Nelson, Baby Face (1908-1934), was a notorious American bank robber . The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) named Nelson “Public Enemy No. 1” following a series of bank robberies and killings in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s. These crimes included the killings of three FBI agents.
Nelson was born Lester Joseph Gillis in Chicago, Illinois, on Dec. 6, 1908. His parents were immigrants from Belgium. At some point, Gillis began using the name George Nelson. When Nelson was 13 years old, he was caught stealing a car and sent to a boys’ home—that is, a reformatory institution for juvenile offenders. He spent the next several years in and out of reform schools for crimes that included auto theft, bootlegging, and armed robbery. Bootlegging involves the production, transportation, or sale of illegal alcoholic beverages .
Nelson stood only 5 feet 4 inches (163 centimeters) tall and had a youthful appearance. But he had an explosive temper and a violent nature. Because of his boyish looks, his fellow street hoodlums nicknamed him Baby Face. Nelson married a 16-year-old salesgirl named Helen Wawzynak in 1928, and they had a son and a daughter. Nelson’s wife used the name Helen Gillis throughout their marriage.
In 1931, Nelson was sentenced to prison for robbing a Chicago bank. But in early 1932, he escaped while being transported to stand trial for another bank robbery. Nelson went to California, where he struck up a friendship with John Paul Chase, a liquor smuggler.
In April 1934, Nelson and Chase joined the notorious gangster John Dillinger ‘s gang to commit more bank robberies. Nelson was hiding out with Dillinger’s gang at a vacation lodge in northern Wisconsin when the FBI raided the resort. Nelson escaped to a nearby home, where he shot and killed an FBI agent. He also wounded another agent and a police officer during the confrontation. Authorities offered a reward for Nelson’s capture or information leading to his arrest.
During a June 1934 bank robbery in Indiana, the Nelson-Dillinger gang shot and killed a police officer. Dillinger was killed a month later in a police ambush outside Chicago’s Biograph Theater. After Dillinger’s death, the FBI targeted Nelson as “Public Enemy No. 1.” Nelson managed to avoid capture until the FBI caught up with him near Barrington, Illinois, on Nov. 27, 1934. During a shootout, two FBI agents were killed, and Nelson was severely wounded. Nelson escaped, but he died later that evening.
