Samuel Perris
Encyclopedia
Samuel "Worcester Sam" Perris (1840-unknown) was a 19th-century French-Canadian burglar, safe cracker and bank robber. An underworld figure in New York City
and throughout the northeastern United States
during the post-American Civil War
era, he was called "one of the most notorious criminals in America".
Perris participated in nearly every major bank robbery in the United States during a 20-year period including taking part in the robberies of the Grafton National Bank and the Philadelphia Navy Yard in 1870. A member of George Leonidas Leslie's criminal gang during the 1870s, Perris was a principal participant in the robberies of the Manhattan Savings Institution and the Dexter Savings Bank in 1878.
during the 1860s and 70s. Though of French Canadian
descent, and fluent in the French language
, he was able to speak English without an accent. Working with noted criminals such as Old Jimmie Hope and Johnny Dobbs, among others, he was described as "a man of undoubted nerve, and has a first-class reputation among the fraternity". Perris specialized in banks and railroad office safes, and during a 20-year period, participated in nearly every major bank robbery in the United States.
In 1870 alone, Perris staged the robberies of the Philadelphia Navy Yard and the Grafton National Bank in Worcester, Massachusetts
; he and an accomplice escaped with $180,000 in the latter robbery. Perris was caught by police after the Grafton bank job, however, he escaped custody on April 5, 1872. He broke out of the Worcester jailhouse by forcing open the bars of a fourth story window in the north end of the building, with the help of a jackscrew
smuggled in from the outside, and climbed outside using a rope. He remained at large for at least 15 years in spite of a $3,000 reward offered by county commissioners for his capture. One of the reasons he was able to evade arrest was wearing a beard, and regularly changing its style, as the few pictures Perris showed him clean-shaven; he was always "smooth-faced" part of the time. The only identifying marks were a "prominent" dimple on his chin and a scar from a pistol-shot on his right eyebrow.
By the mid-1870s, he had become a familiar figure in New York's underworld and was among those associated with Fredericka "Marm" Mandelbaum
and John D. "Traveling Mike" Grady
. In 1875, Perris was recruited by George Leonidas Leslie along with Jimmy Hope, Jimmy Brady, Abe Coakley, Red Leary, Shang Draper, Johnny Dobbs, and "Banjo" Pete Emerson. The three-year plan to rob the Manhattan Savings Institution, occurring on on the morning of October 27, 1878, resulted in the theft of $300,000 in cash and securities. Earlier that year, Perris took part in robbing the Dexter Savings Bank in Dexter, Maine
, with Jimmy Hope and Johnny Dobbs, in which he was alleged to have killed bank treasurer JH Barron. The Leslie Gang would be responsible for 80% of bank robberies in New York until Leslie's death in 1884.
When Leslie was found murdered at Tramps' Rock on June 4, 1884, Perris was taken into custody with Shang Draper and Johnny Dobbs. Police believed that Leslie had been murdered at a Brooklyn gang hideout, located at No. 101 Lynch Street, then carried off on a butcher cart driven by Perris, Dobbs and Ed Goodie to dump Leslie's body. The three men were seen near Yonkers around the time Leslie was discovered but all three were released due to lack of evidence.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and throughout the northeastern United States
Northeastern United States
The Northeastern United States is a region of the United States as defined by the United States Census Bureau.-Composition:The region comprises nine states: the New England states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont; and the Mid-Atlantic states of New...
during the post-American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
era, he was called "one of the most notorious criminals in America".
Perris participated in nearly every major bank robbery in the United States during a 20-year period including taking part in the robberies of the Grafton National Bank and the Philadelphia Navy Yard in 1870. A member of George Leonidas Leslie's criminal gang during the 1870s, Perris was a principal participant in the robberies of the Manhattan Savings Institution and the Dexter Savings Bank in 1878.
Biography
Born in Canada in 1840, Samuel Parris later emigrated to the United States where he would become one of the most wanted burglars in the Northeastern United StatesNortheastern United States
The Northeastern United States is a region of the United States as defined by the United States Census Bureau.-Composition:The region comprises nine states: the New England states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont; and the Mid-Atlantic states of New...
during the 1860s and 70s. Though of French Canadian
French Canadian
French Canadian or Francophone Canadian, , generally refers to the descendents of French colonists who arrived in New France in the 17th and 18th centuries...
descent, and fluent in the French language
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, he was able to speak English without an accent. Working with noted criminals such as Old Jimmie Hope and Johnny Dobbs, among others, he was described as "a man of undoubted nerve, and has a first-class reputation among the fraternity". Perris specialized in banks and railroad office safes, and during a 20-year period, participated in nearly every major bank robbery in the United States.
In 1870 alone, Perris staged the robberies of the Philadelphia Navy Yard and the Grafton National Bank in Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
; he and an accomplice escaped with $180,000 in the latter robbery. Perris was caught by police after the Grafton bank job, however, he escaped custody on April 5, 1872. He broke out of the Worcester jailhouse by forcing open the bars of a fourth story window in the north end of the building, with the help of a jackscrew
Jackscrew
A jackscrew is a type of jack which is operated by turning a leadscrew. In the form of a screw jack it is commonly used to lift heavy weights such as the foundations of houses, or large vehicles.-Advantages:...
smuggled in from the outside, and climbed outside using a rope. He remained at large for at least 15 years in spite of a $3,000 reward offered by county commissioners for his capture. One of the reasons he was able to evade arrest was wearing a beard, and regularly changing its style, as the few pictures Perris showed him clean-shaven; he was always "smooth-faced" part of the time. The only identifying marks were a "prominent" dimple on his chin and a scar from a pistol-shot on his right eyebrow.
By the mid-1870s, he had become a familiar figure in New York's underworld and was among those associated with Fredericka "Marm" Mandelbaum
Fredericka Mandelbaum
Fredericka "Marm" Mandelbaum was a New York entrepreneur and operated as a criminal fence to many of the street gangs and criminals of the city's underworld, handling between $1-5 million in stolen goods between 1862 until 1884. Like her principal rival John D...
and John D. "Traveling Mike" Grady
John D. Grady
John D. "Traveling Mike" Grady was a New York criminal and, as leader of the Grady Gang, financed and organized many of the major burglaries of the 19th century...
. In 1875, Perris was recruited by George Leonidas Leslie along with Jimmy Hope, Jimmy Brady, Abe Coakley, Red Leary, Shang Draper, Johnny Dobbs, and "Banjo" Pete Emerson. The three-year plan to rob the Manhattan Savings Institution, occurring on on the morning of October 27, 1878, resulted in the theft of $300,000 in cash and securities. Earlier that year, Perris took part in robbing the Dexter Savings Bank in Dexter, Maine
Dexter, Maine
Dexter is a town in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,890 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Bangor, Maine metropolitan statistical area...
, with Jimmy Hope and Johnny Dobbs, in which he was alleged to have killed bank treasurer JH Barron. The Leslie Gang would be responsible for 80% of bank robberies in New York until Leslie's death in 1884.
When Leslie was found murdered at Tramps' Rock on June 4, 1884, Perris was taken into custody with Shang Draper and Johnny Dobbs. Police believed that Leslie had been murdered at a Brooklyn gang hideout, located at No. 101 Lynch Street, then carried off on a butcher cart driven by Perris, Dobbs and Ed Goodie to dump Leslie's body. The three men were seen near Yonkers around the time Leslie was discovered but all three were released due to lack of evidence.
Further reading
- Chidsey, Donald Barr. Goodbye to Gunpowder. New York: Crown Publishers, 1963.
- Van Every, Edward. Sins of New York: As "Exposed" By the Police Gazette. New York: Frederick A. Stokes, 1930.