The Demise of Bad Guys

scene of the story

Well, I've only been on my sabbatical from blogging for a week and here I am with something to share. I thought about waiting to post this, our latest adventure, but the writing will probably come out better while the memories are fresh. 

me underneath towering Live Oak trees
at the Carney Island, Little Lake Weir Recreational Area

Recently, Gary heard about a horrific shootout that took place in 1936 with the FBI and members of a notorious prohibition-era gang at a house in Ocklawaha, about an hour's drive from here. 

Gary (look for his white shorts)

Tours are given at that house where the bullet holes (LOTS of them) are easily seen. He signed us up for one of the tours weeks ago.

Little Lake Weir

We arrived early, which is typical for us, but the waiting area was pleasant. Directed to park at Carney Island, which is at the Little Lake Weir Recreational Area in Ocklawaha, Florida, we enjoyed the quiet of nature beside one of the many lakes that dot Central Florida.

massive drapes of Spanish Moss from 
the thick Oak tree branches

This is "Old Florida," miles away from the thrills, drama, and expense of the theme parks. The beauty is very calm and for people of our generation, such a pleasure. This idyllic setting was a sharp contrast to the story we would hear after the tour began.

our tour tram

We waited for the group to arrive. Eventually about a dozen of us had gathered. A pick-up truck pulling a metal tram came to take us to the house of the fateful story of the day. 

lecture by tour guide

The tram took us about a mile deeper into the park, behind a secured gate, to the rented house where Ma Barker and one of her 4 sons were living in January, 1936. 

we walked from the tram to enter the house

We remained on the tram for probably the better part of an hour while our guide relayed the very interesting history of how the shoot-out came about.

bullet holes in one of the bedrooms; 
that is an open dictionary (not a Bible) on the table

Some background information: the Barker-Karpis gang was responsible for numerous kidnappings, bank robberies, and murders across the Midwest in the early 1930s. This gang  murdered 30 people, which was more than some of the other more well-known gangsters of that era.

bullet holes in another upstairs bedroom

At the time of this shoot out, Ma Barker and her 32-year old son, Fred, were hiding out under assumed names in a beautiful rented house near the edge of Lake Weir. 

some bullet holes have been repaired in the walls
but not all

While FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover described Ma Barker as the gang's cigar-chomping, gun-toting mastermind, many historians believe she was pretty much an average person, and that Alvin "Creepy" Karpis led the group's criminal activities. Another source said that Ma Barker couldn't even organize breakfast!

bullet holes in a bedroom chair

In the boys' growing up years, it was also said that eventually the husband/father in the family just walked away from the family because Ma Barker would not allow him to discipline their sons. He was not heard from again until many years later, after the death of his wife and all the sons, when he tried to claim their accumulated stolen wealth for himself.

beautiful appliquéd quilt
in one of the shot-up bedrooms

After the deaths of Ma and Fred, the FBI continued to hunt down other gang members, including Alvin Karpis, who was captured in 1936. Karpis in later years was influential in the life of well-known murderer, Charles Manson.

some beautiful antiques 
survived the storm of bullets

But to address the actual shoot out, FBI agents surrounded the house around 5am on a January morning. This led to a fierce, hours-long exchange of gunfire. Agents fired hundreds of rounds of ammunition and tear gas into the house. The number of bullets shot by both the good guys and the bad guys was first said to be around 5,000. This was later reduced to 2,000. A later count of bullet holes was approximately 640. 

newspaper clippings and many photos
are displayed on the large dining room table
for visitors to see

But the point is that the guns fired from both inside and outside of the house lasted for a solid 2 hours. After that, the FBI continued to shoot but eventually it was decided maybe the criminals had met their end. After about 4 hours from the start of it all, the agents entered the house and found the dead bodies of Ma Barker and Fred. Ma Barker was shot twice in the heart and Fred was shot 3 times in the head. 

Their bodies were reportedly put on display for 30 days for the public to see.

Gary inspects this 1936 Chevy

The 1936 Chevy was not a part of this story. It belongs to the tour guide who drove it from the parking lot to the house, leading the way for our tram driver. Then at the end of the tour, our tram followed this car back to where we were parked. 

Turning over this story in my mind led me to think about Proverbs 22:6,

Train up a child in the way he should go

and when he is old

he will not depart from it.

Theologians have said this verse is not necessarily a promise but more of a principle. God created us all with free choice. We train our children in the ways of morality, wisdom, and healthy self-discipline, but what they choose to do with their lives is their decision. 

With that said, we do well to keep our offspring in our prayers all of their lives.

Until next time, grace and peace.

Barbara

See also The Christian Lounge:

https://thechristianlounge4u.blogspot.com/2026/04/prayer.html