Chicago Greasers, Gangs and Clubs From Chicago, Boppin Gangs From Chicago

MANIAC DRIFTERS:
Started by a guy named Bobo and several other of the guys from Mcpherson School around 1970. There were some real good guys in this club. They hung out at the snack shop on the corner of Damen and Lawrence. The younger Drifters like the Samuel Brothers started the Seeley and Ainslie Gaylords after the Drifters broke up...
BASEMENT BOYS:
1968(included BASEMENT GIRLS and JUNIOR BASEMENT BOYS): Here is what an ex Basement Girl had to say about their club: "We hung out in the cold weather in the basement while the guys practiced in the band and in the alley of the house on Damen & Montrose. The guys were in a band called the Astetic Vistas. My ex was the guitar player. They played at USO, churches, and various places, We all had all lot of fun. There were some unexpected gang fights. I started in 1968 and in approx. 5 years everyone got married, mostly to each other, thats when the Junior Basement Boys started the end." The Junior Basement Boys would eventually become Seeley and Ainslie Gaylords.
THORNDALE JAGOFFS/THORNDALE JARVIS ORGANIZATION:
A Chicago Newspaper wrote an article about the "Thorndale Jarvis Organization" in which a Chicago Policer referred to the gang as a "bunch of jag offs", from that time forward they changed their name to the "Thorndale Jag Offs". A retired member had this to say:
"When I was a teenager in Uptown in the 60's the TJO's and Turf were very active at Senn High School and the surrounding communities. The Turfers wore steeled toed work boots in all seasons and were known as garden variety street brawlers. I think most of them got that out of their systems and went on to a more normal lifestyle.
The TJO's were legendary in their time. I remember the leaders, but will leave out names in this forum. The TJOs were involved in burglary and a variety of criminal enterprises, similar to the Simon City Royals of recent decades. A prominent member, made the headlines in 1975 when he was part of a spectacular escape at the Cook County jail.
Long prison terms for a number of key members pretty much ended the reign of the TJOs in the mid and late 70's as I recall. In early 1963 I believe Chicago magazine did a story on street gangs in the Humboldt Park neighborhood. The Simon city gang was in its infancy at the time and got some mention in the article. In the hot summer of 1966 gangs were in the news on a daily basis. The old Chicago American did a lengthy series on Chicagos street gangs in either July or August of that year. That paper became Chicago Today in 1969, it was a tabloid similar to the Sun Times. Before the paper folded in 1974 veteran reporter Jack Mabley did a story on a SCR branch active around Hamilton elementary in the Lake View neighborhood."
Senn H. S. graduate had this to say: I grew up on Thorndale & Kenmore and saw TJO start up. Joe G. (died in a police shootout) was the first "leader of the pack". I think they started around 1962. The guys that started calling themselves the TJO weren't even from the neighborhood to begin with. After a few altercations on the street between TJO with toughs from the neighborhood, the stores put bars on their windows around 1963. Anyone still standing from the first few altercations melded together into one. They hated being called jagoffs, which was hysterical since that is what they called themselves. They did not have jackets.
In October of 1984, in what was left of the TJO leadership, 3 former members of the TJO were involved in a shootout with Chicago Police in the restaurant parking lot of Carson - The Place for Ribs. 30 shots were exchanged, some fired by an Uzi.
Senn Riots 1972: The Thordale Jarvis Organization was referred to in a 1972 Chicago Tribune article as the Blackstone Rangers of the the North Side with 200 active members.
In 1964 at Senn High School, TJO was already an established "club". At the time as I remember they were simply refered to as Thorndale.
BRYN MAWR:
Some of them hung out at a place called "The Green and White" that was across the street from Senn H.S.
IRISH CLOWNS:
The Irish Clowns were hanging around Damen & Winnemac, Damen & Montrose, Welles Park, John C Coonley School & A few other places.. I don’t believe they ever held a corner as they hung & partied with several older clubs: Basement Boys, Maniac Drifters, Early Seeley and Ainslie Gaylords, Coonley Boys, etc. There was some kind of a unity similar to the U F O. It was called United White Front, which started in the late 70's primarily as a front to stand off the Montrose & Paulina Latin Kings & the Latin Eagles who were the only threat to the hood at the time. I believe this unity started about the time Honkey R.I.P from s/a was killed. Whether it was related or not, I'm not sure. But there was also a point in the late 70's when they went to war with the Lawrence & Rockwell Popes who I thought were a part of the United White Front or whatever it was called as they had the Kings just west of them on Lawrence also.
By 1980 the Irish Clowns were pretty much history. Many still hung around the neighborhood, flipped into other clubs, and went with McQueeny on his adventures.
Other major players in the Irish clowns were Maddog Schraeder... Rowdy Rhoadie, Hillbilly, The Eanes Bros.
The Clowns did wear sweaters Green and Gold. You could still see older guys styling them at the downtown St Pat's Parade at late as 1990 when the parade was still a big street party. They became a legit social athletic club in the 80's when many became cops, fireman, govt workers or went to college. They are still around as a SAC with sports teams and charity work.

Hells Devils

CORP: Chicago CORP page
THE DEICERS: 1945
Waller High School: Girls club that warmed up the planes in ww2, and were one great gang of roller skaters and got together every sat night.
ARISTOCRATS: 1965
See their page:Aristocrats

NorthWestSide Polish Mafia

(Humboldt Park field house and Boat house)

CHEETAHS: all girl gang 1957-1960
white jackets with black Cheetah and trim and members club name. about 10-15 members. Janet, bonnie, Lovey, Pat, Barbara, Mary where a few of there names.
EL PHIDERO'S: Girl's gang 63-65
I went to school at Schurz one year then to foreman in the early 63-65 and in 66 to note damn catholic girl’s school. I was in a group called the El Phidero's white jackets and purple sewed on lettering.
SNOWFLAKES: 70s, Foreman H. S.
The Snowflakes were a girl gang that hung around with the Gaylords in the early 70s.
DYRANS: 1963-1965
Schurz High School: All had to have blonde hair and wore white from head to toe.
KIMBALL LAWRENCE BOYS:
The Kimball Lawrence boys hung out at Napoli’s Restaurant during the 60s and attended Roosevelt and Von Steuben HS. They had at least one major battle against a Latin gang at the Alba Dance Club on Lawrence Ave during the early 60s that became part of north side folklore.
DELTA
From 1956 to 1960 our president at the time was Angelo Lardas. we also became brother clubs of the Sons of italy from Chicago.
BETA: 60's Senn High School
GARGOLYES: 60's Senn High School
SHARKS: 1948-1953
Chicago Little Hell Gang - Italian Sharks
ASHLAND VIKINGS:
Late 1960's: Mostly Polish gang started to counter Black gangs on Taylor Street. Members of the Ashland Vikings wore cross tatoos on their wrists. The Ashland Vikings eventually became a Latino gang.

CONQUISTADORES:
Started in 1961 by a group of guys from Amundsen High, who had to defend themselves against another area gang called the "Preatorians", who they had got into a fight with at a party. They formed their gang as a mutual protection "society". Most of the original guys graduated in 1962. Some ended up joining the Marines.
RICAN BOYS:
Malden and Wilson was the corner of the Rican boys. Later they turned to Spanish Cobras.

Uptown Rebels

JAHN DUECES: Insane Deuces History page
PBC: 1970s
Paulina/Barry/Community: Paulina and Barry was their corner.
BELDING BOYS
We were a big group of about 40 guys from Belding park and grade school on Tripp ave. between Cullom and Berteau. Most of us were from Belding but some from St. Edwards too. We were around during that Gaylord/Pope war so some of the 70's Kilbourn G/L guy's should remember us from Belding. Some of our guys became KP G/L. One night about 3 car loads of Popes showed up after the park closed and told us they were there to recruit us into the Popes. What they didn't figure on is we were a bunch of softball heads full of beer. Funny how that shit works. Us Belding boys didn't have a lot of money so we all went to Starks warehouse and all bought the same sweaters. Black with red trim. No belts but otherwise pretty cool.
Belding and St. Eds is where a lot of Popes went to grade shool too but they all hung around Kolmar or Independance. They were'nt welcome at Belding park. I do remember the day Larkin died. Same neighborhood. My neighborhood. Most of us went on to Schurz.
BELAIRS:
The Bel-Aires were ran by this guy "Crazy Tom" president they hung on St.Louis and Armitage and the Cortland Stacies were one of the rivals, they hung in the hood of Moffat and Campbell.
In 1974, the Bel-Airs had rented a clubhouse in their neighborhood and called it - NWYO: Northwest Youth Organization.
Belairs were mainly between Armitage and North ave and between Sacramento and Central Park, much of the same area that was Simon City populated. The Belairs had a bell with wings for a logo. Many of their members became DC Eagles.
The Bel-airs and the Simon City gang were responsible for shutting down the Root Coffee House at 3260 Armitage avenue in Humboldt Park owned by Rev. Johnson and his wife. The two gangs, the Bel-Aires and the Simon City gang, had a fight there and police closed the club after a raid Feb. 5, 1968.
NOBLE KNIGHTS
The Noble Knights started in the area of Division and North in the early 1960s. Their turf was bounded by Division Street and North Avenue, Western and Damen Avenues. They fought the Jokers at various times. In the early sixties, the Noble Knights were a fast growing gang.
JOKERS
An orginal Joker stated: he started the Jokers in 1956 with his friends, who were 11 and 12 years old at that time, and they were one of the first gangs in that area of Humboldt Park. Their turf was Lafayette School on the corner of North Washtenaw Ave. and Cortez Street. After they started in the late 1950s, Chi-West and the Hirsh Street Lords started in the early 1960s. All of these guys went to grammar school together and remained friends up to today. Their enemies were various Latino gangs starting up in the Humboldt Park area at that time, like the Young Lords, Latin lords, along with the Noble Knights. The Jokers consisted of the Pee Wee and Junior Jokers, no senior Jokers. A 1966 Chicago Tribune article stated that the Jokers were equally as violent as the Blackstone Rangers and the Disciples.
Duke had this to say: I am Duke, a former Joker in the early 60’s. The Jokers’ turf was bounded by Western Ave, Chicago Ave, Division St, and Humboldt Park. Our “corner” was at Cortez and Washtenaw, at Lafayette School, where we played softball and hung out a lot at the East end of Humboldt Park. There were Senior Jokers, Junior Jokers, and Jokerettes. The Joker’s territory was invaded in about 1963 or 1964 by the Latin Kings one night and a general war erupted that lasted for several weeks, with several members of the Hirsh Street Lords and Chi-West joining in our defense. Some of us enlisted in the Marines when our neighborhood began to fall, including myself. Just to throw some names out there: Morel Brothers, Ustrak Brothers, Charlie M., Red, DuBose, Terry, McCarthy Brothers, Dilt, Duke, One-arm Herbie, Onopa, Sonny and Jeff, et al.Greetz.
HIRSH STREET LORDS
(Hirsch & Spaulding - Lowell school yard)

Chi-West Tony Rome Card

CHI-WEST:
Chicago and Western: Chi-West Gang
COLT 45'S:
A handfull (about 6 or 8) of mostly Polish toughs that lived between North Ave and Division and Western & Damen. They didn't hang on any particular corner in that neighborhood for the obvious reasons, but they did gather on the porches of the buildings they lived in and roamed between them.
DEMONS: 1956
West Town: White gang numbering 25.
CARDELLS: 1958
East Garfield Park: White gang numbering around 20.
WRIGHTWOOD-RACINE: 1060
Lincoln Park: White gang numbering around 10.
EAGLES: 1960
Lincoln Park: White gang numbering around 10.
TRIOS: 1961
Lincoln Park: White numbering around 63.

F-S-L Brentano Boy's

Irving Park Heads

HARRISON GENTS: 1960s
The Harrison Gents original corner was Flournoy and Western, Harrison just west of Western to Damen. They were originally a Irish White greaser gang up until 1969 when they became Irish and Hispanic. One of their rivals was the Taylor Street Jousters. The HG's were also in the Uptown area of Kenmore and Sheridan to Montrose to clark in the 70's.
Ashland and Beech Gents (late 1960s) - a very large mostly Latino section.
Harrison and Western Gents - (early 70s) - a very large mostly Black section.
In 1969, the Harrison Gents were involved in a large gang fight with the Young Lords at 2852 Clybourn Avenue. The CPD estimated that there were between 50 to 75 people fighting. Three CPD officers were injured attempting to break up the gang fight.
In the early 70s, the Harrison Gents also did battle with Cobra Stones.
The Harrison Gents were never given as much credit as they deserved for being a large gang.
DOMINOES: 1960
Area of Grand and Noble.
Gallant Counts: 1960
Area of Carpenter and Hubbard
Noble Artesians: 1960
Area of Chestnut and Noble
SENTINELS
Hung out on Touhy and California at Pauls Drive-In from 1963-1969 on Morse Avenue. At least half of us went to Sullivan High School. The other half went to Mathers High School.
ERIE DUKES: 1950s
The ERIE DUKES was a gang on Erie St, close to the Erie Chapel church. The Gentile brothers were part...
REVELS: 50's/60's
Senn High School. The Revels hungout at the "Ridge House" on Ridge Ave.  Bryn Mawr (Bryn Mawr/Broadway) basically broke up as a club, and numerous members aligned with the Revels.  A good number of us are still around, and we get together for a bash each year.
BLACK PANTHERS: 1952-1959
Black Panthers that roamed from Montrose to Foster, Damon Ave to the beach and were the type you didn't want your daughter's around but they had cool club jackets with large panthers on the back. This gang pre-dates California's Black Panthers by a decade or so.

Taylor Street: Little Italy Gangs

BRIGADIERS: 1945
Italian gang from the West Side. There turf was in the area of Paulina and Congress Streets and has been replaced with the UIC campus. There rivals were various Black West Side gangs. One gang fight that the Brigadiers were involved in caused a street riot that left two Black gang members beaten and one shot and killed.
TAYLOR MAJESTICS: 1965
Italian gang from the Taylor Street area. Also they were affiliated in the Cass High School area - Little Hell. They fought Black gangs in the Cabrini Green area.
TAYLOR STREET DUKES: 1950s
The Taylor Dukes also hung around on the same corner with the Nobles, and the Jr. Dukes. Imagine the large crew of guys on one corner, The Dukes girls were the Taylor Corvettes. The Dukes had 3/4 Length Jackets, Dark Blue, with a light blue 2" line around the shoulder and under the arm, They had a patch over the chest I believe the left side with a coat of arms made from the Pall Mall Cig packet.
TAYLOR SHARKS:
Italian mid 1960s. Hung around 24th Street and Central Park Avenue. There rivals were: Latin Kings and the Ridgeway Lords. Members of the Taylor Sharks were arrested for shooting members of both rival gangs.
TAYLOR BARRENS:
The Taylor Barrens were one of the roughest gangs in the neighborhood. They also had girls in their club known as the barrens. 40's & 50's still are around old but respectful.
TAYLOR NOBLES:
The Taylor Nobles were also a very rough crew of guys who hung around at the WALL, , located at Taylor St and Troop St. The gang was Italian, Mexican, some Irish, and Greeks. They also had girls in their club, they are also still around and respectful. How rough were these guys they had a run in with some mob guys, the mob guys lost the fight, and accepted an apology later.
TAYLOR BISHOPS:
The Taylor Bishops four blocks west of the Dukes and Nobles, hung around in a pool hall.
TAYLOR MONARCHS: 1950s
TAYLOR CORSAIRS: 1950s
Taylor Street Neighborhood:
Now all the listed gangs meet every second Sunday at a Hotel in the western suburbs of Chicago for Breakfast, and have a big Christmas dinner once a year at a restaurant on Taylor St. You are looking at guys that are now in their sixties and seventies and still around and meeting.
Taylor Street was called the farm club, of you know who.
The wall was a housing project that was 95% black and no one ever fought with each other, we just accepted one another.
There were several other groups of guys in the neighborhood, Polk & Aberdeen (The Shack), Taylor St. & Halsted, Taylor St. & Ashland, Polk & Loomis, none of the groups in the neighborhood fought with each other.
The Collier magazine did an article on the Dukes in the fifties photos were taken of the group at the wall, also Mike Royko did a bull story on the Dukes, no truth at all to what he wrote.

Bridgeport gangs

Old Dutch Restaurant

32ND AND MORGAN: early 50s
Made big news in 1955 during the Sieboda murder trial which happened in front of the Old Dutch Restaurant, 3200 block of Morgan St.
38TH AND PARNELL: early 50s
Rivals to the 32nd and Morgan gang.
DUNLOPS: 1950s
McKinley Park area gang. They were investigated for the 1957 Grimes sister's murders, but were cleared by the police.

Irish Bridgeport Stone Greaser

IMPERIALS: 1958-1966
I lived in the very area you mentioned about street gangs, corner of Leland and Malden (1958-1966). The gang I belonged to was the Imperials, joined in 1960, was active for 2-3 years, our turf was the Wilson/Broadway area but roamed between the Lake and Western ave, Wilson to Lawrence Avenue. I joined this gang while a student at Stockton Elementary school(7th grade) on Lawrence Ave. as a protection mechanism against other gangs after getting beat up and stabbed a couple of times. We did a lot of things together (ie go to the lake and swim, a few Cub's games, played football, softball) all pretty much non-violent. We did have a few fights, no guns, just knifes, brass knuckles, chains, and bass ball bats. All more for display rather than use, but some fights were very violent. After a couple of years, the gang started to turn very violent and committing crimes, usually late evening and weekends which I refused to participate (money for drugs), went against my Appalachian early childhood training. I was finally arrested on a winter day in 1962 by an old Irish cop nicknamed "Big John" (he had forewarned me before several times) for fighting, harassing folks, pan-handling and throwing snowballs through the bus and L train windows. Purse snatching was becoming quite the sport for the gang at that time. From that day, I learned a lesson, quietly left the gang and changed my life style. I was now a sophomore at Senn where a number of Imperials had started school (we did not wear our colors at school, kept a low profile there), I only know of two of us that made it past the sophomore year, soon afterwards, I was the only one. I was approached in my junior year to join another gang at Senn which I hung with at times, but never joined, but that time I had become very independent and remained that way.
Our colors were a shiny black baseball style jacket, on the back was a green dragon with some orange, yellow and red highlights. IMPERIALS was in a semi circle over the dragon.. Hope this helped out some..
SONS OF ITALY: 1950s
Hung out around Ogden park or 67 or 69th street near Racine.
SABRES SAC: 1950s
Hung out at 52nd & Damen.

51st and Wolcott Rebels Spike's Candy Store

SPANISH REBELS: 1959
Not to be confused with the Cornell Square Rebels of the same time period. These Rebels were Latino and held turf in the Taylor Street/Independence Park area. Their main rival was the Spanish Counts.
REBELS: 1974
Armitage and Kedzie Rebels hung out at a pool hall on their corner.
SPANISH KINGS: 1962
West Town: numbering 20.
LATIN ANGELS: 1962
West Town (Crystal & California): numbering 40.
JUNIOR SINNERS: 1962
West Town: numbering 20.
TROJANS: 1962
West Town: numbering 13.
GENTS: 1963-64
Black jackets with white lettering, and the cane and top hat. I think this set was led by a guy named Dale S. Mostly southern guys, they hung out in the park between Foster Ave. and Lawrence.
SPANISH COUNTS: 1959
Latino gang in the Fillmore District. Their turf was Springfield Avenue and Fillmore Street.
COOLIE LEMOS: 60s and 70s
Hung around Eckert Park area north of Chicago Ave around Noble. They were the gang responsible for the infamous attack on the Mozart & Division Latin Kings which killed their leaders Kino and Luckey and left a few others shot up as well. That pretty much knocked them down a few notches. Their next in line leader Watussi was found shotgunned in the Humbolt park lagoon not to long afterward to put an end to their terrorizing the area.
YOUNG LORDS:
Became the Paragons. The young Lords started in the late 1950s in Lincoln Park. Their original club was located at 2512 Lincoln Avenue. Cha Cha was the big leader of the Young Lords and was part of the group that took over the McCormick Theological Seminary around 67 or 68 in an effort to get a playground at Halsted and Armitage.
Cha Cha tells his club's history in his own words: Lords and Eagles in YouTube video.
PARAGONS
Wore black and purple sweaters black with a purple stripe.
HADDON BOYS: 60s and 70s
They started on the corner right behind the building the Good Time Inn, south side of Division two doors East of Leavit. Christian was their president and Papo was their war counselor. Their rivals were the PVP Playboys and Chi-West.
SABIN BOYS: Levitt & Schiller

Ghetto-Brother's Mural 1970s

Yates Boys Organization

Ghetto-Brother's Organization

Latin Lovers