American Robbers

Rank the Most Wicked American Robbers

Right IconThis ranking is based on an algorithm that combines various factors, including the votes of our users and search trends on the internet.

 1 
Bonnie Parker
(Bank Robber)
Bonnie Parker
102
Birthdate: October 1, 1910
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Rowena, Texas, United States
Died: May 23, 1934

Best known as part of the legendary criminal couple Bonnie and Clyde, Bonnie Parker was infamous for her bank robberies with her partner Clyde Chestnut Barrow. They apparently murdered several policemen, too. Their crimes were romanticized in many movies including a 1967 film starring Faye Dunaway as Bonnie.

 2 
Jesse James
(American Outlaw, Bank and Train Robber and Leader of the 'James–Younger Gang')
Jesse James
56
Birthdate: September 5, 1847
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Kearney, Missouri, United States
Died: April 3, 1882
Jesse James was an outlaw from Missouri, who robbed trains, stagecoaches, and banks. He was also a guerrilla and led the James–Younger Gang. Along with his brother Frank, he joined pro-Confederate “bushwhackers” during the American Civil War. James became a legendary Wild West figure after his death.
 3 
John Dillinger
(American Gangster and Bank Robber)
John Dillinger
60
Birthdate: June 22, 1903
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Indianapolis, Indiana, United States
Died: July 22, 1934

A gangster of the Great Depression era, John Dillinger led a group known as the "Dillinger Gang". His gang was accused of robbing 24 banks and four police stations. He was a master evader and escaped the police’s attempts to capture him many times. He was finally shot to death by the authorities in 1934.

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 4 
Butch Cassidy
(Train, Bank Robber and the Leader of a Gang of Criminal Outlaws ‘Wild Bunch’)
Butch Cassidy
20
Birthdate: April 13, 1866
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Beaver, Utah, United States
Died: November 7, 1908

Train and bank robber Butch Cassidy was the leader of a gang of criminal outlaws known as the "Wild Bunch" in the Old West. The son of ranchers, he ran away from home as a teenager and became involved in a life of crime. He started with minor criminal offenses and eventually became a much-feared robber.

 5 
Pretty Boy Floyd
(Bank Robber)
Pretty Boy Floyd
14
Birthdate: February 3, 1904
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Adairsville, Georgia, United States
Died: October 22, 1934

Pretty Boy Floyd was the nickname of Charles Arthur Floyd, a bank robber who operated in the West and Central states of America. While the law enforcement officials considered him a criminal, the public had a positive opinion of him as he burned mortgage documents during the robberies, freeing many people from their debts. The FBI killed him in 1934. 

 6 
Baby Face Nelson
33
Birthdate: December 6, 1908
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois
Died: November 27, 1934

Baby Face Nelson was an American bank robber. He gained notoriety during the early and mid-1930s for leading his own gang and carrying out organized crime, such as bank robbery. He was responsible for killing many FBI agents and was killed in a furious gun battle called The Battle of Barrington. His life inspired many films, including Baby Face Nelson.

 7 
Sundance Kid
(Criminal)
Sundance Kid
7
Birthdate: 1867 AD
Birthplace: Mont Clare, Pennsylvania, United States
Died: November 7, 1908

Sundance Kid was the nickname of Harry Alonzo Longabaugh, an outlaw and member of Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch in the American Old West. He first met Cassidy around 1896 and became part of his gang. As a Wild Bunch member, Sundance Kid participated in several train and bank robberies. He is believed to have been killed in 1908.  

 8 
Frank James
(Outlaw)
Frank James
18
Birthdate: January 10, 1843
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Clay County, Missouri, USA
Died: February 18, 1915

Frank James was an American Confederate soldier turned outlaw. He was a good student and once aspired to be a teacher. He served in the American Civil War and was later pushed into the world of crime. He became a part of the James-Younger Gang and participated in many robberies. He eventually quit crime to work other jobs. 

 9 
Zerelda Mimms
(Jesse James' Wife)
Zerelda Mimms
8
Birthdate: July 21, 1845
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Logan, Kentucky
Died: November 13, 1900

Zerelda Mimms was the wife of bank and train robber Jesse James. She was the daughter of a pastor. Her mother, Mary Elizabeth, and Jesse James' father, Robert S. James, were siblings, making Zerelda and Jesse first cousins. Zerelda married Jesse in 1874. The couple had four children, two of whom died in infancy. 

 10 
Randall Woodfield
(Serial killer)
Randall Woodfield
16
Birthdate: December 26, 1950
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Salem, Oregon, United States

Randall Woodfield is a serial killer and rapist linked to a total of 18 murders and is suspected of having killed up to 44 victims. He was dubbed the I-5 Killer or the I-5 Bandit by the media. He began committing sexual assaults and robberies in 1975 and started murdering people in 1980. He was finally arrested in March 1981.  

 11 
Willie Sutton
(Bank Robber)
Willie Sutton
8
Birthdate: June 30, 1901
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Died: November 2, 1980

Willie Sutton was a bank robber with a criminal career spanning four decades. He entered the world of crime at a young age and spent more than half of his adult life in prison. He managed to escape from prison thrice. He was a master of disguise and was also known as “Willie the Actor.” He never killed anyone. 

 12 
Robert Chambers
(Criminal, Drug trafficker)
Robert Chambers
6
Birthdate: September 25, 1966
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: United States
 13 
Barbara Graham
(Criminal)
Barbara Graham
7
Birthdate: June 26, 1923
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Oakland, California, United States
Died: June 3, 1955

Barbara Graham was a convicted criminal who was executed in the gas chamber at San Quentin Prison in 1955. She became the third woman in California to be executed by gas. Born to an unwed teenage sex worker, she had a troubled childhood. As a young woman, she became involved with hardened criminals and took to a life of crime. 

 14 
Joseph Morgan
(Criminal)
Joseph Morgan
3
Birthdate: April 10, 1929
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, United States
Died: November 8, 1993
 15 
Black Bart
(American Outlaw Noted for the Poetic Messages He Left Behind After Two of His Robberies)
Black Bart
4
Birthdate: 1829 AD
Birthplace: Norfolk, England
Died: February 28, 1888

Black Bart was the nickname of Charles E. Boles, an outlaw who was one of the most notorious stagecoach robbers to operate in Northern California during the 1870s and early 1880s. He was considered a “gentleman bandit” with a love for sophistication. His final robbery took place in 1883, following which he was arrested. He was released in 1888. 

 16 
Bill Doolin
(American Bandit Outlaw and Founder of the Wild Bunch)
Bill Doolin
1
Birthdate: 1858 AD
Birthplace: Johnson County, Arkansas, United States
Died: August 24, 1896

Bill Doolin was an outlaw and bandit who founded the Wild Bunch, also known as the Doolin-Dalton Gang. This group of criminals committed a series of bank robberies and train robberies in Arkansas, Kansas, Indiana, and Oklahoma during the 1890s. His gang was extremely powerful. He was relentlessly pursued by lawmen and was shot to death in 1896.  

 17 
Rod Ferrell
(Murderer)
Rod Ferrell
7
Birthdate: March 28, 1980
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Murray, Kentucky, United States

Rod Ferrell is an American cult leader and murderer. A member of the Vampire Clan, Ferrell claimed to be a vampire. It was later ascertained that he had become obsessed with a game called Vampire: The Masquerade. In 1998, Rod Ferrell became the youngest American on Death Row after pleading guilty to the double murder of a couple from Florida.

 18 
Clyde Barrow
(American Criminal)
Clyde Barrow
11
Birthdate: March 24, 1909
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Ellis County, Texas, United States
Died: May 23, 1934

Part of the infamous criminal couple Bonnie and Clyde, with Bonnie Parker, Clyde Barrow had been a criminal long before he met Bonnie. While they were known for robbing gas stations, banks, and restaurants. Their exploits were romanticized in films and later inspired gangster chic fashion.

 19 
Caryl Chessman
(American Convicted Robber, Kidnapper and Rapist)
Caryl Chessman
4
Birthdate: May 27, 1921
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: St. Joseph, Michigan, United States
Died: May 2, 1960

Caryl Chessman was a convicted criminal who was sentenced to death for a series of crimes he committed, including robbery, kidnapping, and rape. He had a difficult childhood and resorted to crimes as a young man. He joined a gang and committed a series of crimes with them before being arrested. He was executed in 1960. 

 20 
John Wojtowicz
(Bank robber, Soldier)
John Wojtowicz
10
Birthdate: March 9, 1945
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: New York City, United States
Died: January 2, 2006
 21 
Elzy Lay
(Outlaw of the Old West in the United States)
Elzy Lay
3
Birthdate: November 25, 1869
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Mount Pleasant, Ohio, United States
Died: November 10, 1934

Elzy Lay was an American outlaw who was part of the infamous Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch. A close associate of the founder of the gang Butch Cassidy, Lay played an important role in leading the gang which operated out of a remote pass called Hole-in-the-Wall in Johnson County, Wyoming. Lay's arrest in 1899 led to the collapse of the gang.

 22 
Israel Keyes
(Serial Killer)
Israel Keyes
47
Birthdate: January 7, 1978
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Richmond, Utah, United States
Died: December 2, 2012

Israel Keyes was a serial killer, rapist, and burglar, who had killed at least three people. He previously owned a construction business and had served the U.S. army. Israel was fond of Ted Bundy and committed suicide while awaiting trail in the case related to the murder of Samantha Koenig.

 23 
Elmer McCurdy
(Robber)
Elmer McCurdy
4
Birthdate: January 1, 1880
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Washington, USA
Died: October 7, 1911

Elmer McCurdy was a bank and train robber. Born to an unwed teenage mother, he struggled a lot in his early life and took to a life of crime. He was a heavy drinker and often sabotaged his gang’s robberies. He was killed in a shootout after robbing a Katy Train in Oklahoma in October 1911. 

 24 
Kathy Boudin
(Criminal)
Kathy Boudin
6
Birthdate: May 19, 1943
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Greenwich Village, New York, United States
 25 
Crawford Goldsby
(Murderer)
Crawford Goldsby
4
Birthdate: February 8, 1876
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: San Angelo, Texas, United States
Died: March 17, 1896
 26 
Sam Bass
(American Train Robber and Outlaw Gang Leader)
Sam Bass
6
Birthdate: July 21, 1851
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Mitchell, Indiana, United States
Died: July 21, 1878

Sam Bass was a 19th-century train robber and outlaw. Having lost his parents as a child, he lived with an uncle for a few years before leaving home. He started doing odd jobs but was dissatisfied with the pay. So, he took to a life of crime and participated in numerous train robberies. He was killed by the lawmen. 

 27 
Tom Ketchum
(Robbery)
Tom Ketchum
6
Birthdate: October 31, 1863
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: San Saba County, Texas, United States
Died: April 26, 1901
 28 
Harvey Logan
(Outlaw)
Harvey Logan
5
Birthdate: 1867 AD
Birthplace: Richland, Iowa, United States
Died: June 17, 1904

Harvey Logan, also known as Kid Curry, was an outlaw and gunman. He was associated with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid's infamous Wild Bunch gang. He reportedly killed at least nine law enforcement officers in five shootings. He killed himself during a lengthy physical fight with lawmen in order to escape being captured. 

 29 
James Arcene
(Criminal)
James Arcene
4
Birthdate: 1862 AD
Birthplace: United States
Died: June 18, 1885
 30 
Henry Starr
(American Criminal)
Henry Starr
6
Birthdate: December 2, 1873
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Fort Gibson, Oklahoma, United States
Died: February 22, 1921

Henry Starr was an American criminal and actor best remembered for his appearance in many silent films. He played himself in the 1919 film A Debtor to the Law, which depicts Henry Starr's attempts to loot two banks. At the beginning of the 20th century, Henry Starr founded a gang that robbed and terrorized northwest Arkansas.

 31 
Samuel Green
(Criminal)
Samuel Green
12
Birthdate: 1796 AD
Birthplace: Meredith, New Hampshire, United States
Died: April 25, 1822