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Pretty Boy Floyd | |
|---|---|
 Floyd's mugshot in 1933 | |
| Born | Charles Arthur Floyd February 3, 1904 Adairsville, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | October 22, 1934 (aged 30) East Liverpool, Ohio, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Gunshot wounds |
| Occupation(s) | Gangster, bank robber |
| Criminal status | Deceased |
| Spouse | Ruby Floyd (divorced) |
| Children | Charles Dempsey Floyd |
| Criminal penalty | 15 years imprisonment (escaped); Killed by Federal Agents |
Charles Arthur Floyd (February 3, 1904 – October 22, 1934), nicknamed Pretty Boy Floyd, was an American bank robber. He operated in the West and Central states, and his criminal exploits gained widespread press coverage in the 1930s. He was seen positively by the public because it was falsely believed that during robberies he burned mortgage documents, freeing many people from their debts. He was pursued and killed by a group of Bureau of Investigation (BOI, later renamed FBI) agents led by Melvin Purvis. Historians have speculated as to which officers were at the event, but accounts document that local officers Robert "Pete" Pyle and George Curran were present at his fatal shooting and also at his embalming.[1] Floyd has continued to be a familiar figure in American popular culture, sometimes seen as notorious, other times portrayed as a tragic figure, even a victim of the hard times of the Great Depression in the United States. Floyd is viewed by many as a prime example of a real life anti-hero.
- ^ "End of the trail for desperado Floyd". Library of Congress. October 22, 1934.