House Fire in Chester Park Revealed Bootleg Still in 1935, Nearly Two Years After the End of Prohibition

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Regular readers of Historic Pelham know by now that Pelham was a hotbed of illegal stills, speakeasies that sold illegal liquor, and bootleggers during Prohibition.  Regular readers may not know, however, that even after Prohibition ended on December 5, 1933, the little Town of Pelham remained a hotbed of bootlegged whiskey as today's Historic Pelham article shows. . . .

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The fire alarm was turned in from an emergency alarm box located at Pelhamdale and Pine Avenues, two blocks away from a raging fire in the basement of the residence of James J. Regno and Mary M. Regno at 56 Maple Avenue in Chester Park, Village of North Pelham.  The firemen raced to the alarm box on that Friday night, October 25, 1935.  They found no one there.

Pelham's Bravest did their job admirably that night.  They quickly located the fire burning in the basement of the Regno home.  

The volunteer firemen had to break into the cellar to get to the fire.  There they discovered not only a raging fire, but also seventy six cans of illegally-distilled grain and denatured alcohol dangerously at risk of exploding in the conflagration.  They also found the massive, illegal 250-gallon still used to distill the alcohol and a rather amazing heating plant, cooling system, bottling plant and counterfeit labeling system that allowed production of bogus liquor to be "passed off for many well known brands."

Police later concluded that an unidentified person was running the illegal still when the fire began in the heating plant of the still and quickly burned out of control.  That person fled the house, turned in the fire alarm, and reportedly never returned and never was identified.

Police searched the home.  In addition to the distillery and the seventy six containers of alcohol, they found and seized a fifty gallon barrel half full of rye whiskey and another twenty gallon barrel full of aging rye whiskey.  When tested, the whiskey proved to be 98 proof.  Police also found an account book maintained by Regno that listed amounts paid for trucking, sugar, grain, etc. as well as a Colt .32 caliber handgun with twenty three rounds of ammunition.  

Later that night, Mary M. Regno was arrested when she returned to the house.  Her husband, however, could not be found.  It was not until Sunday evening, October 27, 1935, when James J. Regno was found by police in New York City, arrested, and charged with violation of the Sullivan Act (a New York State gun control law requiring a license for possession of a firearm small enough to be concealed).  Regno later was charged with with violating three federal laws:  possession of an unregistered still; possession of a distillery in a dwelling house; and failure to file a bond to insure payment of taxes.

Incredibly, this was neither the first fire, nor the first illegal still discovered in the Regno home.  Eight years before that, on November 1, 1926 (one report says 1927), Pelham firemen extinguished a fire at the home and discovered an illegal still.  Regno was arrested on a Prohibition charge.  He eventually paid a fine, although his thirty day prison sentence was suspended. 

Chester Park Home Located at 56 Maple Avenue, Built in 1922.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

James J. Regno and Mary M. Regno lived in Pelham during the 1920s and 1930s.  In about 1926 they seem to have been in some form of financial distress.  A pair of men named Abraham Cohen and Barnet Stone obtained a judgment of foreclosure and sale against Mr. and Mrs. Regno for their home in Chester Park (entered on March 6, 1926).  See NOTICE OF SALE [Legal Notice], The Pelham Sun, Apr. 9, 1926, Vol. 17, No. 6, p. 2, col. 4.  It is not yet known how the matter was resolved, but Mr. and Mrs. Regno seem to have come up with a way to make a little extra money -- hence the illegal still discovered during their first house fire on November 1, 1926.

The second time authorities discovered an illegal still in the Regno home, they tried to come down hard on James J. Regno.  On November 7, 1935, only eleven days after his arrest, Regno was hauled before a grand jury who heard evidence regarding the Sullivan Act charge.  Although it is not clear precisely what happened, as soon as North Pelham Police Patrolman Edwin Pickard testified before the grand jury regarding discovery of the .32 caliber Colt pistol in the Regno home, the gun charge was dropped.  This left only the federal charges against Rego (who was out on bail of $1,000 on those charges).  

Regno tried to avoid the federal charges by claiming denying that he owned the still and claiming that he had not lived in the home for a full six months leading up to the fire and his arrest.  A criminal jury rejected his defenses and on March 18, 1936 found him guilty on all three charges.  The judge quickly sentenced him as follows:  "On the first count a three-month sentence was imposed, a fine of $100 and a penalty of $500.  The payment of the penalty was suspended.  On the second count the sentence was six months and the fine $1,000.  Both were suspended.  On the third count another three months' sentence and a $100 fine was imposed.  The two sentences are to run concurrently."


Although Regno attempted to gain an extension of his time to appeal, the Court rejected that request.  It appears that Regno was forced to serve his time on this second occasion.

As a postscript (and as the foregoing might suggest), Regno seems to have been a very bad guy.  He is written about as a smuggling partner of Charles Levy of New York City.  He was arrested at one point in Havana during one such smuggling episode.  Lawson, Ellen NicKenzie, Smugglers, Bootleggers and Scofflaws:  Prohibition and New York City, p. 56 (Albany, NY:  Excelsior Editions - State University of New York Press, 2013) (stating "James Regno, Levy's New York partner, was also arrested in Havana and his letters likewise seized.  Regno wrote a lady friend, 'I haven't much to say because everything looks bad. . . . They have either double-crossed us or done something wrong . . . I am losing money and nother to show [for it] but there is no use to worry if I come back I will get my boat and come right back here, for there is plenty of work here.'").

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"FIRE DISCLOSES BOOTLEG STILL IN CHESTER PARK
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'Alcohol Cooking' Plant Found in Regno House; Man and Wife are Held.
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Fire again proved to be the nemesis of those who were operating an alcohol distilling plant in the residence of James Regno at Maple and Pine avenues, in Chester Park on Friday night.  Volunteer firemen of the First District broke into the cellar of the house and extinguished a blaze burning dangerously close to 76 containers of newly distilled alcohol.  The house proved to be but living quarters which shielded a 250 gallon still, a cooling system and a labeling and bottling plant which appeared to be able to produce bogus liquor to be passed off for many well known brands.  Mrs. Regno who was arrested at her home on Friday night, was released under $250.00 bail on a Federal charge.  Her husband who was arrested in New York City on Sunday on a charge of violating the Sullivan Law was detained awaiting the action of the grand jury.

The incidents of the fire duplicated a visit of volunteer firemen to the Regno home, on November 1st, 1927, when another still was found.  Regno was arrested on a prohibition charge and paid a fine.

The fire is believed to have started near the heating plant of the still.  The alarm was turned in at a box at Pelhamdale and Pine avenues, two blocks away from the Regno residence.  According to belief the unidentified operator of the still quit his post and ran to the alarm box as the flames burst out near the alcohol containers.  He has failed to make an appearance since the fire.  

Among the effects found in his home was a Colt .32 calibre pistol with 23 rounds of ammunition.

Together with the cans of stored grain and denatured alcohol was a 50 gallon barrel half full of aging rye whiskey and a full 20-gallon barrel.  When tested the whiskey proved to be 98 proof.

One of the most important discoveries made was an account book supposedly kept by Regno in which was listed amounts paid for trucking, sugar, caustic soda, etc."

Source:  FIRE DISCLOSES BOOTLEG STILL IN CHESTER PARK -- "Alcohol Cooking" Plant Found in Regno House; Man and Wife are Held, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 1, 1935, Vol. 26, No. 30, p. 1, col. 4.

"Gun Charge Against Regno Dismissed
-----

Charged with violating the Sullivan Law, when a fire in his home at No. 16 [sic] Maple avenue, October 25th led to an investigation and a pistol was discovered, James J. Regno was dismissed by the grand jury, yesterday.

The charges were dismissed after the jury heard the testimony of Patrolman Edwin Pickard, of the North Pelham police.  The Pelhamite is still under $1,000 bond in the federal courts for operating an unlicensed still."

Source:  Gun Charge Against Regno Dismissed, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 8, 1935, Vol. 26, No. 31, p. 1, col. 6. 

"THREE MONTHS $200 FINE IS REGNO SENTENCE
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Chester Park Man Found Guilty of Possessing an Unregistered Still; Liquor Plant Disclosed by Fire.
-----

[sic] to an incident which began on the night of Oct. 25, 1935, when firemen who responded to an alarm from No. 56 Maple avenue found a still going full blast.

James Regno, 41, the owner of the house, was on Wednesday sentenced to serve three months in the Federal House of Detention in New York City and to pay a fine of $200  On Monday a jury brought a guilty verdict, Federal Judge Francis G. Caffey imposed the sentence.  The indictment contained three charges:  Possession of an unregistered still, possession of a distillery in a dwelling house; and failure to file a bond to insure payment of taxes.

On the first count a three-month sentence was imposed, a fine of $100 and a penalty of $500.  The payment of the penalty was suspended.  On the second count the sentence was six months and the fine $1,000.  Both were suspended.  On the third count another three months' sentence and a $100 fine was imposed.  The two sentences are to run concurrently.

Regno denied ownership of the still stating that he did not live in the Chester Park house for more than six months before the still was discovered.

In November, 1926, when a still was previously found at the Regno home, a $300 fine was imposed and a 30-day sentence suspended."

Source:  THREE MONTHS $200 FINE IS REGNO SENTENCE -- Chester Park Man Found Guilty of Possessing an Unregistered Still; Liquor Plant Disclosed by Fire, The Pelham Sun, Mar. 20, 1936, Vol. 26, No. 50, p. 1, col. 5. 

"No Extension For Appeal By Regno
-----

Federal Judge Francis G. Caffey on Wednesday refused to grant a 30-day extension in time for appeal of the conviction of James J. Regno, on a charge of operating an illegal still at No. 56 Maple avenue, Chester Park.  Regno is at liberty under bail of $1,000 pending the appeal."

Source:  No Extension For Appeal By Regno, The Pelham Sun, Apr. 24, 1936, Vol. 27, No. 3, p. 1, col. 4.

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I have written extensively about Pelham's struggles with Prohibition and the enforcement of the unpopular laws that it spawned as well as illegal stills, bootleggers, and speakeasies in Pelham. See: 

Tue., Feb. 27, 2018:  Police Raided a Storefront Still and Bootlegging Operation in a Fifth Avenue Store in 1926.

Wed., Feb. 21, 2018:  Massive Prohibition Raid in 1927 Netted Four Bootleggers and 225 Kegs of Beer.

Tue., Jan. 30, 2018:  Visit to the Wrong House Uncovered Massive Pelham Manor Bootlegging During Prohibition.

Wed., Jan. 03, 2018:  The Massive Illegal Still Discovered at 137 Corlies Avenue During Prohibition in 1932.

Wed., Jun. 21, 2017:  The Infamous Ash Tree Inn of Pelham Manor and its Prohibition Violations During the 1920s.

Thu., Feb. 02, 2017:  Bootleggers Began to Feel the Heat in Pelham in 1922.

Mon., Dec. 26, 2016:  Pelham Stood Alone in Westchester When It Voted to Go Dry in 1896. 

Mon., Aug. 22, 2016:  Pelham, It Seems, Became a Hotbed of Bootlegging and Illegal Stills During Prohibition.

Mon., Jul. 06, 2015:  Police Raided a Massive 300-Gallon Illegal Liquor Still on Corlies Avenue in 1932.  

Fri., Jun. 19, 2015:  More Liquor Raids in Pelham During Prohibition in the 1920s.

Wed., Jun. 17, 2015:   Prohibition Rum-Runners Delivering A Boatload of Booze Were Foiled in Pelham in 1925.

Fri., Apr. 24, 2015:  The North Pelham "Speakeasy Section" Created Quite a Stir During Prohibition.

Tue., Nov. 18, 2014:  More Bootleggers and Speakeasies Raided in Pelham in 1929 During Prohibition.
Fri., May 23, 2014:  How Dry I Am -- Early Prohibition Efforts Succeed in Pelham in 1896.

Thu., Apr. 03, 2014:  The Prohibition Era in Pelham:  Another Speakeasy Raided.

Tue., Feb. 18, 2014:  Pelham Speakeasies and Moonshiners - Prohibition in Pelham: The Feds Raid the Moreau.

Thu., Feb. 07, 2008:  Village Elections in Pelham in 1900 - New York Athletic Club Members Campaign Against the Prohibition Ticket in Pelham Manor.

Thu., Jan. 12, 2006:  The Beer Battle of 1933.

Thu., Aug. 11, 2005:  How Dry I Am: Pelham Goes Dry in the 1890s and Travers Island Is At the Center of a Storm. 

Bell, Blake A., The Prohibition Era in Pelham, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 25, June 18, 2004, p. 12, col. 2.

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Police Raided a Storefront Still and Bootlegging Operation in a Fifth Avenue Store in 1926

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North Pelham, it seems, was excited at the prospect of yet another new business on Fifth Avenue in 1926.  On July 1, 1926, Italian immigrant Joseph Leoni took possession of a storefront with a rear apartment located at 317-319 Fifth Avenue.  He opened what everyone believed was a wholesale business in imported Italian olive oil.  Everyone was wrong.

The business certainly looked convincing.  Empty olive oil cans filled the show windows of the little business.  Any passerby who peered inside through those show windows saw packing cases entirely consistent with a busy little wholesale olive oil import business.  Yes, it looked like Joseph Leoni was building another successful Pelham business during those flapper years of the Roaring Twenties in our little Town.

Leoni had only been in his new digs for two weeks when another tenant on the second floor of the building glanced out of a window at the back of the building and noticed water trickling out of a window on the lower floor.  Worried that a leak might be damaging the stores and living quarters on the first floor, the tenant called landlord Irving J. Wallach, owner of the building at the time.  

Wallach hustled to the site and tried to roust Joseph Leoni.  No one was in the premises, so Wallach used a passkey to open the door and slip inside to inspect the premises.  Nothing seemed amiss in the front rooms of the store -- packing cases and empty olive oil cans were stacked neatly.  When Wallach entered the rear apartment of the building's first floor, however, he was shocked.  A massive still stood on cinder blocks in the center of the room with a gas-fed flame below it, bubbling away as it distilled illegal corn mash whiskey.  Wallach quietly and quickly backed out of the room and exited the building.  He headed straight for the North Pelham Police Department where he alerted Police Captain Michael J. Fitzpatrick.

Storefront at 317-319 Fifth Avenue Where Illegal Still and

Bootlegging Operation Was Raided by North Pelham Police

on July 14, 1926.  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

 At 7:30 p.m. that evening -- Wednesday, July 14, 1926 -- Captain Fitzpatrick accompanied Irving J. Wallach to the premises and entered.  Leoni at first refused to allow the pair to enter the rear rooms of the premises protesting that he was "only boiling a little water" in the back.  Captain Fitzpatrick and Irving Wallach forced their way past Leoni.

A mad rush ensued.  Leoni grabbed a five-gallon can filled with alcohol and tried to empty it into a sink.  Captain Fitzpatrick grabbed him, placed him under arrest, and hauled him off to the lockup at police headquarters, together with "three five gallon cans, one two gallon can, and a two gallon bottle, all of which were said to contain alcohol."

Thereafter, closer inspection of the premises revealed an amazing operation.  Inspection of one of the five-gallon cans by Captain Fitzpatrick, North Pelham Village President Thomas J. James, and North Pelham Trustee Harder revealed that it was constructed so that it could be capped within and a small amount of olive oil could be stored within so that the can, filled with alcohol, would appear to be a can of olive oil when inspected. 

There were three rooms at the rear of the premises on the first floor.  In one room was a single bed and a "large wardrobe trunk."  In two adjoining rooms, there were nineteen barrels arranged around the walls filled with corn mash in the process of fermentation.

In the kitchen at the rear of the building was the still.  A two-inch hose had been connected illegally to the building's natural gas supply, circumventing the gas meter, to keep a fire burning beneath the still that was propped up on cement blocks.  Another hose led from the giant cooling vat to the window where water appeared to leak through the window -- prompting the complaint from the tenant above that led to discovery of the still.  Next to the still were two additional fifty-gallon barrels of mash.  All in all it was a very compact and nifty setup.

The following day, Pelham authorities dismantled the still and poured the fermenting corn mash down local sewers.  Joseph Leoni was turned over to Federal Prohibition authorities who indicated that a motion for deportation would be made.

Thereafter the little Town of Pelham would continue its stand against demon rum, battling to enforce the Volstead Act. . . . . . .  

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"Police Capture Bootlegger and Still In Full Blast
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Joseph Leoni Was Operating Fifty-Gallon Plant in Fifth Ave. Apartment When Discovered -- Had Occupied Premises Only Two Weeks
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Over a Thousand Gallons of Mash Fermenting in Barrels in Back Rooms of a Store
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More than two thousand gallons of corn mash in twenty-one barrels, twenty gallons of alleged alcohol, a whiskey still of fifty gallons capacity, and all the accompanying paraphernalia of a distillery were uncovered by the police and the landlord at the store and apartment, Nos. 317-319 Fifth avenue, North Pelham at 7:30 Wednesday evening.

Joseph Leoni, who leased the store from Irving J. Wallach, the owner, was arrested by Police Captain Michael J. Fitzpatrick and after being lodged in jail overnight was turned over to the Federal authorities on Thursday charged with a violation of the Volstead Act.

Leoni had occupied the store just two weeks, taking possession July 1st, ostensibly for the purpose of conducting a wholesale business in imported Italian olive oil.

The discovery of the still came about when Wallach was notified by a resident of one of the apartments over the store that water was running from a window of one of the back rooms on the lower floor.  The landlord entered with the aid of a passkey, and on finding evidence of a still being in operation quietly withdrew and notified the police.  Police Cap-

(Continued on page 8)
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Police Capture Bootlegger and Liquor Still
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(Continued from page 1)

tain Michael Fitzpatrick entered the store with Wallach.  Leoni at first refused them entry to the rear rooms, claiming that he was only boiling a little water.  When the police captain and Wallach forced their way, Leoni attempted to empty a five gallon can of alleged alcohol into the sink.  

He was placed under arrest, and taken to headquarters together with three five gallon cans one two gallon can and a two gallon bottle, all of which were said to contain alcohol.

One of the five-gallon cans had a capped tube in it.  Thus when the can was filled with alcohol and sealed the tube could be filled with olive oil and capped.  Anyone inspecting the can would remove the cap and be misled into thinking that the can contained only olive oil.

Following the arrest, Village President Thomas J. James, and Trustee Harder inspected the premises where the still was in operation.  The store was vacant save for some packing cases.  Empty olive oil cans filled both the show windows.  In a room behind the store was a single bed and a large wardrobe trunk.  In the two rooms adjoining, nineteen barrels, all filled with corn mash in process of fermentation, were ranged around the walls.  In the kitchen at the rear of the building the still was found, propped up on cement blocks.  A two inch hose had been connected to the gas supply, so that the gas being consumed did not register through the meter.  It was the hose leading from the cooling vat which was responsible for the leaking of water through the window and caused the complaint to be made to the landlord.  Beside the still, two more fifty gallon barrels of mash were found in the kitchen.

Police Captain Fitzpatrick would not hazard a guess as to the value of the liquor and still, but it is believed to be worth many thousand dollars.

Investigation by the Federal Prohibition department revealed that Leone under the alias Natale Rosa, was arrested in New Rochelle, on July 7 and charged with transporting and selling alcoholic liquor.  The case is still pending.  Leone was released under bail.  It is believed that he made the liquor in North Pelham and sold it through New Rochelle.

The still was dismantled yesterday and the mash dumped into the sewer.  

Leone left in custody of the Federal officers yesterday.  It is believed that a motion will be made for his deportation."

Source:  Police Capture Bootlegger and Still In Full Blast -- Joseph Leoni Was Operating Fifty-Gallon Plant in Fifth Ave. Apartment When Discovered -- Had Occupied Premises Only Two Weeks -- Over a Thousand Gallons of Mash Fermenting in Barrels in Back Rooms of a Store, The Pelham Sun, Jul. 16, 1926, Vol. 17, No. 20, p. 1, col. 1 & p. 8, col. 5.


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I have written extensively about Pelham's struggles with Prohibition and the enforcement of the unpopular laws that it spawned. See: 

Wed., Feb. 21, 2018:  Massive Prohibition Raid in 1927 Netted Four Bootleggers and 225 Kegs of Beer.

Tue., Jan. 30, 2018:  Visit to the Wrong House Uncovered Massive Pelham Manor Bootlegging During Prohibition.

Wed., Jan. 03, 2018:  The Massive Illegal Still Discovered at 137 Corlies Avenue During Prohibition in 1932.

Wed., Jun. 21, 2017:  The Infamous Ash Tree Inn of Pelham Manor and its Prohibition Violations During the 1920s.

Thu., Feb. 02, 2017:  Bootleggers Began to Feel the Heat in Pelham in 1922.

Mon., Dec. 26, 2016:  Pelham Stood Alone in Westchester When It Voted to Go Dry in 1896. 

Mon., Aug. 22, 2016:  Pelham, It Seems, Became a Hotbed of Bootlegging and Illegal Stills During Prohibition.

Mon., Jul. 06, 2015:  Police Raided a Massive 300-Gallon Illegal Liquor Still on Corlies Avenue in 1932.  

Fri., Jun. 19, 2015:  More Liquor Raids in Pelham During Prohibition in the 1920s.

Wed., Jun. 17, 2015:   Prohibition Rum-Runners Delivering A Boatload of Booze Were Foiled in Pelham in 1925.

Fri., Apr. 24, 2015:  The North Pelham "Speakeasy Section" Created Quite a Stir During Prohibition.

Tue., Nov. 18, 2014:  More Bootleggers and Speakeasies Raided in Pelham in 1929 During Prohibition.
Fri., May 23, 2014:  How Dry I Am -- Early Prohibition Efforts Succeed in Pelham in 1896.

Thu., Apr. 03, 2014:  The Prohibition Era in Pelham:  Another Speakeasy Raided.

Tue., Feb. 18, 2014:  Pelham Speakeasies and Moonshiners - Prohibition in Pelham: The Feds Raid the Moreau.

Thu., Feb. 07, 2008:  Village Elections in Pelham in 1900 - New York Athletic Club Members Campaign Against the Prohibition Ticket in Pelham Manor.

Thu., Jan. 12, 2006:  The Beer Battle of 1933.

Thu., Aug. 11, 2005:  How Dry I Am: Pelham Goes Dry in the 1890s and Travers Island Is At the Center of a Storm. 

Bell, Blake A., The Prohibition Era in Pelham, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 25, June 18, 2004, p. 12, col. 2.

Archive of the Historic Pelham Web Site.

Home Page of the Historic Pelham Blog.

Order a Copy of "Thomas Pell and the Legend of the Pell Treaty Oak."

The Massive Illegal Still Discovered at 137 Corlies Avenue During Prohibition in 1932

Archive of the Historic Pelham Web Site.
Home Page of the Historic Pelham Blog.
Order a Copy of "Thomas Pell and the Legend of the Pell Treaty Oak."

The fourteen-room home at 137 Corlies Avenue in Pelham Heights was a beautiful place.  Once owned by Town Justice Anthony M. Menkel, it was the last place one might expect to find one of the most massive illegal stills ever discovered in Pelham during the Prohibition years.

New tenants moved into the home in about February or March of 1932.  One can only imagine how the three men from New York City who began frequenting the lovely home were able to smuggle past the watchful eyes of their Corlies Avenue neighbors all the equipment necessary to build a five hundred gallon copper still and fermenting tubs large enough to hold five thousand gallons of fermenting mash into the home.  Smuggle successfully, though, they did.  They built a massive still on the third floor of the old Menkel place.

On Saturday, April 9, 1932, Federal Prohibition agents swooped down on the home in a raid that startled the beautiful neighborhood.  They found and arrested three New York City men in the raid:  60-year-old Hyman Brooks of 647 East Fifth Street in New York City; 28-year-old Vencenzo Russi of 2520 Gravesend Avenue in Brooklyn; and 30-year-old Ralph Scheim of 208 Roger Avenue in Brooklyn.  Hyman Brooks was the brains behind the operation.  The two younger men, Vencenzo Russi and Ralph Scheim, were employed by Brooks to operate the massive still.

I have written about the raid at 137 Corlies Avenue before.  See Mon., Jul. 06, 2015:  Police Raided a Massive 300-Gallon Illegal Liquor Still on Corlies Avenue in 1932.  Indeed, the photograph below shows two of the massive mash tubs seized along with the still during the raid. Today's Historic Pelham article, however, adds a piece to the puzzle and reveals the punishment that the brains of the operation, Hyman Brooks, received after the raid.

"LIQUOR PLANT IN RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT Huge tubs of mash found

in Corlies avenue house. Patrolmen James Tierney and Ellsworth Totten

inspecting liquor fermentation vats. Photo by Frutkoff." Source:  LIQUOR

PLANT IN RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT -- Raid Liquor Plant In Pelham Heights:

300 Gallon Still Seized: Arrest Three, The Pelham Sun, Apr. 15, 1932,

p. 1, cols. 4-5.  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The Prohibition agents who raided the home estimated that the giant still had only been in operation for about two weeks and that it likely only took a "few days" to set up the still.  After the raid, the three men were taken to a lock-up in Town Hall on Fifth Avenue in Pelham.  Bail was set at $3,500 pending their appearance in Federal Court.

On December 9, 1932, The Pelham Sun reported on the fate of the three men captured in the raid.  The two younger "employees" who operated the still for Hyman Brooks had pleaded not guilty to the charge of operating an illegal still.  Both were convicted and received suspended sentences for the actions.

Hyman Brooks pled guilty before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York to a "charge of operating a still."  He paid fine of $150.00 (about $2,800.00 in today's dollars).  

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"PAYS $150 FOR OPERATING A STILL IN PELHAM HEIGHTS
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Hyman Brooks Fined in U.S. District Court; Charged With Operating Liquor Plant in Corlies Avenue House.
-----

Hyman Brooks of New York City paid a fine of $150.00 in United States District Court, on Monday after pleading guilty to a charge of operating a still at No. 137 Corlies avenue in Pelham Heights.  Brooks was arrested in a raid on the house by Federal Prohibition agents on April 9.  The agents found a 500 gallon copper still and 5,000 gallons of fermenting mash on the third floor of the fourteen-room house, which was at one time the residence of former Town Justice Anthony M. Menkel.

Vincenzo Russo, of No. 2520 Gravesend avenue and Ralph Scheim, of No. 208 Rogers avenue, Brooklyn who were charged with being employees of the liquor plant received suspended sentences.  They had pleaded not guilty to the charges."

Source:  PAYS $150 FOR OPERATING A STILL IN PELHAM HEIGHTS -- Hyman Brooks Fined in U.S. District Court; Charged With Operating Liquor Plant in Corlies Avenue House, The Pelham Sun, Dec. 9, 1932, Vol. 23, No. 38, p. 1, col. 1.

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I have written extensively about Pelham's struggles with Prohibition and the enforcement of the unpopular laws that it spawned. See: 

Wed., Jun. 21, 2017:  The Infamous Ash Tree Inn of Pelham Manor and its Prohibition Violations During the 1920s.

Thu., Feb. 02, 2017:  Bootleggers Began to Feel the Heat in Pelham in 1922.

Mon., Dec. 26, 2016:  Pelham Stood Alone in Westchester When It Voted to Go Dry in 1896. 

Mon., Aug. 22, 2016:  Pelham, It Seems, Became a Hotbed of Bootlegging and Illegal Stills During Prohibition.

Mon., Jul. 06, 2015:  Police Raided a Massive 300-Gallon Illegal Liquor Still on Corlies Avenue in 1932.  

Fri., Jun. 19, 2015:  More Liquor Raids in Pelham During Prohibition in the 1920s.

Wed., Jun. 17, 2015:   Prohibition Rum-Runners Delivering A Boatload of Booze Were Foiled in Pelham in 1925.

Fri., Apr. 24, 2015:  The North Pelham "Speakeasy Section" Created Quite a Stir During Prohibition.

Tue., Nov. 18, 2014:  More Bootleggers and Speakeasies Raided in Pelham in 1929 During Prohibition.
Fri., May 23, 2014:  How Dry I Am -- Early Prohibition Efforts Succeed in Pelham in 1896.

Thu., Apr. 03, 2014:  The Prohibition Era in Pelham:  Another Speakeasy Raided.

Tue., Feb. 18, 2014:  Pelham Speakeasies and Moonshiners - Prohibition in Pelham: The Feds Raid the Moreau.

Thu., Feb. 07, 2008:  Village Elections in Pelham in 1900 - New York Athletic Club Members Campaign Against the Prohibition Ticket in Pelham Manor.

Thu., Jan. 12, 2006:  The Beer Battle of 1933.

Thu., Aug. 11, 2005:  How Dry I Am: Pelham Goes Dry in the 1890s and Travers Island Is At the Center of a Storm. 

Bell, Blake A., The Prohibition Era in Pelham, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 25, June 18, 2004, p. 12, col. 2.

Archive of the Historic Pelham Web Site.

Home Page of the Historic Pelham Blog.

Order a Copy of "Thomas Pell and the Legend of the Pell Treaty Oak."

More Bootleggers and Speakeasies Raided in Pelham in 1929 During Prohibition

Archive of the Historic Pelham Web Site.

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Congress implemented the Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution by enacting The National Prohibition Act of 1919, also known as the Volstead Act. The law became effective, along with the Eighteenth Amendment, on January 16, 1920.  

Thus, prohibition became the law of the land.  As I have written before, however, it was a law meant to be broken.  Private bootleggers and speakeasies sprang up everywhere to meet the seemingly insatiable desire for alcoholic beverages.  Pelham was no different than other suburban communities near New York City.  It had its share of bootleggers, moonshiners and speakeasies.  

I have written a number of times about bootleggers, moonshiners, speakeasies, Prohibition and earlier local prohibition movements in Pelham before national Prohibition.  See:

Fri., May 23, 2014:  How Dry I Am -- Early Prohibition Efforts Succeed in Pelham in 1896.

Thu., Apr. 03, 2014:  The Prohibition Era in Pelham:  Another Speakeasy Raided.

Tue., Feb. 18, 2014:  Pelham Speakeasies and Moonshiners - Prohibition in Pelham: The Feds Raid the Moreau Pharmacy in Pelham Manor in 1922.

Thu., Feb. 07, 2008:  Village Elections in Pelham in 1900 - New York Athletic Club Members Campaign Against the Prohibition Ticket in Pelham Manor.

Thu., Jan. 12, 2006:  The Beer Battle of 1933.

Thu., Aug. 11, 2005:  How Dry I Am: Pelham Goes Dry in the 1890s and Travers Island Is At the Center of a Storm. 

Bell, Blake A., The Prohibition Era in Pelham, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 25, June 18, 2004, p. 12, col. 2.

Today's posting to the Historic Pelham Blog transcribes two articles published in The Pelham Sun in November, 1929 -- only weeks after the stock market crash and the onset of The Great Depression.  The first article describes excellent detective work by Village of Pelham Manor police who uncovered a massive 50 gallon still in the basement of 580 Monterey Avenue only days after the new "owner" of the property installed the still.  The second article describes two speakeasies raided in the Village of North Pelham -- one at the "North Pelham Checker Club" located at 574 Seventh Avenue and the other at an unspecified address in an unnamed "cafe" located at Fifth Avenue and Seventh Street.

The first article is notable for its description of the police work used to capture the owner of the still.  The second article is notable for its detailed inventory of the alcohol that was discovered during the two raids in North Pelham.  Both articles demonstrate that, by 1929, in some locales Prohibition was more honored in the breach than the observance.

"Police Rout Bootlegger From Manor; 50 Gallon Still Found
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Chief Of Police Gargan Does Excellent Work in Locating Illicit Liquor Plant In Heart Of Residential District.  Bootlegger Has Criminal Record.  Thought To Be Counterfeiter Also -- Came Here A Week Ago
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A well laid plan to veil with a cloak of respectability a series of small distilleries in the center of residential districts of suburban communities was nipped in the bud Sunday when Chief of Police Philip Gargan routed a bootlegger our of his first plant in Pelham Manor.  Thomas Craven, owner of a dwelling house at No. 580 Monterey avenue, was arrested by Federal Prohibition officers, Monday night as he stepped into the house where the officers had laid [sic] in wait since a 50-gallon still was discovered in the basement of the residence the previous night.  Craven was released on $1,000 bail pending hearing of his case before the Federal Prohibition Commissioner.  

Chief Gargan has since been informed that Craven has a lengthy criminal record and is suspected of being a counterfeiter as well as a bootlegger.  Assistant United States District Attorney Robert Watts will prosecute the case.

Chief Gargan found the still while investigating vacant houses in company with Sgt. James McCaffrey Sunday night.  The officers found a window open at the Craven residence, which has been vacant for three months, and suspecting that there had been a burglary, they entered the house.  

A strong alcoholic odor permeated the atmosphere and on going into the cellar the officers found a complete distillery which had apparently been in action.  The still was warm, and a quantity of rye mash inside it.  In cans beside the still were fifteen gallons of newly run alcohol.  Around the basement room were arranged bottling apparatus, ,laboratory utensils and other liquor making paraphernalia.

Chief Gargan notified Prohibition Director Maj. Maurice Campbell, who was at his home on Prospect avenue.  Members of his staff were summoned and the trap set for the bootlegger.  
The remainder of the night and all the next day, detectives camped in the vacant house.  Early Monday evening Craven and Albert Georges, who gave his address at No. 2788 Kingsbridge Terrace, New York City,. from where Craven is also booked walked into the arms of the waiting Federal men and were placed under arrest.  Georges professed innocence.  He was released after he had satisfied the police that he was not implicated.  Craven arranged bail and was released late that evening.  

It is believe that Craven had installed the still in the Monterey avenue residence within the last week, as the house was inspected two weeks ago, and nothing found amiss.  

According to information gained through District Attorney Watts, Craven has been sought for several months.  He is suspected of operating an extensive liquor trade, preferring to scatter his small plants in several localities rather than to risk detecction through a big plant in one location.  

Attorney Watts also stated that Craven was convicted on a charge of conspiring to  violate the Prohibition Amendment in Massachusetts early last year and served a prison term at Atlanta, after which he was paroled.  He is believed to have been convicted under the name of Thomas C. Wallace in 1928 on a counterfeiting charge.  Watts said that he has [illegible] when they prove that Craven and Wallace are the same person."

Source:  Police Rout Bootlegger From Manor; 50 Gallon Still Found, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 15, 1929, Vol. 20, No. 83, p. 1, cols. 6-7.  

Undated Image, Circa 1921, Depicting New York City Deputy

Police Commissioner John A. Leach, Far Right, Watching Agents

Pour Liquor Into Sewer Following a Raid During the Height of Prohibition.

Source:  Photographic Print from the New York World-Telegram and

the Sun Newspaper Photograph Collection Held in the Library

of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C. 20540

Reproduction No. LC-USZ62-123257 (b&w film copy neg.).

"Federal Agents Raid Speakeasies Seize Liquor; Three Arrests Made Capture Pelham Man In Mamaroneck
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Charles Brockman, John J. Sims, and Bartender Face Federal Prohibition Charges of Selling and Possessing Liquor.  John Ruperto Arrested In Raid In Mamaroneck.  Colored Agents Raid Pelham Checker Club.  All Released In $1,000 Bail
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Two speakeasies were raided by federal prohibition agents this week in North Pelham and a large quantity of beer, whiskey and gin seized.  Charles Brockman, proprietor of the North Pelham Checker Club, No. 574 Seventh avenue, John Sims, proprietor of a cafe at Fifth avenue and Seventh street, and Lazarus Dalfus, of No. 556 Willow avenue, the Bronx, barman for Sims were arrested on charges of violation of the Volstead Act.  All were released in $1,000 bail pending their appearance before Commissioner O'Neill in New York City.  Brockman and Dalfus will be tried December 4.  No date has been set for Sims' appearance.  

John Ruperto, who gave his address at No. 133 Sixth street, North Pelham, was arrested last Friday after a raid on a speakeasy in Mamaroneck.  Ruperto is alleged to have been one of the two men who fled through a rear door of the establishment when the police entered.  Ruperto's case will also be heard December 4.  

The raids at Brockman's on Tuesday and Sims' on Wednesday came as a surprise.  The former establishment was among those which were entered by federal men last March.  A quantity of beer was seized at that time, but the case was dismissed when it was learned that the raid had been made on a faulty search warrant.  Sims' place was also entered at that time, but no liquor was found.  

During the last few months many complaints have been registered with the police about disorder at Brockman's place, which it is said catered mainly to a negro clientele.  Mayor Edward B. Harder and Chief of Police Michael Fitzpatrick presented this case before Major Maurice Campbell a month ago, and since that time negro federal men have been visiting the place to establish evidence on which to secure a search warrant.  

On Tuesday, two negro agents visited the Checker Club, and called for a pitcher of beer.  According to their story they received it without any hesitation, and then served the warrant on Brockman and Dalfus, who acted as bartender.

Chief Fitzpatrick was summoned and with members of his department carted away a large quantity of veer in the street department truck.  Much of the liquor was destroyed on the premises.  

The Checker Club is a three-room bungalow, two rooms of which were piled high with empty bottles of every description.  A portable brewery had been installed in the kitchen and a fifty gallon barrel of beer mash stood beside the stove.  

The booze list of the federal agents was as follows:  one 5 gallon jug of beer; 35 one gallon jugs of beer; 800 quart bottles of beer; 1,800 pint bottles of the same beverage; a quart of whiskey and a quart of gin.

The raid at Sim's place was conducted by four agents under the leadership of John T. Murphy who conducted the raids here last March.  With Meyer Goldberg, Ernest Goldbach and Edwin O'Brien, Murphy entered the cafe, armed with a search warrant.  Murphy told the press that one of the agents had purchased a drink before serving the warrant.  

Search of the place yielded the following:  7 half barrels of beer; 4 cases of ale; four bottles of gin; 10 quarts of whiskey and 3 pints of rye, according to Murphy.  This was also taken to police headquarters in the village truck."

Source:  Federal Agents Raid Speakeasies Seize Liquor; Three Arrests Made Capture Pelham Man In Mamaroneck, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 22, 1929, Vol. 20, No. 34, p. 1, cols. 6-7.  

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