Dead Rabbits riot
The Dead Rabbits riot was a two-day outbreak of gang violence and civil disorder in Lower Manhattan on July 4–5, 1857. It began with fighting involving Five Points groups identified as the Dead Rabbits and their Bowery rivals, then expanded into street battles, looting and attacks on police.
| Date | July 4–5, 1857 |
|---|---|
| Location | Five Points, Bayard Street and the Bowery, New York City |
| Main participants | Five Points gangs; Bowery Boys and allied gangs; police; New York State Militia |
| Reported casualties | Eight killed; approximately 30–100 injured |
Background
[edit]New York City was then divided between rival Municipal and Metropolitan police forces. Their jurisdictional conflict weakened the initial response and helped a local gang fight become a much larger disturbance.[1]
Riot
[edit]Fighting began around Bowery gang meeting places on July 4 and intensified the following day near Bayard Street, Mulberry Street and the Five Points. Participants used clubs, paving stones, firearms and improvised barricades. Contemporary and later accounts placed the number of fighters in the hundreds, often between 800 and 1,000, while others exploited the disorder to loot nearby businesses.[2]
Police detachments repeatedly attempted to clear the area. On the evening of July 5, New York State Militia units under Major-General Charles W. Sandford entered the district with police support. The show of force dispersed the remaining crowds and ended the main fighting.[3]
Casualties and interpretation
[edit]Later summaries commonly report eight deaths and between 30 and 100 injuries, although nineteenth-century reporting was inconsistent and some casualties may never have been documented.[3]
The identity of the combatants is disputed. Historian Tyler Anbinder argues that reporters used “Dead Rabbits” as a label for Roach Guards and other Five Points fighters rather than for a clearly established gang of that name.[4]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ Nate Hendley, American Gangsters, Then and Now: An Encyclopedia (ABC-CLIO, 2009), pp. 65–66.
- ↑ J. T. Headley, The Great Riots of New York, 1712 to 1873 (E. B. Treat, 1873), pp. 131–146.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Hendley, pp. 65–66.
- ↑ Tyler Anbinder, Five Points (Free Press, 2001), pp. 353–354.