Occupation Bank robber | Name Ford Bradshaw | |
Born January 1, 1908 ( 1908-01-01 ) Grady County, Oklahoma, United States Cause of death Killed in police shootout Died March 3, 1934, Westville, Oklahoma, United States | ||
Ford Bradshaw (January 1, 1908 – March 3, 1934) was an American criminal bank robber and Depression-era outlaw. He was a rival of fellow Sooner, Oklahoma bandit Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd, and although never as nationally well known as Floyd, Bradshaw's small town bank raids far exceeded those of Floyd during his criminal career.
Biography
Terrorizing the state of Oklahoma during the late-1920s and early-1930s, Bradshaw's most successful robbery occurred on November 2, 1933, when he successfully stole $13,000 from a bank in Okmulgee, Oklahoma with Wilbur Underhill and others. Five days later, Bradshaw robbed a bank of $11,238 with Newton Clayton and Jim Benge in Henryetta, Oklahoma on November 7, 1933; the heist would be mistakenly attributed to Floyd, George Birdwell and Aussie Elliott the next year.
A close friend of Underhill, Bradshaw drove into Vian on December 31, 1933, with several other men and began a shooting spree damaging a local restaurant, hardware store and the town jail. This was in retaliation for Underhill's shooting death the previous day when federal agents surrounded the Shawnee cottage the outlaw had rented for his honeymoon and opened fire. The attack on Vian however, caused a public outcry which finally gained the attention of state authorities. After several months on the run, Bradshaw was cornered at Ardmore and killed by sheriff's deputy William Harper while resisting arrest.