Blackie Thompson (born Irvin Thompson; 1893 – December 6, 1934) was an American outlaw and murderer active primarily in

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

and

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

Early life and Osage Indian murders

"Blackie" Thompson was born Irvin Thompson in either

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

in 1893. In 1920, he was sentenced to five years for

automobile theft Motor vehicle theft (also known as a car theft and, in the United States, grand theft auto) is the criminal act of stealing or attempting to steal a motor vehicle. Nationwide in the United States in 2020, there were 810,400 vehicles reported ...

, but was

paroled Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...

in 1922. He was arrested again on December 22, 1923, for a bank robbery in Grady County. However, in 1924, he was released to serve as an informant in the

Osage Indian murders The Osage Indian murders were a series of murders of Osage Native Americans in Osage County, Oklahoma, during the 1910s–1930s; newspapers described the increasing number of unsolved murders as the Reign of Terror, lasting from 1921 to 1926. So ...

. While Blackie did provide testimony against William King Hale and Ernest Burkhart, he quickly ran off and formed the "Thompson gang." Blackie Thompson Wanted Image 1924

Thompson gang, later life, and death

Thompson went on to kill a police officer in

Drumright, Oklahoma Drumright is a city in Creek and Payne counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It began as an oil boom town. However, the population has declined as oil production has waned in the area. The population was 2,907 at the 2010 census, a figure alm ...

on July 2, 1924, after robbing the First State Bank of Avery. On December 19, 1924, his gang robbed the Security State Bank by loading the bank's entire safe into a truck. He was captured on December 25, 1924. Thompson was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison. On August 30, 1933, he escaped from the

Oklahoma State Penitentiary The Oklahoma State Penitentiary, nicknamed "Big Mac", is a prison of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections located in McAlester, Oklahoma, on . Opened in 1908 with 50 inmates in makeshift facilities, today the prison holds more than 750 male off ...

. He was recaptured in 1934 after robbing several banks in Texas, and sentenced to death on charges of robbery. However, he escaped from Huntsville Prison on July 22, 1934. Blackie was killed in a stolen car on

Route 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) was one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The h ...

Amarillo, Texas Amarillo ( ; Spanish for "yellow") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Potter County. It is the 14th-most populous city in Texas and the largest city in the Texas Panhandle. A portion of the city extends into Randall County ...

on December 6, 1934. Thompson crime scene

References

External links

Gangbusters Radio Show 1945
episode on Thompson {{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Blackie 1893 births 1934 deaths American people convicted of robbery American people convicted of murdering police officers American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment American prisoners sentenced to death American robbers Criminals from Arkansas Criminals from Oklahoma Road incident deaths in Texas People convicted of murder by Oklahoma Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Oklahoma Prisoners sentenced to death by Texas Deaths by firearm in Oklahoma Escapees from Oklahoma detention Escapees from Texas detention People shot dead by law enforcement officers in the United States Osage Indian murders