Herbert Asbury
Encyclopedia
Herbert Asbury was an American
journalist
and writer
who is best known for his true crime
books detailing crime during the 19th and early 20th century such as Gem of the Prairie, Barbary Coast: An Informal History of the San Francisco Underworld and The Gangs of New York. The Gangs of New York was later adapted for film as Martin Scorsese
's Gangs of New York
(2002). However, the film adaptation of Gangs of New York was so loose that Gangs was nominated for "Best Original Screenplay" rather than as a screenplay adapted from another work.
In earlier decades, Asbury was known for his self-described "informal histories", which included descriptions of various cities, focusing on violence, crime, prostitution and lurid events.
, he was raised in a highly religious family which included several generations of devout Methodist
preachers. During his early teens, Asbury, along with his siblings Mary, Emmett and Fred Asbury, became disenchanted with the local Southern Methodist
church.
During World War I
, Asbury enlisted
as a private
in the United States Army
. He was later promoted to sergeant
, and then to second lieutenant
. He served in France
until he was seriously wounded during a gas attack (his lungs were severely damaged and would result in health problems throughout his life). He eventually received an honorable discharge on January 1919.
published in his magazine, The American Mercury
in 1926. The story profiled a prostitute from Asbury's hometown of Farmington, Missouri
. The prostitute took her Protestant
customers to the Catholic
cemetery to conduct business, and took her Catholic customers to the Protestant cemetery; some in Farmington considered this woman beyond redemption.
The article caused a sensation: The Boston Watch and Ward Society
had the magazine banned
. Mencken then journeyed to Boston, sold a copy of his magazine on Boston Common
, and was arrested. Sales of the recently-founded Mercury boomed, and Asbury became a celebrity. Asbury then focused his attention of a series of articles debunking temperance
crusader Carrie Nation
.
, the New York Sun
, the New York Herald
and the New York Tribune
. In 1928, he decided to devote his time exclusively to writing. During this time, he wrote numerous books and magazine articles on true crime. He was also involved in screenwriting and wrote several plays which appeared on Broadway
. None were successful.
He married Edith Snyder in 1945, a journalist ultimately employed by The New York Times
where she spent most of her career as a reporter.
After his final book The Great Illusion: An Informal History of Prohibition in 1950, he retired from writing. Asbury died on February 24, 1963 at the age 73 from a chronic lung disease.
revitalized interest in Asbury and many of Asbury's works, mostly chronicling the largely hidden history of the seamier side of American popular culture, have been reissued. In 2008, The Library of America selected an excerpt from The Gangs of New York
for inclusion in its two-century retrospective of American True Crime.
Although his books have long been popular within the true crime genre, commentators such as Luc Sante
, Tyler Anbinder and Tracy Melton have suggested that Asbury took journalistic liberties with his material. However, Asbury's books generally feature lengthy bibliographies, noting the newspaper
s, books, pamphlet
s, police reports and personal interviews he drew upon for his works. Most are footnoted, citing source material by publication title, date and page.
In 2005, Tracy Melton claimed in his book Hanging Henry Gambrill: The Violent Career of Baltimore's Plug Uglies, 1854-1860 that the Plug Uglies
were actually a Baltimore-based gang. New York
newspapers compared the Dead Rabbits
to the Baltimore Plug Uglies following the July 4, 1857 riots, which occurred just a month after Plug Ugly involvement in the Know-Nothing Riot
in Washington
. Melton further speculated that Asbury had apparently read these accounts and inaccurately incorporated the Plug Uglies into his book The Gangs of New York.
, which he co-wrote with Fred Niblo Jr
(1903–1973):
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
who is best known for his true crime
True crime
True crime is a non-fiction literary and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people.The crimes most commonly include murder, but true crime works have also touched on other legal cases. Depending on the writer, true crime can adhere strictly to...
books detailing crime during the 19th and early 20th century such as Gem of the Prairie, Barbary Coast: An Informal History of the San Francisco Underworld and The Gangs of New York. The Gangs of New York was later adapted for film as Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
's Gangs of New York
Gangs of New York
Gangs of New York is a 2002 historical film set in the mid-19th century in the Five Points district of New York City. It was directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian, and Kenneth Lonergan. The film was inspired by Herbert Asbury's 1928 nonfiction book, The Gangs of New...
(2002). However, the film adaptation of Gangs of New York was so loose that Gangs was nominated for "Best Original Screenplay" rather than as a screenplay adapted from another work.
In earlier decades, Asbury was known for his self-described "informal histories", which included descriptions of various cities, focusing on violence, crime, prostitution and lurid events.
Early life
Born in Farmington, MissouriFarmington, Missouri
Farmington is a city in St. Francois County located south of St. Louis in the Lead Belt region in Missouri in the United States. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population was 16,240. It is the county seat of St. Francois County. The Farmington Micropolitan Statistical Area embraces St...
, he was raised in a highly religious family which included several generations of devout Methodist
Methodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
preachers. During his early teens, Asbury, along with his siblings Mary, Emmett and Fred Asbury, became disenchanted with the local Southern Methodist
Methodist Episcopal Church, South
The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, or Methodist Episcopal Church South, was the so-called "Southern Methodist Church" resulting from the split over the issue of slavery in the Methodist Episcopal Church which had been brewing over several years until it came out into the open at a conference...
church.
During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Asbury enlisted
Enlisted rank
An enlisted rank is, in most Militaries, any rank below a commissioned officer or warrant officer. The term can also be inclusive of non-commissioned officers...
as a private
Private (rank)
A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
. He was later promoted to sergeant
Sergeant
Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
, and then to second lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
. He served in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
until he was seriously wounded during a gas attack (his lungs were severely damaged and would result in health problems throughout his life). He eventually received an honorable discharge on January 1919.
H. L. Mencken and The American Mercury
Asbury achieved first notoriety with a story that H. L. MenckenH. L. Mencken
Henry Louis "H. L." Mencken was an American journalist, essayist, magazine editor, satirist, acerbic critic of American life and culture, and a scholar of American English. Known as the "Sage of Baltimore", he is regarded as one of the most influential American writers and prose stylists of the...
published in his magazine, The American Mercury
The American Mercury
The American Mercury was an American magazine published from 1924 to 1981. It was founded as the brainchild of H. L. Mencken and drama critic George Jean Nathan. The magazine featured writing by some of the most important writers in the United States through the 1920s and 1930s...
in 1926. The story profiled a prostitute from Asbury's hometown of Farmington, Missouri
Farmington, Missouri
Farmington is a city in St. Francois County located south of St. Louis in the Lead Belt region in Missouri in the United States. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population was 16,240. It is the county seat of St. Francois County. The Farmington Micropolitan Statistical Area embraces St...
. The prostitute took her Protestant
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
customers to the Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
cemetery to conduct business, and took her Catholic customers to the Protestant cemetery; some in Farmington considered this woman beyond redemption.
The article caused a sensation: The Boston Watch and Ward Society
Watch and Ward Society
The New England Watch and Ward Society was a Boston, Massachusetts organization involved in the censorship of books and the performing arts from the late 19th century to the middle of the 20th century. After the 1920s, its emphasis changed to combating the spread of gambling...
had the magazine banned
Banned in Boston
"Banned in Boston" was a phrase employed from the late 19th century through the mid-20th century to describe a literary work, motion picture, or play prohibited from distribution or exhibition in Boston, Massachusetts, USA...
. Mencken then journeyed to Boston, sold a copy of his magazine on Boston Common
Boston Common
Boston Common is a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts. It is sometimes erroneously referred to as the "Boston Commons". Dating from 1634, it is the oldest city park in the United States. The Boston Common consists of of land bounded by Tremont Street, Park Street, Beacon Street,...
, and was arrested. Sales of the recently-founded Mercury boomed, and Asbury became a celebrity. Asbury then focused his attention of a series of articles debunking temperance
Temperance movement
A temperance movement is a social movement urging reduced use of alcoholic beverages. Temperance movements may criticize excessive alcohol use, promote complete abstinence , or pressure the government to enact anti-alcohol legislation or complete prohibition of alcohol.-Temperance movement by...
crusader Carrie Nation
Carrie Nation
Carrie Amelia Moore Nation was a member of the temperance movement, which opposed alcohol in pre-Prohibition America. She is particularly noteworthy for promoting her viewpoint through vandalism. On many occasions Nation would enter an alcohol-serving establishment and attack the bar with a hatchet...
.
Later career
Herbert continued working as a reporter for various newspapers including the Atlanta GeorgianAtlanta Georgian
The Atlanta Georgian was a daily afternoon newspaper in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded by New Jersey native, Fred Loring Seely, the first issue was April 25, 1906, with editor John Temple Graves. They mainly criticized saloons and the convict lease system. In February 1907, Seely expanded the paper by...
, the New York Sun
New York Sun
The New York Sun was a weekday daily newspaper published in New York City from 2002 to 2008. When it debuted on April 16, 2002, adopting the name, motto, and masthead of an otherwise unrelated earlier New York paper, The Sun , it became the first general-interest broadsheet newspaper to be started...
, the New York Herald
New York Herald
The New York Herald was a large distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between May 6, 1835, and 1924.-History:The first issue of the paper was published by James Gordon Bennett, Sr., on May 6, 1835. By 1845 it was the most popular and profitable daily newspaper in the UnitedStates...
and the New York Tribune
New York Tribune
The New York Tribune was an American newspaper, first established by Horace Greeley in 1841, which was long considered one of the leading newspapers in the United States...
. In 1928, he decided to devote his time exclusively to writing. During this time, he wrote numerous books and magazine articles on true crime. He was also involved in screenwriting and wrote several plays which appeared on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
. None were successful.
He married Edith Snyder in 1945, a journalist ultimately employed by The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
where she spent most of her career as a reporter.
After his final book The Great Illusion: An Informal History of Prohibition in 1950, he retired from writing. Asbury died on February 24, 1963 at the age 73 from a chronic lung disease.
Recent years
The 2002 film Gangs of New YorkGangs of New York
Gangs of New York is a 2002 historical film set in the mid-19th century in the Five Points district of New York City. It was directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian, and Kenneth Lonergan. The film was inspired by Herbert Asbury's 1928 nonfiction book, The Gangs of New...
revitalized interest in Asbury and many of Asbury's works, mostly chronicling the largely hidden history of the seamier side of American popular culture, have been reissued. In 2008, The Library of America selected an excerpt from The Gangs of New York
The Gangs of New York (book)
The Gangs of New York: An Informal History of the Underworld was a 1928 non-fiction book by Herbert Asbury about New York gangs in the 19th century, and was loosely adapted into the film of the same name by director Martin Scorsese. It details the rise and fall of gangs prior to the domination of...
for inclusion in its two-century retrospective of American True Crime.
Although his books have long been popular within the true crime genre, commentators such as Luc Sante
Luc Sante
-Early life:Born in Verviers, Belgium, Sante emigrated to the United States in the early 1960s. He attended school in New York City, first at Regis High School in Manhattan and then at Columbia University.-Writing:...
, Tyler Anbinder and Tracy Melton have suggested that Asbury took journalistic liberties with his material. However, Asbury's books generally feature lengthy bibliographies, noting the newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
s, books, pamphlet
Pamphlet
A pamphlet is an unbound booklet . It may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths , or it may consist of a few pages that are folded in half and saddle stapled at the crease to make a simple book...
s, police reports and personal interviews he drew upon for his works. Most are footnoted, citing source material by publication title, date and page.
In 2005, Tracy Melton claimed in his book Hanging Henry Gambrill: The Violent Career of Baltimore's Plug Uglies, 1854-1860 that the Plug Uglies
Plug Uglies
The Plug Uglies were a street gang that operated in the westside of Baltimore, Maryland from 1854 to 1860. The Plug Uglies coalesced shortly after the creation of the Mount Vernon Hook-and-Ladder Company, a volunteer fire company whose truck house was on Biddle Street, between Pennsylvania Avenue...
were actually a Baltimore-based gang. New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
newspapers compared the Dead Rabbits
Dead Rabbits
The Dead Rabbits were a gang in New York City in the 1850s, and originally were a part of the Roach Guards. Daniel Cassidy claimed that the name has a second meaning rooted in Irish American vernacular of NYC in 1857 and that the word "Rabbit" is the phonetic corruption of the Irish word ráibéad,...
to the Baltimore Plug Uglies following the July 4, 1857 riots, which occurred just a month after Plug Ugly involvement in the Know-Nothing Riot
Know-Nothing Riot
The term "Know-Nothing Riot" has been used to refer to several political uprisings in United States of America during the latter half of the 19th century. These included riots in St. Louis in 1854, Washington, D.C. in 1857, and New Orleans in 1858....
in Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
. Melton further speculated that Asbury had apparently read these accounts and inaccurately incorporated the Plug Uglies into his book The Gangs of New York.
Filmography
Asbury is credited with several crime-thriller screenplays for Columbia PicturesColumbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
, which he co-wrote with Fred Niblo Jr
Fred Niblo
Fred Niblo was an American pioneer film actor, director and producer.-Biography:He was born Frederick Liedtke in York, Nebraska, to a French mother and a father who had served as a captain in the American Civil War and was wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg...
(1903–1973):
- Gangs of New York (1938)
- Name the Woman (1934)
- Among the Missing (1934)
- Fugitive Lady (1934)
External links
- HerbertAsbury.com, official website