At 10:20 a.m. on Saint Valentine's Day in 1929, Chicago was brimming
with sunshine. Even the George ("Bugs") Moran booze-peddling depot on
North Clark Street was peaceful. This depot was marked as a garage
for the S.M.C. Cartage Co. On this morning, six underworld figures
presided, waiting for coffee. Another man, wearing overalls, tinkered
with a beer vat on a truck, completing the total to seven men.
Just ten minutes later, the men glanced at each other, alarmed. A
fast blue car eased into the curb outside the depot. The car produced
four men. Two, dressed as police, held sub-machine guns. The other
two, shabbily dressed, carried shotguns. All the gangsters raised
their hands over their heads. The four visitors marched them to the
back of the garage and lined them up against the far wall. They were
frisked for weapons.
One of the men inquired as to what was happening, and one of the four
new men shouted, "give it to 'em!" From the four guns streamed 100
bullets, of which only eight reached the wall behind the victims. One
man tried to escape, but a bullet shot at nearly point blank range
ripped through his head. Almost all died immediately.
A neighbor reported what she saw; two men, who looked like police
officers, walked out of the building with two others, dressed in
normal clothing. The two normally-dressed men held their hands over
their heads. To her the incident was obviously a raid and an arrest.
She had been fooled. Finally, the real police came, and counted the
dead bodies. Six men were dead, and one was dying. This was a record
even for violent Chicago. Bugs Moran was not among the group that
day. He was out of town for St. Valentine's Day. The deceased men
were Moran's brother-in-law and co-leader, James Clark, no. 1 gunman
Peter Gusenberg, con-man John Snyder, Gorilla Al Weinshank, John May
(the man in overalls), and Reinhart Schwimmer. Frank Gusenberg,
Pete's little brother, lived for three hours after the shootings,
carrying twenty bullets in his body. He eventually died. The only
thing left living in the garage was the Gusenberg's police dog.
Notorious Gang leader, Alphonse "Al" Capone and his west side mob was
suspected of instigating and carrying out the massacre. It was all
about revenge. Capone's friend, Tony Lombardo, was killed the summer
before, and a shipment of Canadian whiskey to Capone was hijacked the
last fortnight. Both incidents were believed to be done by Moran men.
Capone was reported to be living in Florida, innocently of course!