Kate 'Ma' Barker and Her Gangster Son's 1935 Hideout on Sale for $1 Million (VIDEO)
The hideout of Kate "Ma" Barker, born Arizona Donnie Clark, and her gangster son has gone up for sale in Florida.
Ma Barker gave birth to five sons: Herman, Lloyd, Arthur, Fred and Willmer with husband George. As a family they began an ordinary life until the boys began to get in trouble. The father soon moved out and Ma Barker was left with nothing but her sons.
The family lived through the time of the "public enemy" campaign launched by police and heavily covered by media. Barker's sons soon became known as the "Barker Gang"- one of many which drew media attention at the time.
While in the past, some have said that Kate Barker was the criminal mastermind behind the gang's activities, it was later confirmed by one of the gang members that she served only as a decoy.
"The most ridiculous story in the annals of crime is that Ma Barker was the mastermind behind the Karpis-Barker gang," Alvin Karpis, the gang's second most notorious member, would later state. "She wasn't a leader of criminals or even a criminal herself. There is not one police photograph of her or set of fingerprints taken while she was alive ... she knew we were criminals but her participation in our careers was limited to one function: when we traveled together, we moved as a mother and her sons. What could look more innocent?"
Despite a lack of involvement, Ma Barker was shot by police alongside her son in 1935 in Ocklawaha, Florida. The pair were believed to have been hiding out. Their location was discovered after Arthur "Doc" Barker was arrested and a map in his pocket marked the location.
The 9-acre waterfront home will now be sold with the current sale price of $1 million.
"It's like walking into a time capsule in 1935. The fact that it has this extra history is a really interesting cachet," Mark Arnold, an agent with Stirling Sotheby's International Realty, told The Gulf Times.
