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."

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

Archive of the Historic Pelham Web Site.
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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.

*          *          *          *          *

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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