The Gopher Gang was an early 20th century New York street gang known for its members including Goo Goo Knox, James "Biff" Ellison, and Owney Madden. (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki Official languages None Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ...

Based out of the Irish neighborhood of Hell's Kitchen the Gopher Gang grew to control most of Manhattan from Forth and Forty-Second Street to Seventh and Eleventh Avenue. Formed from various local street gangs in the 1890s numbering around 500 members into what later became a committee including Marty Brennan, Stumpy Malarkey, and Newburg Gallegher. The committee met semi-regularly at their headquarters known as Battle Row, a saloon owned by Mallet Murphy, to discuss robberies and divide profits from Manhattan bordellos and illegal gambling operations. History Hells Kitchen (also known as Clinton) is a neighborhood of New York City. ... For other uses, see Manhattan (disambiguation). ... The 1890s were sometimes referred to as the Gay Nineties, under the then-current usage of the word gay which referred simply to merriment and frivolity, with no connotation of homosexuality as in current-day usage. ...

In the early 1910s the Gophers were led by One Lung Curran who was notorious for his attacks on lone patrolman. Although most police rarely patrolled Hell's Kitchen, and only then in large groups, Curran often stole officers uniforms and, after taking it back to his girlfriend, had her make alterations from which he wore around the neighborhood. This encouraged other gang members to steal uniforms for themselves becoming a sort of trend among the prominent gang members. Events and trends Science Einsteins theory of general relativity Max von Laue discovers the diffraction of x-rays by crystals Alfred Wegener puts forward his theory of continental drift War, peace and politics Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary leads to World War I October Revolution in...

The gang began employing younger apprentice gang members such as the Baby Gophers and other gangs subordinate to the Gophers such as the Parlor Mob, the Gorillas, and the Rhodes Gang as well as a female gang known as the Lady Gophers. Led by Battle Annie the Battle Row Ladies Social and Athletic Club, as they were officially called, acted as reserve members of several hundred women for the Gophers in territorial disputes against rival gangs and as strikebreakers during the next decade. With the death of One Lung Curran in 1917 the gang declined in power breaking up as most of the gang leaders were arrested by the end of the year.

Further reading

• Jay Robert Nash, Encyclopedia of World Crime (K-R) Vol. III, Crimebooks Inc., 1990

External links

• Gophers, Goose Chasers, and the Early Years of Owney Madden (http://www.americanmafia.com/Allan_May_1-3-00.html) by Allen May