Author: Greg Kowalski
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
ISBN: 1625855508
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 141
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Book Description
The National Prohibition Act was no match for Hamtramck. Once a small farming village, Hamtramck grew to be a major industrial city in just a decade. With that came enormous social problems and a peculiar concept that the legality of alcohol wasn't a constraint but, rather, an opportunity. Flaunting the infamous law became a way of life in Hamtramck, where it was as easy to get a drink as an ice cream cone. Paddy McGraw proudly ran his speakeasy and brothel with impunity. Mayors Peter Jezewski and Rudolph Tenerowicz were sent to prison for violations but were rewarded by the public. Join author Greg Kowalski as he delves into Hamtramck's raucous prohibition history.
Author: Greg Kowalski
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
ISBN: 9780738523200
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 266
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Book Description
Since its founding in 1798, the city of Hamtramck, Michigan has evolved from a dusty farming community on the edge of Detroit into a nationally recognized town of culture and character. The Dodge Main factory, founded in 1910, drew thousands of immigrants to the city of Hamtramck, and a vibrant, multi-cultural community began to grow. Over the course of the next 90 years, the people of Hamtramck developed a landmark educational system, a strong devotion to church and family, a fiery political scene, and labor-organizing activities with national reverberations. In this book, author Greg Kowalski uses a unique collection of historical photographs to document Hamtramck's incredible growth throughout the years, and reveal the unmatched integrity, commitment, and independence of its people.
Author: Greg Kowalski
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
ISBN: 1439613958
Category : Photography
Languages : en
Pages : 164
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Book Description
Surrounded completely by the city of Detroit, Hamtramck is today home to 24,000 residents, but its small size-just 2.1 square miles-belies its expansive history and the influence this remarkable community has had far beyond its borders. Founded as a township in 1798, Hamtramck remained primarily a rural area until the early twentieth century, when auto pioneers John and Horace Dodge opened a factory on the south end of town. In just 20 years, the city's population increased by a staggering 1,600 percent. The majority of these newest residents were Polish immigrants, who brought with them a strong work ethic, a rich culture, a genuine joy for living, and an intense appreciation for democracy. Legendary to this day for its fiery politics, the solidly Democratic Hamtramck openly flaunted Prohibition, received a visit from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, strongly supported the early labor unions, and even served as a key headquarters for the Communist Party in North America. In Hamtramck: The Driven City, an engaging narrative combined with more than 100 black-and-white images will take readers on a fascinating journey into the past and breathe new life into the memorable characters and events, the conflicts and scandals that formed the city's distinctive identity.
Author: Greg Kowalski
Publisher: America Through Time
ISBN: 9781634990394
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
For decades, the city of Hamtramck, MI, has had a legendary association with bars. Its 2.1 square miles was packed at one point with at least 200 bars, clubs and other places that served alcohol in some form. During Prohibition, there were hundreds of speakeasies that openly flaunted the law and played host to the whole metro area's leading political figures and upstanding citizens--as well as murderers and thieves--among many others. Hamtramck's bar scene seemingly was not like anywhere else. Through the decades bars in Hamtramck have served as social centers, power bases for politicians, dens of crime, and red-hot venues for cutting-edge music. With their pervasive presence, the bars became cornerstones of the community. It's a staggering thought but the vast array of bars that has flourished in the city have made a powerful contribution to its character and even its existence. Exploring the history of Hamtramck's bars is a fascinating journey that lays out the character of the community--for better and for worse.
Author: Gregory A. Fournier
Publisher: Wheatmark, Inc.
ISBN: 1627877150
Category : True Crime
Languages : en
Pages : 232
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Book Description
The Elusive Purple Gang: Detroit's Kosher Nostra is a concise history of one of America's most notorious Prohibition gangs. The Burnstein brothers and their associates were the only Jewish gang in the United States to dominate the rackets of a major American city. From their meteoric rise to the top of Detroit's underworld to their ultimate demise, this is an episodic account of the Purple Gang's corrosive pursuit of power and wealth and their inevitable plunge towards self-destruction.
Author: Greg Kowalski
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
ISBN: 1614232040
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 134
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Book Description
Hamtramck's population bulged to 56,000 from a mere 3,500 in the early twentieth century, a sixteen-fold increase that created the perfect environment for crime and corruption to flourish. Post-Prohibition, bars sprang up in quick order, until there were at least two hundred within this wide-open town's 2.1 square miles, giving it more bars per capita than any other city in America; even the Dodge brothers served barrels of beer to their workers. Follow local historian Greg Kowalski through the underbelly of Hamtramck, from the "painted women openly flaunting their tainted charms from undraped windows" to the nefarious plots crafted behind the walls of the International Workers Home on Yemens Street. Welcome to the height of Hamtramck's infamy, where anything could happen--for a price.
Author: Greg Kowalski
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
ISBN: 1467147109
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 144
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Book Description
Founded in 1798, Hamtramck shrank in size even as it grew in population. Stuffing tens of thousands of people in 2.1 square miles is bound to breed conflict, and many of those conflicts boiled over into murder. Sunday, September 7, 1884, was supposed to be a day of joy for Fritz Krum, whose child was being christened. Instead, it ended in a fatal stabbing. The 1930 killing of police officer Barney Roth in a reputed mob hit drew national attention. The murder of Hamtramck teen Bernice Onisko remains an open case today, more than eighty years after it occurred. Gathering cases from the late nineteenth century to more recent times, prolific local historian Greg Kowalski takes readers on a journey through Hamtramck homicide.
Author: Paul R. Kavieff
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 264
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Book Description
ABE: black hardbound 8vo. dustwrapper in protective plastic cover fine cond. nice clean copy. binding square & tight. covers clean. edges clean. contents free of all markings. dustwrapper fine cond. , not worn or torn or price clipped. first edition so stated . first printing (nap). endpaper maps. xi+227p +acknowledgments. glossy b&w photo. illustrations. biblio. index. american history. conspiracy theory. history of detroit. politics. organized crime. mafia. purple gang. secret societies. true crime. police corruption. political corruption. bootlegging. history of canada. sam orlando. joe moceri. leo moceri. sam stemlo. chas delberto . rocco. frank di mercuro. chas postestio. max stern. pete licavoli. giannola~vitali gang war. black hand. joseph zerilli. black bill tocco. frankie cammarata. scarface bommarito. abe bernstein. killer burke. legs laman. russian shorty kozak. mayor richard reading. eddie sarkesian. isadore bernstein. jaworski gang. reubin cohen. irving feldman. lou jacobs. red o'riordan. buffalo harry rosenberg. ferguson grand jury. " ~prohibition era Detroit was a place of tremendous wealth and brutal violence. The boom years that this country witnessed after World War I brought great wealth to many For those with newfound prosperity, it became a status symbol to invite their personal bootlegger to their parties and to hobknob with known gangsters. The life of the gangsters was a glamorous one. Not only did they supply the booze, they carried with them an aura of excitement and danger. The Violent Years, a companion volume to Kavieff's best~selling book The Purple Gang, tells the story of these wild times. The Purple Gang, briefly covered here, was a predominantly Jewish group of thugs. Though the Purples were the dominant organized crime force in Detroit, there were numerous others, representing many European ethnic groups. All scrambled to grab a piece of the profit to be made selling illegal liquor. It is these secondary groups that are the grist for this book. In these pages you will read about the gruesome gang warfare that went on between two Italian mobs, the Giannola and Vitale gangs. Kavieff describes in detail the brutal kidnappings that were the specialty of the Irish "Legs" Laman Gang. Then there were the bold daylight holdups executed by the Polish Jaworski gang as well as many other unbelievable acts of crime and violence ~The Violent Years shows how the Italian mafia families consolidated their power and cornered the market on such rackets as narcotics and numbers running, thus paving the way for Detroit's modern mafia family.". Bookseller Inventory # 8211207.
Author: Greg Kowalski
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
ISBN: 1467153710
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 208
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Book Description
Experience the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of Hamtramck's past In the twentieth century, Hamtramck rapidly transformed from a gentle farming village into an industrial city. The large field at the south side of town developed into the Dodge Brothers auto plant, which became one of the biggest factories in the world. Virtually overnight, the sounds of farm animals gave way to the clanging of giant steel presses, and boards being hammered into new homes broke the silence of the countryside. The change was so dramatic and swift that it left town officials scrambling to cope and even drew national attention. Tracking these changes and others decade by decade, author Greg Kowalski brings this story to life in extreme detail.
Author: Philip P. Mason
Publisher: Wayne State University Press
ISBN: 0814351050
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 185
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Book Description
A fascinating look at the excesses and failures of Prohibition in the United States, and specifically in Michigan. On January 17, 1920, the Eighteenth Amendment took effect in the United States, prohibiting the manufacture, sale, use, or importation of alcoholic beverages. Yet the resulting peace and tranquility predicted never materialized. The Prohibition experiment failed dismally in the United States, and nowhere worse than in Michigan. The state's close proximity to Canada, where large amounts of liquor were manufactured, made it a major center for the smuggling and sale of illegal alcohol. Although federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies attempted to stop the flow of liquor into Michigan, an astounding seventy-five percent of all illegal liquor brought into the United States was transported across the Detroit River from Canada. Using police and court records, newspaper accounts, and interviews with those who lived during the time, Philip P. Mason has constructed a fascinating history of life in Michigan during Prohibition. He regales readers with stories of the bungled efforts by officials at every level to control the smuggling and sale of illegal alcohol. Most entertaining are the creative smuggling efforts undertaken by citizens of all walks of life-the poor, middle class, and affluent, upstanding citizens and organized criminals and gang members. By 1928 Prohibition was a major issue in the presidential campaign. In 1933, with the support of President Franklin Roosevelt, Michigan's governor William Comstock, and other leaders, the Twenty-first Amendment was passed, repealing Prohibition. Michigan was the first state to ratify the amendment on April 10, 1933, and soon the Detroit River was returned to pleasure boats and fishing and commercial vessels whose holds no longer carried illegal liquor.
