'We have to steal to eat': Rare Bonnie and Clyde poetry, photos to be auctioned off in Texas

Dozens of rare Bonnie and Clyde photos and poetry will be auctioned off May 4 in Dallas by Heritage Auctions. Ahead of the event, the company released the preview images with general descriptions. The photos contain images of family members, friends and neighbors. About 60 photo depict the notorious duo, some of which contain photos from around the time they were killed in a police ambush in 1934, the auction company said. The photos include an image of an adolescent Clyde brandishing six-shooters, likely taken at an early Texas State Fair venue. less Dozens of rare Bonnie and Clyde photos and poetry will be auctioned off May 4 in Dallas by Heritage Auctions. Ahead of the event, the company released the preview images with general descriptions. The photos ... more Photo: Heritage Auctions, HA.com Photo: Heritage Auctions, HA.com Image 1 of / 56 Caption Close 'We have to steal to eat': Rare Bonnie and Clyde poetry, photos to be auctioned off in Texas 1 / 56 Back to Gallery

Notorious gangsters Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were known for their capacity for violence during their two-year stretch of robberies and law enforcement killings across the Central U.S. in the 1930s.

But newly released photos of Bonnie and Clyde, their family and friends presents a rare glimpse into their personal lives. An additional trove of poetry also shows their rationale behind their life of crime.

The items are scheduled to be auctioned off May 4 by Heritage Auctions in Dallas.

"We donte want to hurt anney one/ But we have to Steal to eat," read on poem attributed to Clyde, whose poetry was filled with spelling errors and popular gangster jargon at the time. "And if it's a shoot out to/ to live that's the way it/ will have to bee."

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Clyde's poem was found in a book written by Bonnie's mother and Clyde's sister, titled ""Fugitives: The Story of Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker," according to a description from Heritage Auctions.

Poetry attributed to Bonnie is also included in the book, through her writing appear more polished than Clyde's. One of her poems appeared to criticize the public portrayal of their killings.

"I'm sure you all have read/ How they 'rob' and 'steal',/ And how those who 'squeal'/ Are usually found dying or dead," the poem reads. "There's lots of untruths to these 'write-ups',/ They're not so merciless as that,/ Their nature is raw/ They hate all the laws,/ The 'stool pigeons spotters and rats'."

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Heritage Auctions said her poem was "well-worn" and "obviously a valued keepsake." However, it's difficult to say whether the poems were, in fact, hand-written by Bonnie and Clyde.

"Unfortunately, there are few exemplars of authentic Bonnie & Clyde handwriting," according to the Heritage Auctions description. "The ones we have been able to locate tend to be fragmentary. There are similarities, but not conclusive enough for us to definitively authenticate the handwriting. Accordingly, we are attributing the handwriting to them."

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The photos set to be auctioned off came from five photo and scrapbook albums that belonged to Clyde's sister, according to the auction company.

The albums contain images of family members, friends and neighbors. They contain around 60 photos of the notorious robbers, some of which date back to around the time they were killed in a police ambush in Louisiana in 1934, Heritage Auctions said.

"The vast majority are family photos, some of which were no doubt the personal property of Clyde Barrow," the auction company writes.

The company provides a disclaimer on the auction website indicating these are preview items, meaning they may not yet be fully vetted to provide a thorough description.

Click through the slideshow above to see the rare images and writings.

Julian Gill is a digital reporter in Houston. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and on our subscriber site, houstonchronicle.com. | julian.gill@chron.com | NEWS WHEN YOU NEED IT: Text CHRON to 77453 to receive breaking news alerts by text message | Sign up for breaking news alerts delivered to your email here.