Holt Coffey (August 2, 1891 – January 9, 1964) Social Security Death Index

/ref> was the

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

of Platte County,

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

from 1933 until 1937 and again from 1941 until 1945. Coffey, along with newly elected Platte City Prosecutor David Clevenger, was responsible for cleaning up much of the small-time crime around Platte County, a suburb of freewheeling

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

. On July 18, 1933, during Coffey's first term as sheriff,

Bonnie and Clyde Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (October 1, 1910May 23, 1934) and Clyde Chestnut (Champion) Barrow (March 24, 1909May 23, 1934) were an American criminal couple who traveled the Central United States with their gang during the Great Depression. The co ...

and three other gang members checked into the

Red Crown Tourist Court The Red Crown Tavern and Red Crown Tourist Court in Platte County, Missouri was the site of the July 20, 1933 gun battle between lawmen and outlaws Bonnie and Clyde and three members of their gang. The outlaws made their escape, but would be tracke ...

south of Platte City. The conspicuous behavior of the gang caught Coffey's and others' interest, and on July 20, a ferocious firefight between the Barrows and twelve officers injured both Coffey and his twenty-year-old son Clarence (who was a

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

Pharmacist's mate second class during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

). While Clarence suffered a wound in his arm that at one time was considered life-threatening, the elder Coffey sought no treatment for his minor wounds. The Barrows escaped and were cornered and engaged again by another posse five days later in Iowa. An expert marksman, Coffey was also a one-time minor-league baseball player. The Coffey family maintained a close relationship with

Blanche Barrow Blanche Barrow (born Bennie Iva Caldwell; January 1, 1911 – December 24, 1988) was the wife of the elder brother of Clyde Barrow, known as Buck. He became her second husband after his release from prison after a pardon. To her dismay, Buck jo ...

, sister-in-law of Clyde, with Blanche claiming the Coffeys were more kind than her own family. Coffey went on to own and operate the Red Crown Tavern from 1945 to 1950. He became a

county commissioner A county commission (or a board of county commissioners) is a group of elected officials (county commissioners) collectively charged with administering the county government in some states of the United States; such commissions usually comprise ...

in 1956. He died at age 72 in 1964.

References

External links

Platte County Landmark article
County commissioners in Missouri Missouri sheriffs People from Platte County, Missouri 1891 births 1964 deaths 20th-century American politicians {{US-crime-bio-stub

References

Further reading

External links