Nestled in a quiet, unassuming area in St. Paul’s Highland Park neighborhood, sits a 1,300 square foot stucco home located at 1878 Jefferson Avenue. It’s history intertwines with some of the darkest chapters of the city’s corrupt past. During the height of Prohibition, St. Paul was a hotbed for organized crime. Criminal operations flourished in […]
Gangster Locations
Landmark Center – Old Federal Courts Building
Visitors to St. Paul’s downtown area are often captivated by the visual grandeur of the city’s castle-like architectural crown jewel, the Landmark Center.
Barker-Karpis Gang Hideout – 1031 South Robert Street
St. Paul was a haven for notorious criminals in the late 1920s and early 1930s when local law enforcement turned a blind eye to the underworld activities of gangsters, bank robbers, and bootleggers. One of the most cold-blooded groups to take up residence in the city was the Barker-Karpis gang. Between 1931 and 1935, the […]
“Dapper Dan” Hogan Home – 1607 West 7th Street
On the morning of December 4, 1928, “Dapper Dan” Hogan, a known mob boss during the height of St. Paul’s organized crime days, entered the garage of his home located at 1607 West 7th Street. He opened the door of his Paige coupe and climbed behind the wheel. When he pressed his foot to the […]
Wabasha Street Caves
Opened in 1933 on St. Paul’s West Side, the Castle Royal was publicized as the “World’s Most Gorgeous Underground Nightclub” by local newspapers. Performers such as Cab Calloway, the Dorsey Brothers and Harry James performed at the club during its heyday. Rumor also has it that patrons of the club included gangland legends such as […]
