Purple Gang Research Paper
Purple Gang
Introduction
“As historian Paul Kavieff explains: They were predatory group and they were known for their ruthlessness, I mean they shot everybody during these hijackings, even the guys that were simply driving the trucks. What that resulted in in was that if you were making a beer delivery and were robbed by the Purples, you fought to the death, because you knew that the Purples were going to haul you out of the truck and kill you anyways” (Whitting, 2013, Pg. 57). The Purple Gang was a ruthless Prohibition era gang that terrorized the people and rival gangs of Detroit with their horrific crimes and massacres.
Purple Gang
Where they came from. The Purple Gang came from rough places without the luxuries others take for granted. …show more content…
They made lots of money mostly bootlegging and other illegal activities. Smuggling was Detroit's second largest industry by 1929 making 300 million a year and giving jobs to 50,000 people only falling to automobile production (Rockaway, 2001) . 75% of the illegal liquor passed through Detroit (Whitting, 2013). They paid another gang, Little Jewish Navy, to transport the liquor to Michigan and started competing in Chicago and New York. They were involved in a lot of illegal activities such as illegal bars that started appearing during the Prohibition (Rockaway, 2001). They started the Wholesale Cleaners and Dryers Association to “lower” prices and keep them fair. If they didn’t pay them their business was destroyed or the owner was killed (Whitting, …show more content…
During their prime, cops had a hard time convicting them. To stay out of trouble they founded the fake Art Novelty Company. Using their fake company, they disguised their shipments as art to get away with sending illegal alcohol across the U.S (Walkerville Publishing,1999). Police had a hard time convicting the Purple Gang for their crimes since they couldn't find witnesses to prove them guilty. Since they controlled Detroit's underworld, witnesses refused to testify against them in their trials (Detroit Historical Society, 2015). Using the money they made in illegal activities, they put some of it into paying off the cops (Whitting,
Introduction
“As historian Paul Kavieff explains: They were predatory group and they were known for their ruthlessness, I mean they shot everybody during these hijackings, even the guys that were simply driving the trucks. What that resulted in in was that if you were making a beer delivery and were robbed by the Purples, you fought to the death, because you knew that the Purples were going to haul you out of the truck and kill you anyways” (Whitting, 2013, Pg. 57). The Purple Gang was a ruthless Prohibition era gang that terrorized the people and rival gangs of Detroit with their horrific crimes and massacres.
Purple Gang
Where they came from. The Purple Gang came from rough places without the luxuries others take for granted. …show more content…
They made lots of money mostly bootlegging and other illegal activities. Smuggling was Detroit's second largest industry by 1929 making 300 million a year and giving jobs to 50,000 people only falling to automobile production (Rockaway, 2001) . 75% of the illegal liquor passed through Detroit (Whitting, 2013). They paid another gang, Little Jewish Navy, to transport the liquor to Michigan and started competing in Chicago and New York. They were involved in a lot of illegal activities such as illegal bars that started appearing during the Prohibition (Rockaway, 2001). They started the Wholesale Cleaners and Dryers Association to “lower” prices and keep them fair. If they didn’t pay them their business was destroyed or the owner was killed (Whitting, …show more content…
During their prime, cops had a hard time convicting them. To stay out of trouble they founded the fake Art Novelty Company. Using their fake company, they disguised their shipments as art to get away with sending illegal alcohol across the U.S (Walkerville Publishing,1999). Police had a hard time convicting the Purple Gang for their crimes since they couldn't find witnesses to prove them guilty. Since they controlled Detroit's underworld, witnesses refused to testify against them in their trials (Detroit Historical Society, 2015). Using the money they made in illegal activities, they put some of it into paying off the cops (Whitting,