William McGlory (born McGrory; 1850–1927) was an American saloon keeper and underworld figure in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

during the mid-to late 19th century. He was well known in The

Bowery The Bowery () is a street and neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. The street runs from Chatham Square at Park Row, Worth Street, and Mott Street in the south to Cooper Square at 4th Street in the north.Jackson, Kenneth L. "B ...

and Five Points districts, owning a number of popular establishments throughout the city, most notably McGlory's Armory Hall, a popular Bowery hangout for members of the underworld in the old Fourth and Sixth Wards.

Biography

Early life and criminal career

Reports of Billy McGlory's early life differ. Popular legend has it that he was born in the

slum A slum is a highly populated urban residential area consisting of densely packed housing units of weak build quality and often associated with poverty. The infrastructure in slums is often deteriorated or incomplete, and they are primarily inh ...

s of the Five Points and grew up in an atmosphere of vice and crime, prior to the reform efforts of Reverend Lewis Pease and the Five Points House of Industry during the mid-1850s, however in his day he was reported to have been born and raised in the Sixteenth Ward (bounded by

West 14th Street 14th Street is a major crosstown street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, traveling between Eleventh Avenue on Manhattan's West Side and Avenue C on Manhattan's East Side. It forms a boundary between several neighborhoods and is so ...

, the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

, West 26th Street and

Sixth Avenue Sixth Avenue – also known as Avenue of the Americas, although this name is seldom used by New Yorkers, p.24 – is a major thoroughfare in New York City's borough of Manhattan, on which traffic runs northbound, or "uptown". It is commercial ...

), specifically on 16th Street between 6th and Seventh Avenues, by respectable Irish parents. Billy's half-brother by his mother's first marriage, Johnny Thompson, was a well-known Bowery actor. It is likely that as a young man he was a member of both the

Forty Thieves Forty Thieves or 40 Thieves may refer to: * the story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves Groups of people * the Forty Thieves (New York gang), an 18th-century New York street gang *The Forty Thieves (New York City Common Council 1852–1853) * the ...

and the

Chichesters The Chichesters also known as the Chichester Gang, along with the Forty Thieves, Shirt Tails, and Kerryonians, were one of the oldest early 19th century Irish Five Points street gangs during the mid 19th century in New York City. The Chichester G ...

. Asbury, Herbert. ''The Gangs of New York: An Informal History of the New York Underworld''. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1928. (pg. 170-172, 229, 298) Former New York City Chief of Police George W. Walling described him in his memoirs as "a man out of whom forty devils might be cast were it possible to get at him."Walling, George W. ''Recollections of a New York Chief of Police: An Official Record of Thirty-eight Years as Patrolman, Detective, Captain, Inspector and Chief of the New York Police''. New York: Caxton Book Concern, 1887. (pg. 489-491)Caldwell, Mark. ''New York Night: The Mystique and Its History''. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2005. (pg. 191, 194-198, 199, 202, 204, 290, 334, 343) One of the first saloons he ever opened, known as the Burnt Rag, was located in the basement of 50

Bleecker Street Bleecker Street is an east–west street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is most famous today as a Greenwich Village nightclub district. The street connects a neighborhood today popular for music venues and comedy, but which was ...

. Only 200 feet away from police headquarters, the so-called "notorious thieves' den" was subject to frequent police raids. In 1878, he operated Eagle Hall, also known as the Burnt Rag at 6

Rivington Street Rivington Street is a street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which runs across the Lower East Side neighborhood, between the Bowery and Pitt Street, with a break between Chrystie and Forsyth for Sara D. Roosevelt Park. Vehicular traffi ...

. By September 1878, he was running another drinking place known as Burnt Rag No. 2, or the Windsor Palace, out of 103 Bowery, formerly occupied by Owen Geoghegan. Geoghegan relocated his saloon to 105 Bowery that same year.

McGlory's Armory Hall

McGlory opened McGlory's Armory Hall, located at 158 Hester Street, in the late 1870s. It was described by a journalist for the ''Cincinnati Enquirer'' as having "a beastliness and depravity... compared with which no chapter in the world's history is equal." It very quickly became a popular underworld resort, frequented by thieves, pickpockets, and procurers throughout the old Fourth and Sixth Wards for nearly two decades. Armory Hall was often the scene of barroom brawls and gang violence. Drunken customers were robbed, many times by the female regulars who flirted with the victim beforehand, and then dragged from a table by a

bouncer A bouncer (also known as a doorman or door supervisor) is a type of security guard, employed at venues such as bars, nightclubs, cabaret clubs, stripclubs, casinos, hotels, billiard halls, restaurants, sporting events, schools, concerts, or m ...

and thrown out into the street. Once outside, the victim would be searched by for anything of value and was usually stripped of his clothes.Batterberry, Michael. On the Town in New York: The Landmark History of Eating, Drinking, and Entertainments from the American Revolution to the Food Revolution. New York: Routledge, 1998. (pg. 104) Many of the much feared bouncers of McGlory's Armory Hall were well-known criminals and hired thugs of the Five Points and the New York waterfront. These men were described as "some of the most expert rough-and-tumble fighters of the period" and could be seen walking the club freely wearing pistols, knives, brass knuckles, and bludgeons which they often used against unruly or otherwise uncooperative customers. Armory Hall was entered from the street through a double doorway, which led into a long, narrow passageway with its walls painted "dead black". Fifty feet down the unlighted passage was the barroom and from there the main dance hall, furnished with chairs and tables, which accommodated up to 700 people. The music played in the dance hall included a piano, a cornet and a violin. A balcony ran around two sides of the hall with small box seats, some containing secret compartments, separated by heavy curtains reserved for wealthy patrons. These were usually out-of-towners who were known as big spenders in the city's many resorts and clubs. Private exhibitions were held in these boxes "even more degraded then the Haymarket" and McGlory, as an added attraction, employed half a dozen young males as waitresses "dressed in feminine clothing and circulated through the crowd, singing and dancing." They were "painted like women" and spoke in high, falsetto voices. As well as the many prostitutes and "serving girls" working in the dance hall, the concert saloon was widely known for encouraging homosexual activity among its patrons.Gilfoyle, Timothy J. ''City of Eros: New York City, Prostitution, and the Commercialization of Sex, 1790-1920''. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1994. (pg. 229, 231) McGlory also held athletic events at Armory Hall and charged 15 cents to attend these promotions. In 1883, his ''Grand Scarlet Ball'' included a

cakewalk The cakewalk was a dance developed from the "prize walks" (dance contests with a cake awarded as the prize) held in the mid-19th century, generally at get-togethers on Black Slavery in the United States, slave plantations before and after End ...

, mixed boxing matches, a

beauty contest A beauty pageant is a competition that has traditionally focused on judging and ranking the physical attributes of the contestants. Pageants have now evolved to include inner beauty, with criteria covering judging of personality, intelligence, ...

and a

masquerade ball A masquerade ball (or ''bal masqué'') is an event in which many participants attend in costume wearing a mask. (Compare the word "masque"—a formal written and sung court pageant.) Less formal "costume parties" may be a descendant of this tra ...

. In January 1879, McGlory was indicted for running a

disorderly house In English criminal law a disorderly house is a house in which the conduct of its inhabitants is such as to become a public nuisance, or outrages public decency, or tends to corrupt or deprave, or injures the public interest; or a house where per ...

. When he failed to show up in court the following month, his bail was forfeited but no further action was taken. It was the robbery of a contractor, Bernard Lee, and others that prompted District Attorney

John McKeon John McKeon (March 29, 1808, Albany, New York – November 22, 1883, New York City) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. From 1835 to 1837, and 1841 to 1843, he served two non-consecutive terms in the U.S. House of Representative ...

to search for untried indictments against McGlory. He found three and took them to Recorder Frederick Smythe who then ordered McGlory to appear before the General Sessions court. Though McGlory's lawyer requested bail be set at $500, McKeon raised an objection which was supported by Recorder Smythe and raised to $1,000. As a result of this trial, McGlory spent time in

The Tombs ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

and thereafter in the penitentiary on

Blackwell's Island Roosevelt Island is an island in New York City's East River, within the borough of Manhattan. It lies between Manhattan Island to the west, and the borough of Queens, on Long Island, to the east. Running from the equivalent of East 46th to 85 ...

. He was freed August 13, 1884. During the time of his trial and subsequent imprisonment, McGlory became a member of

The Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestant church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. The organisation reports a worldwide membership of over 1.7million, comprising soldiers, officers and adherents col ...

and claimed to support the

Temperance movement The temperance movement is a social movement promoting temperance or complete abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and its leaders emph ...

, however upon release from prison he said that he would not take up the temperance cause as he was an "awful example."

Close of the Armory and legal trouble

McGlory gained considerable notoriety from the press, especially from the ''

New York Herald The ''New York Herald'' was a large-distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between 1835 and 1924. At that point it was acquired by its smaller rival the ''New-York Tribune'' to form the '' New York Herald Tribune''. His ...

'', who titled him the "Vicar General." He was one of several prominent figures, along with police officials, politicians, and sportsmen, who attended the

bare-knuckle boxing Bare-knuckle boxing (or simply bare-knuckle) is a combat sport which involves two individuals throwing punches at each other for a predetermined amount of time without any boxing gloves or other form of padding on their hands. It is a regulated ...

prize fight Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...

between

John L. Sullivan John Lawrence Sullivan (October 15, 1858 – February 2, 1918), known simply as John L. among his admirers, and dubbed the "Boston Strong Boy" by the press, was an American boxer recognized as the first heavyweight champion of gloved boxing ...

and

Paddy Ryan Patrick Ryan (15 March 1851 – 14 December 1900) was an Irish American boxer, and became the bare-knuckle American heavyweight champion on May 30, 1880, after he won the title from Joe Goss. He retained the title until losing it to the except ...

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

on January 19, 1885. Upon the election, reform Mayor

Abram S. Hewitt Abram Stevens Hewitt (July 31, 1822January 18, 1903) was an American politician, educator, ironmaking industrialist, and lawyer who was mayor of New York City for two years from 1887–1888. He also twice served as a U.S. Congressman from an ...

, who promised to clean up the

vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...

and

red light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light districts are partic ...

s in New York City, closed many of the famous resorts, including Harry Hill's, Frank Stephenson's Black and Tan, Theodore Allen's American Mabille and, in lower Manhattan, The Haymarket. Authorities finally attempted to close Armory Hall in 1889, although their efforts were initially met with some difficulty. In a meeting with Mayor

Hugh J. Grant Hugh John Grant (September 10, 1858 – November 3, 1910) served as the 88th mayor of New York City for two terms from 1889 to 1892. He remains the youngest mayor in the city's history, was one of the youngest mayors of a major United States, Am ...

in February, McGlory claimed that he had been trying to rent the building out as a church but had been unable to find tenants. A month later, police visited Armory Hall and reported they had witnessed nothing obscene or improper, "not even a cancan." McGlory sold the building to a furniture manufacturer soon after, auctioning off the bar, piano, icebox, and stage scenery in June 1889. A year later, McGlory bought the Hotel Irving, a respectable restaurant and boarding house in

uptown Manhattan Upper Manhattan is the most northern region of the New York City borough of Manhattan. Its southern boundary has been variously defined, but some of the most common usages are 96th Street, the northern boundary of Central Park (110th Street), ...

, and turned it into an all-night saloon and dance hall. The Hotel Irving was located on the corner of Fourteenth Street and

Irving Place Lexington Avenue, often colloquially abbreviated as "Lex", is an avenue on the East Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City that carries southbound one-way traffic from East 131st Street to Gramercy Park at East 21st Street. Along its ...

, across the street from the New York Academy of Music and nearby

Tammany Hall Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was a New York City political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789 as the Tammany Society. It became the main loc ...

and Tony Pastor's place. Complaints were made about the noise and violence but police did not take action until an

exposé Expose, exposé, or exposed may refer to: News sources * Exposé (journalism), a form of investigative journalism * '' The Exposé'', a British conspiracist website Film and TV Film * ''Exposé'' (film), a 1976 thriller film * ''Exposed'' (1932 ...

by the ''New York Herald'' prompted city officials to take action. The hotel's liquor license was revoked in June but McGlory continued to sell alcohol even after his bartender, Edward Kelly, was arrested. District Attorney

De Lancey Nicoll De Lancey Nicoll (June 24, 1854 – March 31, 1931) was a New York County District Attorney. Early life De Lancey Nicoll was born on Shelter Island on June 24, 1854. He was the son of Solomon Townsend Nicoll (1813–1864) and Charlotte Anne Ni ...

ordered McGlory's arrest and, in December 1891, he stood trial at the Court of General Sessions for running a disorderly house. At the trial, the Irving's manager Frederick Krause appeared as the state's witness and described how McGlory "muscled" his way into running the Irving despite his having no financial ties to it. Edward Corey, the former owner of the Haymarket, had legitimately purchased an interest in the hotel but was chased out by McGlory who threatened his life if he ever returned. In another incident, according to Krause, he himself was assaulted by McGlory when the hotel manager attempted to stop a suspicious looking couple from using one of the rooms. Other charges, aside from liquor law violations, were claimed by prostitute Nellie Martin, bookmaker Samuel Guggenheim, as well as additional witnesses who testified to other serious allegations. From 1896 to 1899, McGlory operated a seedy resort at what is now the Elmwood Park in

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...

, but was driven away by relentless opposition from locals.

Final years

Although McGlory's and a few other uptown resorts reopened in the aftermath of Mayor Hewitt's closures, none were able to regain their former prestige, and McGlory finally closed his last dance house in 1900. After aiding his wife Annie in a hearing by the

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...

, McGlory told reporters that he intended to leave New York and move out West. McGlory was arrested once more on the night of May 30, 1903, and charged with running a saloon called the Emerald on Third Avenue in the Bronx without a liquor license. He was tried at the Morrisania Court two days later and explained to Judge Mayo that he had applied for a hotel license instead of a regular liquor license and hadn't intended to violate the law. The arresting detectives told the court they had arrested him because the brewery had taken away the establishment's license. Bail was set at but McGlory was unable to pay it and he was taken to Harlem Prison to await trial. He met a young man while in prison, Warren Adams, who was being held for

public drunkenness Public intoxication, also known as "drunk and disorderly" and "drunk in public", is a summary offense in some countries rated to public cases or displays of drunkenness. Public intoxication laws vary widely by jurisdiction, but usually require an ...

. Adams had traveled from Boston to attend a funeral and was arrested after he'd had a few too many drinks. Judge Mayo had sentenced him to prison in default of a fine that Adams was unable to pay being only a dollar short. McGlory offered to pay the spare dollar. When Adams promised to mail him back the money from Boston, McGlory replied "Well, if you do it will be the first dollar that ever came back to me." ''The Oregon Daily Journal'' reported in 1912 that McGlory was "passing into a preaceful old age in a little cottage on the banks of the astriver," however he was being threatened with expulsion from his home at East 125th Street by his landlord, the

Pennsylvania Railroad Company The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...

, who wanted to build a dock there. It is unknown when Billy McGlory died, however it is possible that he is the William J. McGrory that is recorded as passing away at age 70 in the Bronx on December 26, 1928. At least one writer thought he was dead before 1917 and a newspaper from 1929 refers to him as the "late Billy McGlory."

A Night at McGlory’s

Contemporary accounts. Unbridled book version: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/24717/24717-pdf.pdf#page125 Slightly sanitized newspaper version: https://www.newspapers.com/clip/13921768/description-of-billy-mcglorys-armory/ Detailed account of both McGlory and his associates: The Journal (New York .Y., May 3, 1896 https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn84031792/1896-05-03/ed-1/?q=Great+Depression&sp=48&st=text&r=-0.097,0.15,1.147,1.297,0 The

National Police Gazette The ''National Police Gazette'', commonly referred to as simply the ''Police Gazette'', is an American magazine founded in 1845. Under publisher Richard K. Fox, it became the forerunner of the men's lifestyle magazine, the illustrated sports w ...

visits McGlory’s and other similar places in New York. Detailed comparative study: http://bklyn-genealogy-info.stevemorse.org/Police/Sins/UpHill.html rom Sins of New York As "Exposed" by the Police Gazette By Edward Van Every Publisher: Frederick A. Stokes Company--New York(1930)