Bootlegger Captured in North Pelham in 1922

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Given its proximity to New York City, it comes as no surprise that the tiny little Town of Pelham played a colorful role during Prohibition as a cross-roads for illegal distillers, liquor-serving roadhouses, and bootleggers during the 1920s and early 1930s.  Today's Historic Pelham Blog article tells yet another story of illicit bootlegging in North Pelham -- this time in 1922!

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North Pelham Police Captain Michael J. Fitzpatrick was a stickler for detail.  He took pride in his work and pride in his appearance.  On a lazy Pelham afternoon in late spring, 1922, Captain Fitzpatrick strolled into the little tailor's shop on Fifth Avenue to have his coat pressed.  As he waited, he glanced out the shop window and watched the hustle and bustle of Pelham outside.  

As he watched, he noticed an interesting character whom he did not recognize struggling with a large suitcase.  The man was "glancing around furtively" as he carried a very heavy case along the sidewalk outside.

Chief Fitzpatrick called North Pelham police headquarters and dispatched Police Officer James Whalen to intercept the stranger on the sidewalk and bring him to headquarters.  Chief Fitzpatrick then hustled to headquarters where he met Officer Whalen with the stranger who identified himself as "Henry Bersohn."  Bersohn, it turned out, had just arrived in North Pelham on a New York, Westchester & Boston Railway train.  

Chief Fitzpatrick and Officer Whalen had the stranger open his heavy suitcase.  Inside were twelve quarts of "colorless fluid . . . labeled 'Gordon's Gin.'"  Doing his duty, Chief Fitzpatrick took a swig.  According to the Chief, it "tasted like Hell."  (The local newspaper reported that Chief Fitzpatrick "was forced by law to taste it.")  

Busted, the stranger wove an odd tale.  He told a strange story of a strange man on the New York, Westchester & Boston Railway train who asked him to hold the suitcase, then wandered off and failed to return.  For a time, Chief Fitzpatrick could not shake the man from his "fishy story."  Then the Chief had an idea.

He mentioned casually that if the liquor were for the man's own consumption and he had a permit to transport it, the situation "might be different."  Henry Bersohn took the bait.

Bersohn changed his tune and "admitted" to the Chief that the gin was his own and intended for his own consumption.  The Chief confronted Bersohn with the change in his story and the fact that one way or the other he had lied.  At that point, "Bersohn then broke down and confessed that he was bootlegging and that the liquor was intended for Pelham Manor consumption."

Chief Fitzpatrick arrested Henry Bersohn.  He was brought before Judge I. Balch Louis on Saturday, June 10, 1922.  After his formal arraignment he was released on a $250 bond furnished by his father.  The case scheduled before a Federal Grand Jury.

North Pelham police had apprehended yet another bootlegger due to good old-fashioned police work.  Pelham Manor, consequently, would be just a little bit drier for just a little while. . . . . . 

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"Bootlegger Arrested In North Pelham
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Captain Fitzpatrick and Officer Whalen Arrest Henry Bersohn on Fifth Avenue
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Twelve Quarts of Gordon Gin Found In Suitcase That He Was Carrying -- Released On $250 Bond
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Twelve quarts of Gordon gin which were en route from the Boston and Westchester station to Pelham Manor, snugly ensconced in a suitcase carried by Henry Bersohn, now repose on the desk of Captain Michael Fitzpatrick of North Pelham, while Bersohn is out on $250 bail awaiting a Federal jury trial.

Captain Fitzpatrick was having his coat pressed in the tailor shop on Fifth Avenue when he noticed Bersohn traveling along Fifth Avenue.  Bersohn's furtive glancing around and the fact that the suitcase seemed particularly heavy aroused the captain's suspicions, so he dispatched Officer James Whalen to bring Bersohn into headquarters.

On the suitcase being opened, twelve quarts of colorless fluid which is labeled 'Gordon Gin' but which the captain says tasted like h__l (captain is forced by law to taste it) were found.

Bersohn was quizzed at headquarters as to where he got the liquor.  He told a strange story of a strange man on the train asking him to hold the suitcase for a while, and the strange man failing to come again for his grip.  His story was fishy, so Fitzpatrick mentioned the fact that if the liquor was for his own consumption and he had a permit to transport it, the case might be different.

Bersohn then changed his story, according to the police, and told that the liquor was his own and intended for his personal use.  Fitzpatrick immediately pointed out that the statement contradicted his story of the man on the train, and Bersohn then broke down and confessed that he was bootlegging and that the liquor was intended for Pelham Manor consumption.  He was arrested and brought before Judge I. Balch Louis on Saturday.  After a formal arraignment he was released on a $250 bond furnished by his father, the case to be taken before the Federal Grand Jury."

Source:  Bootlegger Arrested In North Pelham -- Captain Fitzpatrick and Officer Whalen Arrest Henry Bersohn on Fifth Avenue -- Twelve Quarts of Gordon Gin Found In Suitcase That He Was Carrying -- Released On $250 Bond, The Pelham Sun, Jun. 16, 1922, Vol. 13, No. 16, p. 1, col. 7.  

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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., Mar. 13, 2018:  House Fire in Chester Park Revealed Bootleg Still in 1935, Nearly Two Years After the End of Prohibition.

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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Brazen Holdup at New Railroad Station on Fifth Avenue in North Pelham in 1913

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The giant, monolithic, and modern Fifth Avenue Station of the Million-Dollar-A-Mile railway known as the New York, Westchester & Boston Railway was only a few months old on June 15, 1913.  It was a hulking cast-concrete station that towered above the main street of the Village of North Pelham that connected two lengthy stone and dirt railroad embankments on each end of the station that cut much of the Village of North Pelham in half.

The Fifth Avenue Station platform was well above road level with stairs that led down to a small ticket office and tiny waiting area.  The image immediately below shows the station in about 1912 (shortly after it opened) with a horse and carriage standing outside the little ticket office and waiting area.   

Undated Photograph of the Fifth Avenue Station of the New York,

Westchester & Boston Railway, Ca. 1912, from Engineering

News.  Source:  Remembering North Pelham Facebook Page.

NOTE: Click on Image to Enlarge.

That little ticket office (seen at lower left of the image above) was the scene of a brutal crime in the wee hours of the morning on June 15, 1913.  The 12:08 a.m. train from New York City arrived on time.  Railroad ticket agent Edward J. Morrissey was working dutifully in the ticket office as the train arrived.  Within moments, two men came hurrying down the stairs.  

At least at that time of night, tickets were not collected on the train.  Rather, there was a ticket box at the base of the stairs where the ticket agent would oversee disembarking passengers as they deposited tickets in the box and left the station.  Agent Morrissey saw the two men hurrying down the stairs and, thus, attended to the ticket box to collect their tickets.

The station was entirely empty.  When the two men reached agent Morrissey at the ticket box they stopped suddenly and whipped out revolvers, pointing them at his head.  The men ordered Morrissey to "cough up his cash" and also to "hurry up about it."

Stunned, Morrissey apparently did not move quickly enough.  While one of the men covered Morrissey with a revolver, the other used rope and a belt to tie him up.  Once he was disabled, they bound him more securely both hand and foot and placed a gag in his mouth.  Then the men threatened that he must "shut up and keep quiet" or he would "forfeit his life."  The two thugs then carried Morrissey to a storage room, tossed him inside, and closed the door.  They then went about their evil business.  They stole $51 and railroad tickets from the Fifth Avenue Station.

A short time later, the 12:48 a.m. train from New York City pulled into the Fifth Avenue Station.  A disembarking passenger, James Algie, came down the station stairs.  He thought he heard groans.  He notice the ticket office was unattended although the lights were lit brightly.  Algie followed the sounds of the groans and found Morrissey.  According to one account "Morrissey was in a pitiable plight, but was not unconscious."

Algie immediately notified the Chief of Police of the Pelham Manor Police Department, R. H. Marks.  Chief Marks sent out a general alarm and the Pelham Heights and Pelham Manor Police Departments began immediate searches for the perpetrators.  

Chief Marks could not reach the police of North Pelham because they were out patrolling.  When he finally reached them, quite some time had passed, but they began a search as well.  Three North Pelham police officers were patrolling the village and searching for the perpetrators including Policeman Frederick Keller who reportedly knew every resident in the Village of North Pelham.  

Keller was at Fourth Street (today's Lincoln Avenue) between Eighth and Ninth Avenues at about 2:30 a.m. when he noticed a tall man wearing a white Panama hat who was walking along Fourth Street near Ninth Avenue.  The man seemed to fit the description of one of the thugs who robbed the Fifth Avenue Station.

Officer Keller shouted "Stop!  What are you doing around here this time of the morning?"

The man answered "Oh, I'm going home up the line."

Keller asked "Where do you live?"

The man then made a tell-tale mistake.  "Oh, I live a little ways up the street."

Keller felt he had his man.  He said "I don't know you.  You don't live here.  You had better come along with me to the station."  Officer Keller took the man by the arm and began to guide him along Fourth Street (Lincoln Avenue) to Fifth Avenue.

When the pair reached Fifth Avenue, the prisoner shouted "Take your arm off me, I'm not going with you without a fight."  He turned toward the officer and tried to punch him.  Officer Keller began shouting for assistance.  The two men grappled and began to fight when suddenly the man whipped out a revolver.  Officer Keller promptly knocked the firearm out of the man's hand, but in doing so dropped his nightstick.

Nearby North Pelham Police Officers Michael J. Fitzpatrick and Officer Dick heard their fellow Officer's shouts and ran to him to help.  Fitzpatrick was the first to arrive and found Officer Keller fighting "desperately" with the thug.  Fitzpatrick and Keller were able to use their nightsticks on the man, but he was able to get to his revolver yet again.  This time Officer Fitzpatrick knocked it out of his hand.  

The two officers began dragging the criminal to the North Pelham police station.  He fought them all the way to the station.  Then, after another "desperate encounter," they landed him in a cell.

The prisoner gave his name variously as John and James Conway of 148 West 67th Street in New York City.  He was "sullen and refused to give any information."  Ticket agent Edward J. Morrissey was able to identify the prisoner as one of the two robbers.  Police found not only the revolver he used, but also $20 and some railroad tickets in his possession.  Soon the robber was arraigned and carted off to the County Jail in White Plains as the investigation, and search for the second robber, continued.

Thus, shortly after it opened, the brand new Fifth Avenue Station of the New York, Westchester & Boston Railway joined a long history of robberies and burglaries of railroad stations in Pelham Manor, Pelham, and North Pelham! 

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"HIGHWAYMEN HOLD UP AGENT OF NEW ROAD AT PELHAM
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Midnight Raid -- Desperadoes Make Small Haul
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ONE CAPTURED LATER
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Identified by Victim -- Puts up a Fight with Police
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North Pelham, June 16. -- There was a desperate hold up at the station of the New York, Westchester and Boston railway, Fifth avenue, immediately after the arrival of the 12:08 train from New York, at midnight yesterday when two armed men walked into the ticket office at the foot of the stairs and levelling magazine revolvers at the head of Edward J. Morrisey, the night ticket agent, demanded that he 'hold up his hands' and surrender all money and tickets he had in his possession.  Morrissey was bound hand and foot and thrown into what is known as the 'storage room' in the station.  The desperadoes took $51 and some tickets.  they then went away.  An hour later James Algie, who returned on a train from New York heard groans coming from the store room and found Morrissey lying on the floor with a gag in his mouth.  Algie released him as quickly as he could and notified Chief R. H. Marks at Pelham Manor, who sent out a general alarm to police departments of the surrounding towns in Westchester County.

It was about 2:30 o'clock that Policeman Keller, who had been on the force for about two weeks arrested a man on Fourth street between Eighth and Ninth avenues, who answered the description of one of the men wanted.  The man fought Keller and tried to draw a revolver on him.  Officer Fitzpatrick came to his assistance, and the two policemen finally managed to land their prisoner in jail.  He gave the name of John Conway, of 148 West Sixth street.

Later Conway was identified by Morrissey.  In Conway's possession was found a revolver, $20 in money and some tickets.  

The other man who assisted Conway in his work is still at large.  Conway was arraigned before Justice of the Peace Lambert this morning on a charge of burglary and was held to await the action of the grand jury.  He was taken to White Plains this morning by Policeman Keller.

Agent Morrissey was in the office when the two men came down the stairs.  Both appeared in a hurry.  Morrissey did not think anything of their appearance and as he came from the office to have them drop their tickets in the box, as had been his custom, the two suddenly stopped and confronting him whipped out revolvers and pointing them at his head called upon him to 'cough up his cash' and to 'hurry up about it.'  Morrissey was overcome by surprise for a few moments and during this one of the men, who obtained rope and a belt from some place while the other covered him with his revolver.  Later they bound him hand and foot and placed a gag in his mouth.  He was told to 'shut up' and keep quiet for if he didn't he would forfeit his life.  There was not a person around the
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(Continued on Page 2)

HIGHWAYMEN HOLD UP AGENT AT PELHAM NOW
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(Continued from Page 1.)
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station at the time.  The two desperadoes finally carried Morrissey, who was absolutely helpless, into another room and closed the door.

On the arrival of the 12:48 train, James Algie, after he heard groans, looked into the office and noticed that the lights were alright, but that the agent was missing.  He at once became suspicious, and on investigation, found Morrissey.  Morrissey was in a pitiable plight, but was not unconscious.  There were a few marks on his face, so it is said by the police.  The agent at once told the story of the hold-up to Algie who at once notified Chief Marks, who sent out an alarm.  The Pelham Heights and Pelham Manor police began making a search for the two, but it was not until the three North Pelham policemen were notified by Chief Marks, after they had rung up, that they started a search in the village.

Policeman Dick was on duty in district No. 3 which is north of Sixth street in Chester Hill Park; Policeman Frederick Keller was on post in District No. 2 which is east of Fifth avenue between the New Haven railroad tracks and Policeman Michael Fitzpatrick was in district No. 1 in the western part of the village.  As soon as they were notified of the holdup they at once started a search.  Keller was in Fourth street between Eighth and Ninth avenues when he noticed a tall man with a white Panama hat walking along Fourth street near Ninth avenue.  It was noticed that he answered the description of one of the men who was wanted in connection with the holdup and he called to him to 'stop.'  What are you doing around here this time of the morning?' asked Keller

'Oh, I'm going home up the line,' was the reply.

'Where do you live?' asked Keller.

'Oh, I live a little ways up the street,' replied the man.

Keller who had lived in the village for years and who knows every man in North Pelham by sight, said:  'I don't know you.  You don't live here.  You had better come along with me to the station.'

The policeman then took the man by the arm and led him along Fourth street to Fifth avenue, where the prisoner suddenly turned on his captor and shouted:  'Take your arm off me; I'm not going with you without a fight.'

The words had hardly been spoken than the man turned on Keller and struck at him.  The two grappled and in the midst of the fight, as blows were exchanged, the man whipped out a revolver.  Keller knocked it out of his hand, and in doing so he dropped his stick.  Fitzpatrick had heard Keller's shout for assistance and was approaching.  The men were fighting desperately when Policeman Fitzpatrick came up, and it was not until the two policeman had used their sticks with vigor on the man's head that he was finally subdued.  In the midst of the fight the man again drew his revolver and tried to use it, but it was knocked out of his hand for the second time by Fitzpatrick.

The two policemen fought with the prisoner all the way to the station and after a desperate encounter landed him in a cell.  Later the agent identified him.  The prisoner gave his name as James Conway, of 148 West 67th street, New York.  He was closely questioned by the police about his 'pals,' but was sullen and refused to give any information.  He did tell, however, contradictory stories about his return to the village after the holdup but claimed all along that the police had the wrong man and that they had got their identification mixed up with that of somebody else.  He was asked to explain his appearance in the village at 2:30 o'clock when he did not live here and again contradicted himself several times.  He said he had been in Mount Vernon and he was on his way to his home.

Yesterday President Peter Ceder, Chief Marks, and Policeman Fitzgerald went to police headquarters in New York, but it was found that Conway had no record there.  As far as could be ascertained he is not known in New Rochelle nor in Mount Vernon.

Late in the evening Lieutenants Cody and Finelli, of New Rochelle, came to the North Pelham police headquarters and closely questioned the prisoner.  Lieutenant Cody told a reporter last evening that he had never seen the man before but had found in a receptacle in the cell some torn bits of paper which made him suspicious.  He placed these bits together and found that they gave a name different from that which the prisoner had given as well as a different address.  This name and address were not made public.

The address in New York which Conway gave to the police was visited by President Ceder yesterday afternoon but Conway was not known there.  It was stated this afternoon that the police have obtained clues which may lead to the arrest of the second man.

Station Agent Morrissey later went to his home in New York.  As far as could be learned he was none the worse for his experience with the exception of a few bruises.

The prisoner is tall and athletic appearance and has black hair.  He happened to hear the police and some men in conversation with the reporter last evening and wanted to know 'why they were talking to a reporter.'"

Source:  HIGHWAYMEN HOLD UP AGENT OF NEW ROAD AT PELHAM -- Midnight Raid -- Desperadoes Make Small Haul -- ONE CAPTURED LATER -- Identified by Victim -- Puts up a Fight with Police, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Jun. 16, 1913, No. 7173, p. 1, cols. 5-7 & p. 2, cols. 2-3.

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I have written on numerous occasions about the New York, Westchester & Boston Railway that had its Fifth Avenue Station in the Village of North Pelham.  See, e.g.:

Tue., Jun. 05, 2018:  A Saboteur Bombed Non-Union Railroad Bridge Construction Site at Pelham Reservoir in 1911.

Wed., Nov. 23, 2016:  1910 Railroad Announcement that the "Finest and Most Artistic Bridge" Would Be Built Over Highbrook Avenue.

Mon., Sep. 26, 2016:  Battles over Razing the Fifth Avenue Station, the Highbrook Avenue Bridge, and Embankments After Failure of New York, Westchester & Boston Railway.

Thu., Sep. 22, 2016:  Pelham's Highbrook Avenue Bridge Listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Wed., Apr. 01, 2015:  Pelham Settled the Unpaid Tax Bills of the Defunct New York, Westchester & Boston Railway Company in 1943. 

Fri., Feb. 20, 2015:  Village of North Pelham Fought Plans for Construction of the New York, Westchester & Boston Railway in 1909. 

Tue., Jan. 12, 2010:  Architectural Rendering of the Fifth Avenue Station of the New York, Westchester & Boston Railroad in North Pelham Published in 1913. 

Fri., Dec. 18, 2009:  The Inaugural Run of the New York, Westchester and Boston Railroad Through Pelham for Local Officials in 1912. 

Thu., Jul. 7, 2005:  The New York, Westchester and Boston Railroad Company Begins Construction of its Railroad. 

Fri., Feb. 25, 2005:  Robert A. Bang Publishes New Book on The New York, Westchester & Boston Railway Company. 

Bell, Blake A., The New York, Westchester And Boston Railway in Pelham, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 50, Dec. 17, 2004, p. 10, col. 1.

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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.

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Pelham, It Seems, Became a Hotbed of Bootlegging and Illegal Stills During Prohibition

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

During the dog days of summer in 1927 at the height of Prohibition, a mechanical trench digger was working on a sewer excavation along upper Pelhamdale Avenue at the border of New Rochelle and Chester Park in the Village of North Pelham.  The operator of the equipment unexpectedly cut into an underground drain.  The resultant smell was overpowering.  No, it was not the stench of sewerage.  Rather, it was the powerful and sickly-sweet stench of mash, a by-product of the process of distilling alcohol.  The discovery promptly led federal agents to one of the largest illegal stills ever uncovered in our area.  The massive still, worth an estimated $40,000, was part of a distillery that encompassed the second floor and attic of the home.  Eleven barrels of mash were being worked at the time of the discovery and law enforcement authorities seized "Several Thousand Gallons of Alcohol."  Pelham, it seems, had become a hotbed of illegal stills and bootlegging in defiance of Prohibition. 

I have written extensively about bootlegging, illegal stills, and liquor raids in the Town of Pelham during Prohibition.  For a few examples, see:

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 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.

With each effort to research the topic, more and more instances of illegal stills, bootlegging, and liquor raids in Pelham are uncovered.  Today's posting to the Historic Pelham Blog summarizes a number of additional instances of such misconduct, and provides the text of, and citations to, the articles on which the summary is based.  

The Giant Still on the Border of Chester Park

Once the trench digging equipment described above uncovered the used mash in a drain in front of the property located at 710 Pelhamdale Avenue (upper Pelhamdale Avenue adjacent to Chester Park), four Federal agents raided the house.  The home was guarded by a big dog.  Inside the agents arrested William Charles Adler, 35, who said he lived on the premises, Dominick Luongo, 29, of Arthur avenue, Bronx; Joseph Sabella, 26, of Valentine avenue, Bronx.  

The agents removed eleven barrels of mash and several thousand gallons of alcohol.  They took it to a nearby wooded area then-located near the intersection of upper Pelhamdale Avenue and Mayflower Avenue.  The haul was so large that, according to a headline published in The Pelham Sun, the "Odor of Dumped Liquor Permeates Neighborhood."

Successful Raid on Local Drugstore in Pelham Manor with Capture of Hapless Messenger

Today's Trestle Field is located in a tiny park on Pelhamdale Avenue next to the Branch Line railroad tracks across from Manor Circle in the Village of Pelham Manor.  In 1927, there were a couple of businesses located in a building at 1108 Pelhamdale Avenue that housed "K" Garage, an automobile repair garage operated by Roy C. Kaye, who lived in a home adjacent to the business.  One of the businesses, with the address of 1105 Pelhamdale Avenue, was Newman's Drug Store operated by 24-year-old Emanuel Newman.

In 1927, Pelham Manor residents who lived in the area grew suspicious of the business and tipped off Pelham Manor Police Chief Philip Gargan that the tiny Drug Store was involved in unusual activities.  Chief Gargan placed the tiny business under surveillance.  Soon it seemed apparent that the Drug Store was being used as an illegal boot-legging site, accepting illegal deliveries of alcohol and selling the alcohol to customers who came into the business.

Chief Gargan contacted Federal prohibition authorities who arranged to make an illegal purchase of alcohol at the Drug Store and then signal Chief Gargan to arrest the operator of the business once the transaction was completed.  The plan went off without a hitch.  While Chief Gargan waited nearby, the agents entered Newman's Drug Store at noon on Thursday, August 4, 1927 and bought a bottle of Scotch whiskey.  They signaled to Gargan outside who promptly entered and arrested Emanuel Newman.  Gargan and the Federal agents searched the premises and seized twenty-eight bottles of Scotch.  

As Gargan and the agents were wrapping up the search, a showy Packard limousine arrived outside the drugstore.  While a driver waited in the limousine outside, a man walked in and plunked down on the drug store counter a wrapped package that suspiciously looked like a five-gallon can holding liquid.  As the hapless deliveryman turned to depart, the Federal agents opened the package and found a five-gallon can of alcohol.  Gargan immediately arrested the deliveryman and the limousine driver and seized the car.  The Prohibition agents added the five-gallon can to the twenty-eight bottles of Scotch they had seized.

The three men were taken to the Pelham Manor jail.  Bail was set at $1,000 each.  The next day the three were transported to New York City.

Three Bootleggers Arrested in the Midst of a Delivery in North Pelham

Only a few weeks later, police arrested three bootleggers accepting a delivery of alcohol near the intersection of Fourth Avenue (today's Lincoln Avenue) and Fourth Street.  The location was only a few blocks away from the notorious North Pelham "Speakeasy Section" located on Seventh Avenue between Sixth Street and Seventh Street.

On Monday, August 22, 1927, acting on a tip, North Pelham Police approached three men standing next to two parked cars.  The police observed a five-gallon can sitting on the ground next to one of the cars.  That car already contained five more five-gallon cans.  The men were loading thirty gallons of illegal alcohol into the vehicle when the North Pelham Police stopped them.  

According to a local news report, "The trio who gave their names as Angelo Tomasetti, 21, of No. 2053 Second avenue, New York City; Joseph Arena, 27, of No. 327 East 125th street, New York City, and Guiseppe Seprino, 33, of No. 61 River street, New Rochelle, were arrested by Patrolmen Thomas Kennedy and James Romano, on Fourth avenue, near Fourth street, in which neighborhood it is believed that they purchased the alcohol."  Village police arrested all three, seized both of the vehicles, and took possession of the alcohol.

The driver of one of the vehicles claimed he had stopped to say hello to the driver of the other car whom he claimed to have known a few years before and had not seen since.  The other driver admitted he had bought the alcohol, but claimed he bought it from a total stranger and refused to implicate the other two men.  The third man, who was a passenger in the car of the driver who bought the alcohol, claimed he knew nothing about any transaction and had been asked by his friend to keep him company on a drive from New York City to Pelham.  

Chief of North Pelham Police Michael J. Fitzpatrick communicated with Prohibition Administrator Maj. Maurice Campbell and was told to hold the men until the prohibition officer came for them the next morning.  The following morning, each of the three men posted a bail of $1,000 and a hearing in the matter was set for the following week.

"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.

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Below is the text of a series of articles that form the basis of today's posting to the Historic Pelham Blog.  Each is followed by a citation and link to its source.

"Chester Park Excited Over Liquor Raid
-----
Federal Agents Raid House on North Pelham Borders and Capture $40,000 Still and Several Thousand Gallons of Alcohol.  Odor of Dumped Liquor Permeates Neighborhood
-----

Hundreds of gallons of alcohol and mash were dumped in the woods at the junction of Mayflower and [Upper] Pelhamdale avenues, New Rochelle, on Monday, after Federal prohibition agents raided a private residence at 710 Pelhamdale avenue, New Rochelle, which borders the North Pelham line.  A still said to be worth $40,000 and declared by Federal agents to be one of the best they have captured was broken up.

The discovery of the still came it is said when a mechanical trench digger digging a sewer excavating along Pelhamdale avenue cut into a drain which was full of mash.  The discovery reached the ears of Federal Agents Wagner, McCay, Hawley and Frank, who were operating in the vicinity.  They raided the house and arrested William Charles Adler, 35, who said he lived on the premises, Dominick Luongo, 29, of Arthur avenue, Bronx; Joseph Sabella, 26, of Valentine avenue, Bronx.  The three men were taken to North Pelham police headquarters Federal agents being under the impression that the raided house was in this village.  Desk Officer Harry Duelfer communicated with New Rochelle police headquarters and Detective Captain McGowan and Detective Mancusi came and took charge of the prisoners.  

The men were given a formal arraignment and held under $3,500 bail on a charge of being in possession of an unregistered still.  They were taken to New York on Tuesday.

The raided house had been empty for several months.  Quite recently it was renovated and occupied.  A huge dog guarded the premises.

Federal agents found the distillery arranged on the second floor and attic of the building.  Eleven barrels of mash were working and gallons of distilled alcohol were found.

The house has been under suspicion for sometime.  Police have reported hearing sounds of quarreling there during the night although no lights were visible in the house.  Ever since the house was occupied about July 1st events in the vicinity have been such as to cause the police to keep watch over the premises."

Source:  Chester Park Excited Over Liquor Raid -- Federal Agents Raid House on North Pelham Borders and Capture $40,000 Still and Several Thousand Gallons of Alcohol.  Odor of Dumped Liquor Permeates Neighborhood, The Pelham Sun, Aug. 5, 1927, Vol. 18, No. 24, p. 1, col. 5.  

"Federal Agents Stage Raid On Newman's Drug Store, Catch Bootlegger Delivering Goods
-----
Chief Gargan and Federal Agents Secure 28 Bottles of Alleged Scotch Whiskey -- While Making Arrest Bootlegger Walks In With Package of Liquor for Delivery and Is Grabbed by Gargan
-----

Emanuel Newman, 24, who operates a drug store at 1105 Pelhamdale avenue, Pelham Manor, was arrested yesterday morning on a charge of violation of the Federal Prohibition laws following a raid on his store by Prohibition agents and Police Chief Gargan yesterday morning.  Twenty-eight bottles alleged to contain Scotch whiskey were found on the premises and confiscated by the Prohibition men and Newman is now held in Pelham Manor jail under $500 bail.  He will be taken before Commissioner O'Neill at the Federal Department in the old Post Office building this morning.

While Chief Gargan was making the raid, a man drove up to the store in a Packard limousine, walked into the store and deposited a package which looked suspicious.  The Federal men opened the package and revealed a five gallon can of alleged alcohol.  They took possession of the liquor and placed the delivery man, Elias Nathanson, who says he is a Russian and lives at 900 Bronx Park South, under arrest.  Nathanson could not produce his registration license and on examination of his car it was found that the serial number of the motor had been defaced.  Chief Gargan is of opinion that the car may have been stolen.

John McCabe of 265 East 182nd St., the driver of the vehicle, was placed under arrest by Chief Gargan, claimed to have no part in the operations of the others.  Nathanson and McCabe were taken to police headquarters with Newman and were held, bail being fixed at $1,000 each.  The trio were taken to New York today.

The Newman drug store has been under surveillance for some time following complaints which have been made to Police Chief Gargan.  Major Maurice Campbell of North Pelham, Federal Prohibition Commissioner for this district, took a hand in proceedings, and a plan was made to procure evidence.

Thursday noon, Chief Gargan and the prohibition officers went to the neighborhood of the Newman drug store.  While the police chief awaited the signal, the two prohibition men entered the store and after a little discussion purchased a bottle represented to be full of Scotch whiskey.  The men then signaled to the police chief and he placed Newman under arrest.  As the three officers were packing up ready to move toward the police station the alleged bootlegger walked into the net and was picked up.  

Police Chief Gargan says that application will be made for padlock proceedings against Newman.  Such an order would close the place for a year.  The building is owned by Robert Mullins and was the center of a long wrangle after an alleged violation of the zoning laws when it was built two years ago."

Source:  Federal Agents Stage Raid On Newman's Drug Store, Catch Bootlegger Delivering Goods -- Chief Gargan and Federal Agents Secure 28 Bottles of Alleged Scotch Whiskey -- While Making Arrest Bootlegger Walks In With Package of Liquor for Delivery and Is Grabbed by Gargan, The Pelham Sun, Aug. 5, 1927, Vol. 18, No. 24, p. 1, cols. 6-7.  

"Alcohol, 3 Men And 2 Cars Taken In Booze Raid
-----
North Pelham Police Officers Find Five Cans of Pre-Volstead Liquor in Car -- Another on Sidewalk
-----
Trio Held in $1,000 Bail Each For Violation of Prohibition Amendment.  Hearing Tuesday
-----

Arrested in North Pelham Monday night with thirty gallons of alleged alcohol in their possession, three men are held under $4,000 bail, each pending their appearance before the United States Commissioner in New York City, Tuesday.  Two automobiles in one of which it is charged the alcohol was being transported were also seized.  The trio who gave their names as Angelo Tomasetti, 21, of No. 2053 Second avenue, New York City; Joseph Arena, 27, of No. 327 East 125th street, New York City, and Guiseppe Seprino, 33, of No. 61 River street, New Rochelle, were arrested by Patrolmen Thomas Kennedy and James Romano, on Fourth avenue, near Fourth street, in which neighborhood it is believed that they purchased the alcohol.

Acting on police information the officers arrested the trio when they found them standing beside one of the automobiles, in which five 5-gallon cans of alcohol were later found.  Another filled can stood beside the car.  Tomasetti confessed to purchasing the alcohol from an unidentified man who left the liquor on the sidewalk.  The seller disappeared before the police arrived. 

Seprino denied any knowledge of the sale or the contents of the cans, saying that he had stopped his machine on recognizing Tomasetti as a fellow countryman whom he had known several years ago.  Little credence is placed in his story by the police.

Tomasetti refused to implicate the other two in the transaction.  He told of being told by telephone that he could purchase the alcohol at $4.50 per gallon if he came to Fourth avenue and Fourth street, North Pelham.  He asked Arena, a friend, to come along to keep him company on the ride from New York City.

When he arrived at the place mentioned, he told the police, he was met by a stranger who showed him the cans of liquor placed on the sidewalk.  The price was paid and the man left, while Tomasetti and Arena loaded the cans in the car, a Chrysler roadster.

At this time, he stated, Seprina came along in his car, a Ford, and stopped to talk with Tomasetti.  Before the last can could be loaded in the car the officers arrived and placed the trio under arrest.  The cars were taken to a local garage.

Chief of Police Michael J. Fitzpatrick communicated with Prohibition Administrator Maj. Maurice Campbell and was instructed to hold the men until the prohibition officer came for them the next morning.  

Tuesday morning bail of $1,000 each was posted and hearing set for next Tuesday."

Source:  Alcohol, 3 Men And 2 Cars Taken In Booze Raid -- North Pelham Police Officers Find Five Cans of Pre-Volstead Liquor in Car -- Another on Sidewalk -- Trio Held in $1,000 Bail Each For Violation of Prohibition Amendment.  Hearing Tuesday, The Pelham Sun, Aug. 26, 1927, Vol. 18, No. 27, p. 1, col. 5.  

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