Photos: Top Irish gangsters
The Irish have a history of rebellion and renegade behavior. Here are the ten most famous Irish men --and one woman-- who lived outside the law.
1. Billy the Kid: (1859– 1881) real name William McCarty has become one of the legendary figures of the Wild West. His mother was an Irish immigrant who grew up in Ireland and raised her son in a New York slum before heading out west.
2. Ned Kelly, (1855 – 1880) Iconic figure of Australian legend, son of Tipperary emigrants who has come to symbolize the rebellious Australian spirit
3.James 'Whitey' Bulger: (1929 ---) currently Number One on the FBI most wanted list. A Boston mafia kingpin who is reputed to have killed or ordered the killings of up to fifty people.
4. The Pirate Queen: (1530 -1603) Grace O'Malley, famous Irish sea pirate of the 16th century. Her fame became so great that Queen Elizabeth 1 summoned her to London in order to meet her. The Broadway Show 'The Pirate Queen' was based on her life.
5. Emmett Dalton: (1871-1937) The Dalton gang were al known as the 'Wild Bunch' one of the most famous train robber families in American history. Emmett Dalton was a ringleader and the only survivor of the famous Coffeyville shootout in 1892.
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READ MORE:
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6. James Freney (1719–1788) was an Irish highwayman.the most famous of that era, His family in Kilkenny had their lands taken from them by the English and Freney took to highway robberies to get revenge. Pursued all over Ireland he managed to escape into exile but his body was later brought back to Kilkenny where he is still alive in the folk memory there.
7. John "Legs" Diamond, real name Jack Moran (July 10, 1897-December 18, 1931),was the son of an Irish immigrant. Also known as Gentleman Jack he was a famous Irish American gangster and bootlegger in New York city during the Prohibition era. Famous for surviving numerous attempts on his life
8.Owney "The Killer" Madden (December 18, 1891–April 24, 1965) was a leading underworld figure in Manhattan, most notable for his involvement in organized crime during Prohibition. He also ran the famous Cotton Club and was a leading boxing promoter in the 1930s.Though English born, his parents were both from Ireland.
9.Charles Dean O'Banion (8 July 1892 – 10 November 1924) was an Irish American mobster who was the main rival of Al Capone during the brutal Chicago bootlegging wars of the 1920s. The newspapers of his day called him Dion O'Banion, although he never went by that name.
10. Michael Spillane, much better known as Mickey Spillane (July 13, 1934 – May 13, 1977), was an Irish-American mobster from Hell's Kitchen . Spillane, who was called the "last of the gentleman gangsters," was a marked contrast to the violent Westies gang members who succeeded him in Hell's Kitchen.
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.maireadinmelb | Jun 19, 2011, 01:01 AM EDT
There is a whole tribe of Irish australian bushrangers (outlaws) that your missing!
Springfield9 | Jun 16, 2011, 04:00 PM EDT
6 out of 10 were "Gangters" ...the rest were entrepreneurs. If you chose to add the bootleggers and politicians (including Bootlegger-Politicians) the article would look like Wikipedia. We are a creative lot.
roibaird | Jun 16, 2011, 12:27 AM EDT
how the hell did the author of this tripe page miss yer man Gerry Adams???????????
Pittsburghkid | Jun 15, 2011, 10:08 PM EDT
Why isn't Joe Kennedy on the list? He was a famious bootlegger. He got his money from an inside buyer deal. Henry Ford was going to buy some coal mines in Kentucky. Henry Ford bought the mines through a company Joe Kennedy worked for. Joe bought the mines and sold them to Henry Ford. This transaction bothers me on several levels. Henry Ford hate Irish Catholics, and was not going to be riped off. So Why did Henry let Joe ripe him off? I beleive it was a three way deal. Henry want to build Fords in England. Churchill want to create Northern Ireland. Where did the money come from for the Irish Revolution? Boston. Who controlled Boston? Honey Fitzgerald,(JFK's grandfather) and Patrick Kennedy (Joe's father). In the end, Kennedy got 25 million, Ford built Fords in England, and Churchill got Northern Ireland. Ford would have never given an Irish Catholic Kennedy 25 million, England did not want Ford competing with British Car manufacturer in England. Churchill got Northern Ireland.
seanomelbourne | Jun 15, 2011, 07:04 PM EDT
Carrickcourt don't forget the Jerilderie letter,A statement by Kelly wishing to establish a republic in northern Victoria
LMHayes | Jun 15, 2011, 05:00 PM EDT
I love reading about the old west and the "gangsters" of the 30's...In regards to Whitey Bulger, my dear friends grandpa worked for him many years ago...There you go with the 6 degrees of seperation...Great article...Thank you :-)
peterson | Jun 15, 2011, 02:09 PM EDT
You might add O"bama
rhunter67 | Jun 15, 2011, 01:29 PM EDT
First off, wasn't this first posted months ago? Second, there is no Danny Greene, Jimmy Coonan, Mad Dog Sullivan, Mad Dog Coll or Jimmy the Gent Burke? Where's "The General" Martin Cahill? Finally, the fact that Legs Diamond is above Owney Madden is a crock. Madden was one of the guys who ran Diamond out of the city to the boondocks upstate. What was the source for this, Wikipedia?
IrishTinker | Jun 15, 2011, 12:19 PM EDT
Well, in reality, your silly list doesn't include that many Irish " gangsters " because they're nearly all American born! Hardly anything to be proud of either!
Suivness10 | Jun 15, 2011, 11:21 AM EDT
No Westies (even if they were grisly to say the least)? Jimmy Coonan? Was Featherstone Irish (I think so). I guess I had to say this; my father was a Westie and ironically, not Irish.
S.F.Finnerty | Jun 15, 2011, 10:50 AM EDT
I think Danny Greene should have been listed. He is the most underrated gangster. Also Patrick Nee should get mentioned for what I believe was a good cause helping the IRA.
edmundburke | Jun 15, 2011, 10:36 AM EDT
Kudos to you, Dara, for not including the name of "Bugs" Moran of Chicago, who was famously targeted (but narrowly escaped the killing) by Capone in the St. Valentine's Day Massacre of 1929. "Moran" was an assumed name, a tactic commonly used by gangsters, and he was not Irish as commonly stated in the media and popular histories. His given last name was actually Cunin, and he was of Italian and Eastern European descent.
carrickcourt | Jun 15, 2011, 10:22 AM EDT
Doing my family history research I discovered that the only known letter in Ned Kelly's own hand is a 28 July 1870 letter to Victoria Police Sergeant James Babington. James Babington (Abt 1832-1881) was a missing younger brother of one of my Irish great grandfathers George Babington. James Babington was a member of the Irish Constabulary from 1852 to 1855. James Babington is next found enlisting in the South Australia police in in Adeline 6 Sept 1855. James next joined the Victoria, Australia police on 21 May 1856. After James Babington's dealings with Ned Kelly he was stationed in various locations in Victoria, ending up in Ballarat where he died on 15 June 1881. I have been advised by the Victoria, Australia Police Museum in Melbourne that at he time Ned Kelly had dealings with Victoria police Sergeant James Babington that a majority of the Victoria police force were native born Irishmen. James Babington was born mostly likely born in Camgahy, Magheracloone parish, Co. Monaghan, Ireland.
cillowen | Jun 15, 2011, 09:51 AM EDT
some heros to look up to - wadda u tink.