Michael "Sheeny Mike" Kurtz (November 24, 1904) was an American burglar and gang leader 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 one of the co-founders of the

Dutch Mob The Dutch Mob was a New York pickpocket gang during the late nineteenth century. Formed during the late 1860s by Little Freddie, "Sheeny" Mike Kurtz, and Johnny Irving, former members of the Italian Dave Gang, the Dutch Mob soon became one of the ...

, along with Little Freddie and Johnny Irving, during the 1870s. Kurtz and the others controlled the area between

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

and 5th Streets for several years until the gang was driven out by "strong-arm squads" under Captain

Anthony Allaire Anthony J. Allaire (February 17, 1829 – August 9, 1903) was an American firefighter, drillmaster, and military and law enforcement officer. A longtime police inspector for the New York City Police Department, he was responsible for the breakup ...

in 1876. A year later he was arrested in Boston for robbing a silk house owned by Scott & Co. and sentenced to 12 years imprisonment. It was while in prison that he discovered that eating common soap could produce the effect of ill health. His sudden and unexplainable weight loss and other symptoms baffled the prison doctors and he was able to fool officials that he was dying and received a pardon."Notorious Crooks Dead; Stealer of Fortunes. End of "Sheeney Mike" and the "Prince of Cross Roaders". New York Tribune. 26 May 1905 Kurtz was sentenced to 18 and a half years imprisonment in

Clinton Prison Clinton Correctional Facility is a New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision maximum security state prison for men located in the Village of Dannemora, New York. The prison is sometimes colloquially referred to as Danne ...

on March 30, 1880, however he was later released on appeal. He would later go on to have a successful career as a bank robber and jewelry thief with his former partner Johnny Irving throughout the 1880s and early 90s. He was associated with many underworld figures in New York including Billy Porter, Frank McCoy, "Banjo" Pete Emerson and criminal fence Marm Mandelbaum.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. 285-286) He and Porter later traveled to Europe where they had considerable success as burglars before returning to the United States. On April 2, 1894, he took part in the robbery of Albert J. Knoll's Jersey Street saloon in

Elizabethtown, New Jersey Elizabeth Township, also called Elizabethtown, was a township that existed in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, from 1664 until 1855. The area was initially part of the Elizabethtown Tract, purchased from the Lenape on October 28, 166 ...

with "Dutch" Fred Ryder and ex-policeman Michael Malone. He and his accomplices were eventually arrested for this robbery and all agreed to turn state's evidence. Kurtz and the others later testified that they had been hired to rob the saloon by

David McAdams David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

, New Jersey sportsman and manager of the Red Jacket Hotel, in exchange for a percentage of the $800 in cash."Accused Of Flaming Robbery; David McAdams Tried in Elizabeth -- Thieves Witnesses Against Him". New York Times. 4 Dec 1894 Spending at least 17 years of his life in jail, Kurtz was estimated to have taken part in at least 150 major robberies amounting to over $7 million (when adjusted for inflation, that would be equivalent of $112 million). At the time of his death however, his family had disowned him and he was penniless when he died of

consumption Consumption may refer to: *Resource consumption *Tuberculosis, an infectious disease, historically * Consumption (ecology), receipt of energy by consuming other organisms * Consumption (economics), the purchasing of newly produced goods for curren ...

Bellevue Hospital Bellevue Hospital (officially NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue and formerly known as Bellevue Hospital Center) is a hospital in New York City and the oldest public hospital in the United States. One of the largest hospitals in the United States b ...

on November 24, 1904.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kurtz, Mike 1840s births 1904 deaths Criminals from New York City Criminals from Manhattan American people who died in prison custody Jewish American gangsters Prisoners who died in New York (state) detention Prisoners and detainees of New Jersey Recipients of American gubernatorial pardons American burglars 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis Tuberculosis deaths in New York (state)