bonnie and Clyde movie， you need to read this because that movie was basically one fat lie start to finish。The writing is engaging and solid， balancing information with ease of reading， but it is so long and filled with information I found it best to read in small sections， separated by reading other books。 There's an awful lot to digest and read about in this man's life。 。。。more
Sue
，
I read this book a couple years ago and really enjoyed it。 Frank Hamer started his Ranger career in west Texas then was assigned to east Texas。 I enjoyed reading the historical stories of the towns that I live near。 Gray book， highly recommend oof you are interested in this period of history。
Medusa
，
Four stars for thorough research and a wealth of info about Texas， especially its race problems。 Hamer emerges as flawed but impressive， but probably unworthy of the hero worship he receives。 As for the dolts who think the author is too harsh about Texas racism and its apologists - look， as this book shows， it’s not open for debate。 If anything this book gives Hamer a bit more of a break than he’s due。 A decent and worthy read if you are interested in this man and his era。 I read it because I’ve Four stars for thorough research and a wealth of info about Texas， especially its race problems。 Hamer emerges as flawed but impressive， but probably unworthy of the hero worship he receives。 As for the dolts who think the author is too harsh about Texas racism and its apologists - look， as this book shows， it’s not open for debate。 If anything this book gives Hamer a bit more of a break than he’s due。 A decent and worthy read if you are interested in this man and his era。 I read it because I’ve heard so many cops lionize Hamer and I wanted to know why。 I guess I do， and it’s in in part understandable and in part troubling。 。。。more
Taylor Hensel
，
Damn， this book。 Frank Hamer is not a name that's familiar to most， but he is， as the subtitle of the book states， the man who engineered the deaths of Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker， arguably the two most legendary American outlaws of the 20th century。 However， while Bonnie and Clyde have become metaphorical to any lovers-on-the-run duo and have inspired such film's as 1967's "Bonnie and Clyde，" starring the ultra-glamorous Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway， Frank Hamer is seen as he is portrayed Damn， this book。 Frank Hamer is not a name that's familiar to most， but he is， as the subtitle of the book states， the man who engineered the deaths of Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker， arguably the two most legendary American outlaws of the 20th century。 However， while Bonnie and Clyde have become metaphorical to any lovers-on-the-run duo and have inspired such film's as 1967's "Bonnie and Clyde，" starring the ultra-glamorous Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway， Frank Hamer is seen as he is portrayed by Denver Pyle in Arthur Hill's film: an incompetent， beer-bellied fuddy-duddy， an out-of-touch， bumbling cowboy who should have been concerned with "protectin' the rights'a poor folk" rather than attempting to ruin Barrow and Parker's bank-robbing， mass-murdering fun。 Frank Hamer is as different from Denver Pyle as Adelaide Kane is from Mary Queen of Scots， only in the opposite direction。 Frank Hamer is the real deal， the living embodiment of the Texas Ranger。 Raised in the Texas Hill Country， Hamer survived a shotgun blast at age eighteen， joined the Rangers at the tender age of 21， and spent the next 50 years surviving and whupping wholesale ass through one chaotic， hilariously dangerous situation after another。 This magnificent bastard was a town marshal at age 25 （remember what you were doing at age 25？ Yeah， nursing a hangover and hoping that girl with the lower-back tattoo would call you， you alcoholic fuck）， one of the worst enemies the Ku Klux Klan ever had， and a gunslinging， nail-spitting， badass border-warrior， fighting Pancho Villa's boys while attempting to stop smuggling and banditry along the Texas/Mexico border。 But don't think that Frank was all grit and no heart。 While serving along the border， Ranger Hamer fell crazy-in-love with the sultry rich girl Gladys Johnson， whose family was embroiled in a blood feud with the Sims family， Gladys's former in-laws。 Although Hamer had always valued duty over booty， he decided， know what？ I'm Frank Hamer， fuck it， I do what I want。 Despite being told to remain neutral， this love-struck， gunfighting SOB became an exclusive bodyguard for the Johnson family， ostensibly because he felt that the Sims clan posed a real threat to public safety （sure， Frank） but really because the Johnson family probably had a barn full of hay and Gladys was a whole lot of fun to roll in it with。 Gladys herself was a don't-fuck-with-me South Texas hell-on-heels who had helped her brother shoot and kill her ex-husband。 Then， these two crazy kids， Frank and Gladys， after surviving a murder plot worthy of a Coen Brothers movie， helped each other out in a shoot out with the ex-Texas Ranger bodyguard of the Sims family， during which Frank was shot multiple times and still managed to kill the guy who shot him。 He then refused to let his buddy kill the partner of the guy who'd shot him because the other guy was running and he couldn't stand to see a man shot in the back。 Few months later， Frank and Gladys got married， and stayed married for over 40 years。 He did all of this， mind you， before he'd ever even heard of Bonnie and Clyde。 You can't make this shit up。 What John Boessenecker has done is dig up details on the greatest lawman you've never heard of。 Instead of Chuck Norris jokes， there should be Frank Hamer jokes。 I came away from this well-written， hair-raising biography with a new appreciation for a man who not even the wildly entertaining Netflix film "The Highwaymen" could truly do justice。 If you want to read about a true American hero， a guy who woke up in the morning and pissed excellence， then pick up this book， because it's probably one of the best books about a cop you'll ever read。 And you can take that to the bank。。。the blood bank。 Dig it。 。。。more
Smalltown
，
Rather unpleasant to read with too many characters and boring sequences， it’s nonetheless an interesting portrait of a rather amazing man。 The episode of the Sherman riot was amazing and nothing I’d ever heard before。 And the ambush of Bonnie and Clyde was finally apparently told correctly。 The lesser events were interesting but I can’t call it a great book。
Barbara Myers
，
Sounds boring- life was so interesting back then。
Leah Clifford
，
It's rare for me to listen to a book this long， but this one kept me engaged and interested。 It's rare for me to listen to a book this long， but this one kept me engaged and interested。 。。。more
Jough
，
This is a great read， Frank Hamer is an extraordinary man and his story is riveting。 What I took away from this book is the history of Texas in a period that begins before the 1st World War， through prohibition and into the 1930s。 Highly recommended。
Kate Dupuis
，