Five Points Gang
19th-century street gang in New York City / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Five Points Gang was a criminal street gang of primarily Irish-American origins, based in the Five Points of Lower Manhattan, New York City, during the late 19th and early 20th century.[1]
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Quick Facts Founder, Founding location ...
Founder | Paul Kelly |
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Founding location | Five Points, Manhattan |
Years active | 1890s–1920s |
Territory | New York City, mainly active in Lower Manhattan, Harlem and Brooklyn |
Ethnicity | Predominantly Irish members and retained many Irish members. Throughout its existence, members were all immigrants or the first-generation sons of immigrants, and the gang eventually included many Italian-Americans and Italian immigrants in its later iteration. |
Leader(s) | Paul Kelly |
Activities | Racketeering, election fraud, extortion, street fighting, drug trafficking, pimping, illegal gambling, robbery, fraud, murder, knife fighting, shootouts, assaults |
Allies | Tammany Hall, Yakey Yakes, Gopher Gang, Hudson Dusters, Whyos, Morello crime family, Bugs and Meyer Gang |
Rivals | Eastman Gang, White Hand Gang, Batavia Street Gang, New York Camorra, Lenox Avenue Gang, New York City Police Department |
Notable members |
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Paul Kelly, born Paolo Antonio Vaccarelli, was an Italian American who founded the Five Points Gang. It included some who later became prominent criminals in their own right, including Johnny Torrio, Al Capone, and Lucky Luciano.