Jacob Orgen
Encyclopedia
Jacob "Little Augie" Orgen (1901-October 16, 1927) was a New York gangster involved in bootlegging and labor racketeering during Prohibition
.
by the early 1910s. Being ambitious, he had formed his own gang, "The Little Augies" circa 1911. He operated his labor rackets diligently for the next five or six years until his former boss, Dopey Benny, had faded from prominence. His rising star was soon put on hold, however, in 1917 when "Kid Dropper" Nathan Kaplan
and Johnny Spanish
were both released from Sing Sing in 1917 and resumed their old rivalry. He was even further hindered in his rise in 1919 when he was jailed on a robbery charge. Kid Dropper soon eliminated Spanish in 1919 and reigned supreme while Orgen was in jail. While Orgen was in prison, his gang held together and fought, often unsuccessfully, against Kaplan's gang while waiting patiently for their leader to return to the streets. Orgen was released and on the streets again in 1923 according to author Patrick Downey.
Quickly becoming a formidable rival again to Kaplan, Orgen gradually built up a powerful organization which included members such as gunmen Louis "Lepke" Buchalter
, Jacob "Gurrah" Shapiro
, and Jack "Legs" Diamond. Orgen, allied with Solomon Schapiro, challenged Kaplan over labor slugging activities, particularly in the garment district
, and in 1923, a gang war broke out after a dispute over striking "wet wash" laundry workers.
After several months of fighting, including a particularly violent gunfight of Essex Street resulting in the deaths of two bystanders, Kaplan was murdered by gunman Louis Kushner on August 28, 1923. With Kaplan's death, Orgen gained complete control over labor racketeering.
However, city officials soon began investigating union racketeering in New York which threatened to expose other criminal operations. In 1927, through intermediary Louis Buchalter (although some sources claim Meyer Lansky
), Orgen was advised by Arnold "The Brain" Rothstein
to concentrate instead on infiltrating labor unions instead of traditional labor slugging and strong arm tactics. Although Orgen had started to move into bootlegging, supplying Broadway
night clubs and speakeasies with Diamond by 1925, Orgen refused to cease labor slugging operations.
, Orgen was killed by Buchalter and Shapiro in a drive-by shooting. Orgen bodyguard Jack Diamond was also seriously wounded during the attack. Buried in Mount Judah Cemetery by his father, who had disowned him after he formed the "Little Augies" in 1919, Orgen's cemetery nameplate reads simply "Jacob Orgen, Age 26 Years".
Though the labor rackets were his bread and butter, by the midtwenties, Orgen was expanding his horizons. It was when he met Legs Diamond, whom may have masterminded the murder of the "Dropper", in 1923. Their relationship were quid pro quo, which led to Augie's death, when they were exchanging business transactions that were not under his mob's approval.
During and after Orgen's death, his family were hysterical. Jacob brothers, Joseph and Samuel, were the first to know about his death. Friends and family gathered at his funneral to mourn the gang leader, then the grave was filled in bringing an end to Jacob "Little Augie" Orgen.
Prohibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States was a national ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol, in place from 1920 to 1933. The ban was mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and the Volstead Act set down the rules for enforcing the ban, as well as defining which...
.
Biography
Born to a middle class Orthodox Jewish family, Orgen became a well known labor slugger for Benjamin "Dopey Benny" FeinBenny Fein
Benjamin "Dopey Benny" Fein was an early Jewish American gangster who dominated New York labor racketeering in the 1910s. With a criminal record dating back to 1900, Fein's arrest record included thirty charges from petty theft and assault to grand larceny and murder...
by the early 1910s. Being ambitious, he had formed his own gang, "The Little Augies" circa 1911. He operated his labor rackets diligently for the next five or six years until his former boss, Dopey Benny, had faded from prominence. His rising star was soon put on hold, however, in 1917 when "Kid Dropper" Nathan Kaplan
Nathan Kaplan
"Kid Dropper" Nathan Caplin or Kaplan , also known as Jack the Dropper, was an American gangster controlling labor racketeering and extortion in New York City during the post-World War I period into the early years of Prohibition in the early 1920s.-Biography:One of seven children, Kaplan was born...
and Johnny Spanish
Johnny Spanish
Johnny Spanish was an American gangster who was a rival of former partner "Kid Dropper" Nathan Kaplan during a garment workers' strike which later become known as the Second Labor Sluggers War in 1919...
were both released from Sing Sing in 1917 and resumed their old rivalry. He was even further hindered in his rise in 1919 when he was jailed on a robbery charge. Kid Dropper soon eliminated Spanish in 1919 and reigned supreme while Orgen was in jail. While Orgen was in prison, his gang held together and fought, often unsuccessfully, against Kaplan's gang while waiting patiently for their leader to return to the streets. Orgen was released and on the streets again in 1923 according to author Patrick Downey.
Quickly becoming a formidable rival again to Kaplan, Orgen gradually built up a powerful organization which included members such as gunmen Louis "Lepke" Buchalter
Louis Buchalter
Louis "Lepke" Buchalter was a Jewish American mobster and head of the Mafia hit squad Murder, Inc. during the 1930s. After Dutch Schultz' request of the Mafia Commission for permission to kill his enemy, U.S. Attorney Thomas Dewey, the Commission decided to kill Schultz in order to prevent the hit...
, Jacob "Gurrah" Shapiro
Jacob Shapiro
Jacob "Gurrah" Shapiro was a New York mobster who, with his partner Louis "Lepke" Buchalter, controlled industrial labor racketeering in New York for two decades and established the Murder, Inc. organization.-Early years:...
, and Jack "Legs" Diamond. Orgen, allied with Solomon Schapiro, challenged Kaplan over labor slugging activities, particularly in the garment district
Garment District
Garment District has several uses including:*Garment District, Manhattan - in New York City*Garment District - in Cambridge, Massachusetts*Los Angeles Garment District, also known as the Fashion District*Garment District...
, and in 1923, a gang war broke out after a dispute over striking "wet wash" laundry workers.
After several months of fighting, including a particularly violent gunfight of Essex Street resulting in the deaths of two bystanders, Kaplan was murdered by gunman Louis Kushner on August 28, 1923. With Kaplan's death, Orgen gained complete control over labor racketeering.
However, city officials soon began investigating union racketeering in New York which threatened to expose other criminal operations. In 1927, through intermediary Louis Buchalter (although some sources claim Meyer Lansky
Meyer Lansky
Meyer Lansky , known as the "Mob's Accountant", was a Polish-born American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the development of the "National Crime Syndicate" in the United States...
), Orgen was advised by Arnold "The Brain" Rothstein
Arnold Rothstein
Arnold Rothstein , nicknamed "The Brain", was a New York businessman and gambler who became a famous kingpin of the Jewish mafia. Rothstein was also widely reputed to have been behind baseball's Black Sox Scandal, in which the 1919 World Series was fixed...
to concentrate instead on infiltrating labor unions instead of traditional labor slugging and strong arm tactics. Although Orgen had started to move into bootlegging, supplying Broadway
Broadway (New York City)
Broadway is a prominent avenue in New York City, United States, which runs through the full length of the borough of Manhattan and continues northward through the Bronx borough before terminating in Westchester County, New York. It is the oldest north–south main thoroughfare in the city, dating to...
night clubs and speakeasies with Diamond by 1925, Orgen refused to cease labor slugging operations.
Death
On October 16, 1927, while walking on Norfolk Street in a Manhattan neighborhood on the Lower East SideLower East Side
The Lower East Side, LES, is a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by Allen Street, East Houston Street, Essex Street, Canal Street, Eldridge Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street....
, Orgen was killed by Buchalter and Shapiro in a drive-by shooting. Orgen bodyguard Jack Diamond was also seriously wounded during the attack. Buried in Mount Judah Cemetery by his father, who had disowned him after he formed the "Little Augies" in 1919, Orgen's cemetery nameplate reads simply "Jacob Orgen, Age 26 Years".
Personal life
In 1926, Orgen became a father when his wife gave birth to a girl whom the couple named Zelda. With his increasing wealth, Orgen moved his family out of the Lower East Side to the more affluent upper West Side.Though the labor rackets were his bread and butter, by the midtwenties, Orgen was expanding his horizons. It was when he met Legs Diamond, whom may have masterminded the murder of the "Dropper", in 1923. Their relationship were quid pro quo, which led to Augie's death, when they were exchanging business transactions that were not under his mob's approval.
During and after Orgen's death, his family were hysterical. Jacob brothers, Joseph and Samuel, were the first to know about his death. Friends and family gathered at his funneral to mourn the gang leader, then the grave was filled in bringing an end to Jacob "Little Augie" Orgen.
External links
- Augie "Little Augie" Orgen at Find-A-Grave
- Little Augie mugshot Gangster City
Further reading
- Fried, Albert. The Rise and Fall of the Jewish Gangster in America. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1980. ISBN 0-231-09683-6
- O'Kane, James M. The Crooked Ladder: Gangsters, Ethnicity and the American Dream. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Transaction Publishers, 1994. ISBN 0-7658-0994-X
- Pietrusza, David. Rothstein: The Life, Times, and Murder of the Criminal Genius Who Fixed the 1919 World Series. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers, 2003. ISBN 0-7867-1250-3
- Downey, Patrick. "Gangster City: The History of the New York Underworld 1900-1935". New Jersey: Barricade Books 2004. ISBN 1-56980-267-X
- Almog, OzOz AlmogOz Almog, an Israeli–Austrian artist was born on April 15, 1956, in Kfar Saba, Israel. He comes from a family of Russian/Ukrainian pioneers and Romanian/Russian immigrants...
, Kosher Nostra Jüdische Gangster in Amerika, 1890–1980 ; Jüdischen Museum der Stadt Wien ; 2003, Text Oz Almog, Erich Metz, ISBN 3-901398-33-3 - Asbury, HerbertHerbert AsburyHerbert 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. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1928. ISBN 1-56025-275-8 - Kelly, Robert J. Encyclopedia of Organized Crime in the United States. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2000. ISBN 0-313-30653-2
- Sifakis, Carl. The Mafia Encyclopedia. New York: Da Capo Press, 2005. ISBN 0-8160-5694-3
- Sifakis, Carl. The Encyclopedia of American Crime. New York: Facts on File Inc., 2001. ISBN 0-8160-4040-0