The Crescent City Lynchings: The Murder of Chief Hennessy, the New Orleans "Mafia" Trials, and the Parish Prison Mob

by Tom Smith

A compelling look at the murder of a police chief and the notorious anti-Italian mass lynching in turn-of-the-century New Orleans.

Genres: History, True Crime, American History, Nonfiction

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Ray Lang · Rating 3 out of 5]

Smith does a painstaking reconstruction of a very tragic series of events in late 19th century New Orleans. It's an unvarnished look at the culture and social attitudes of that time, especially the prejudice and bias against Italians in general and Sicilians in particular. He cuts through all the myth and lore about this affair that grew up over the following decades ("who killa da chief?" was used as an insult against Italians well into the 20th century). Smith's account includes a large cast of characters; and it can be hard to keep track of who's who. Also, the reader should keep a street map of the downtown area close at hand to really follow the action. The pace picks up in the second half of the book, once trials get underway. The parade of conflicting witnesses and stream of scarcely credible testimony makes one's head spin; and the aftermath of the Hennessy verdict is heart-wrenching. And, yes, the street of the same name is named after this guy.

[Adam Cherson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I rate this book a 4.1 on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being best. Lest we forget, southern Europeans, particularly Sicilians, have also faced mob persecution here in the good ole USA. This book presents an unknown aspect of reconstruction and its aftermath in the South (New Orleans). Many believe that the cultural meme identifying Italians with ‘organized crime’ originated from incidents such as the crescent city lynchings.

[Mike Burke · Rating 5 out of 5]

good book on the largest lynching in the US.

[Denver Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

We chose this book seeking answers. That was a huge let down. This book is full of half truths, and he said she said tales this is not to say the author did a bad job. It merely reflects on the people and the time. You could not determine who was or wasn’t telling the truth, so it became a huge debacle! Fortunately, our court systems are far more advanced and sophisticated than they were back then! We’re some of the systems we have in place now in place back then we would have gotten far more answers! Court reporters are a good thing!

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like I should have enjoyed this book more. I really can't say why it didn't. I just had a hard time staying interested. It seemed to drag. I may try to read it again another time.
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[Diane Schneider · Rating 2 out of 5]

This incident of mob violence made national news in its day, but has been quite forgotten by now. While it is an interesting story of how a lynching almost brought war with Italy, unfortunately the author failed to make a cohesive story out of so many diverse elements. A trial with many defendants and witnesses, not even a list of players in the beginning of the book could keep it from becoming confusing and muddled.

[Molly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this book. It was nonfiction, and not very fun. I wish they had woven some sort of relationship into it and kept about 1/4 of the hard facts. It was like reading a text book.

[Dennis Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

An account of a dark chapter in New Orleans history.