The Hudson Dusters was an unruly street gang that ruled the greenwich Village area of New York City, starting in the late 1890 's was. Formed by the trio of Kid Yorke, Circular Jack and Goo Goo Knox, who was a former gang member of the Gophers, a group that rule Hell & # 39; s Kitchen a few blocks to the north. Knox tried to take control of the Gophers, failed, then moved south to terrorize a different neighborhood, which was open to whiche gang can take command. The Dusters crushed local gangs like the Potashes and the Boodles, then took control of the Greenwich Village and the business of plundering the docks along the Hudson River, a few blocks to the west.
The crooked streets of Greenwich Village were perfect for getaways after the dusters committed one of their varied crimes. Their most accomplished thief was Ding Dong, who would roam the streets with a dozen or so youths. He would direct them to jump on passing wagons and Before the police could respond, Ding Dong was long gone, having disappeared down the maze of streets that are the Village.
They got millions of the village, mingling with the famous writers and artists of their time. The gophers became street legends, but they were not well known for their fighting prowess, as were other brutal New York City gangs. One of the Duster 's party pals was playwright Eugene O & # 39; Neil, the journalists also favored the Dusters, and they were portrayed in the news as nothing more than a fun-loving bunch, who drank more than they cooked. It frequented the gang 's hangout - the Hell Hole, on Sixth Avenue and Fourth Street. It was there that O & # 39; Neil garnered most of his characters for his most famous play - The Iceman Cometh - the Iceman being Death.
At their inception, the Dusters moved their base on operations frequently, finally settling on a house on Hudson Street, just below Horatio, later the site of the Open Door Mission. More interested in partying than pillaging, the Dusters installed a piano and they danced the nights away, in a cocaine induced stupor, with the prostitutes who prowled the West Side piers a few short blocks away. This annoyed the neighboring homeowners and business owners to no end, but all were afraid to make a complaint to the police, because The Dusters had the reputation of seeking revenge in a hot moment on anyone who was rat. After a night of carousing, the Dusters was known to parade in the streets, boozed out and hopped-up on coke, looking to cause mayhem on anyone, or anything in their path.
One night, the Dusters asked a local saloon keeper to provide them with a few kegs of beer for a party, on the arm, of course, meaning they did not expect to actually pay the man money for his stock. The saloon keeper refused and The salon keeper on the concessions. The saloon keeper ran to his friend Patrolman Dennis Sullivan. Patrolman Sullivan decided to declare war on the Dusters. He rounded up ten of them, including their leader Red Farrell, and arrested them for vagrancy.
The Dusters decided to retaliate, and with the blessing of a greenwich Village politician, who used the Dusters for intimidation on Election Day, they ambushed Patrolmen Sullivan as he was about to arrest one of the Dusters on a robbery. as many as twenty dusters tok turns kicking and punching the disturbed policeman after he was down. When Patrolman Sullivan was finally unconscious, four Dusters rolled him on his back and Patrolman Sullivan was finally taken to the hospital, where he stayed, recuperating for over a month.
The Gophers Street Gang congratulated the Dusters on their cop-achievement accomplishment, and Gopher leader, "One Lung" Curran, felt moved enough to write a poem, praising their actions. The poem read:
Says Dinny "Here & # 39; s me only chance
To gain meself a name;
I 'll clean up the Hudson Dusters,
and reach the hall of fame. "
He lost his stick and cannon,
and his shield they took away.
It was then he remembered,
Every dog had his day.
The Dusters loved this poem so much, they printed up hundreds of copies and distributed them on the streets of Greenwich Village, even dropping one off at the Charles Street Station House, where Patrolman Sullivan was assigned.
Another greenwich Village gang, the Marginals, led by Tanner Smith, took over the Duster & # 39; s racks, and they controlled the village until Tanner was killed by Chicky Lewis, inside the Marginal Club on Eighth Avenue, on July 29, 1919. For all practical purposes, that was the end of street gang presence on the Lower West Side.
