The Gambling Scene (Part I)

    The 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s were a historic time. Prohibition, the Great Depression, World War II. The headlines in the newspapers of the day are now milestones in American history. 

    No legal liquor, financial pressures, and global warfare. People looked for diversions and some weren’t lawful. Bootleg liquor was one diversion, at least until Prohibition ended in 1933. Another was gambling, which really seemed to take hold after Prohibition ended.

    Back in those days, very few forms of gambling were legal in Ohio, or most other areas of the country. Lotteries, slot machines, poker games, and even church bingo games and raffles were illegal. Horse racing was legalized in 1933, as long as bets were made at the track. Placing bets with a bookie was not legal.

     Although it didn’t have quite the sophisticated gambling setups that were found in Cleveland, Chicago, or even Newport, Kentucky, Hamilton County had a bustling gambling scene. The most active gambling establishments in the county were in Elmwood Place and St. Bernard. Although Fairfax didn’t have quite the reputation of Elmwood Place, it had three well-known gambling establishments, Kruse’s Smoke Shop, Fairfax Tavern, and Fairfax Club.

     It isn’t clear when, exactly, illegal gambling began in Fairfax, but the first mention I found about a gambling raid was in 1931. A new Democratic sheriff, Asa Butterfield had taken office in January and served notice that gambling in Hamilton County must end. Gamblers were reported to be shaking in their boots and scouting out new locations, reportedly in Northern Kentucky. A few weeks after taking office, Butterfield said that gambling in the county had been shut down without a single arrest. He said that authorities in incorporated areas were responsible for enforcing anti-gambling laws in their own municipalities.

     Fairfax was unincorporated at that time, so the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Department was the agency responsible for law enforcement here. In November 1931, a raid was made by the state Prohibition Office and the Sheriff’s Department at a house on Wooster Pike. Around 40 men and women were found drinking, playing cards, and operating slot machines. Gambling equipment and 12 gallons of whiskey were seized and the resident of the house was arrested and charged with possessing liquor.

    Although gambling in Fairfax wasn’t in the news over the next few years, it no doubt continued here, as it did in other parts of the county. The Sheriff’s Department continued to raid suspected gambling establishments and seized slot machines and other gambling paraphernalia. Touting his accomplishments during his 1934 campaign for reelection, Sheriff Butterfield stated that he had conducted 150 raids on gambling establishments and confiscated more slot machines during his time in office than his Republican predecessors had in 10 years.

     Butterfield was defeated in the November election by Republican George Lutz, Sr. Lutz declared war on commercial gambling, particularly in Elmwood Place. The Elmwood Place mayor vowed cooperation and announced a few days later that most gamblers had been driven out of town. A few weeks later, an investigation by the Cincinnati Post revealed that there was again open gambling in Elmwood Place.  The sheriff expressed his surprise. The mayor claimed ignorance of the bookmaking business in his village and said he thought the sheriff was taking care of it. The sheriff said he didn’t have the manpower to station men at all suspected gambling establishments.

     This was a pattern that would be repeated through the years during the terms of several sheriffs. The sheriff would vow to crack down on gambling in the county. He would then assert that municipal authorities were primarily responsible for enforcement of anti-gambling laws, but that the Sheriff’s Office would move in if local officials were unwilling or unable to enforce the law. Next, the authorities (the mayor, local law enforcement, the Sheriff’s Office) would declare that gambling had been shut down. Then, within a day or two, there would be a report (usually in the Cincinnati Post) of open gambling. The Sheriff’s Office would express surprise, make an excuse why they were unaware of the gambling, and then recommit to an anti-gambling campaign.

    One problem with shutting down gambling was that the consequences were so mild. Those who were arrested were usually only fined around $50. It was also nearly impossible to find witnesses who were willing to testify. In addition, many proprietors seemed to have a sixth sense and hid or removed slot machines and gambling paraphernalia immediately before law enforcement raids. This led to allegations of influence and bribery of elected officials. Usually, Republicans were suspected because so many prominent gamblers had ties to the Republican party.

     Fairfax began hitting the news again in late 1935 when Sheriff Lutz declared war on slot machines. Although he ordered his deputies to confiscate them, none had actually been seized. The Cincinnati Post found that there was open slot machine use in the county. A popular penny slot machine would pay off in cigarettes. A pack of cigarettes was about 15 cents in those days. However, it might cost as much as 40 cents to win a pack. The Post found one of these machines operating in a “Fairfax saloon.” The bartender said that other penny slot machines had been removed when the sheriff announced his crackdown.

     After the beginning of the new year, Post reporters were on the case again. One reported he played the penny slots and spent $1.02 to win three packs of cigarettes that would have only cost 45 cents if he bought them. These penny slot machines weren’t limited to bars, though. They were also found in drug stores and candy shops where children could play them. The slot machines had disappeared for a few days after Sheriff Lutz announced his crackdown, but were back in Fairfax and Mariemont soon thereafter. There were no other police departments or elected officials the Sheriff’s Office could blame for this, since they were responsible for law enforcement here.

     In September 1936 came a report that Elmwood Place gamblers were getting concerned about the new gambling establishments on the east side of the county. Of note was a new bookmaking business in Madison Place and a Fairfax establishment with a large parking lot that couldn’t accommodate all patrons on busy days.

     Despite Sheriff Lutz’s inability to shut down gambling in Hamilton County as promised, he was reelected in November 1936. As the year drew to a close, gambling raids continued, including at establishments in Fairfax and Madison Place. The Sheriff’s Office reported that they had seized over 75 slot machines in Fairfax and Elmwood Place and vowed that checkups on known gambling establishments in Fairfax, Madison Place, Plainville, Mt. Washington, and Elmwood Place would continue. Sheriff George Lutz, Sr. resigned due to illness and his son, George Lutz, Jr., was named as his successor. Sheriff Lutz, Jr. vowed to continue his father’s policies.

From the Cincinnati Post,  July 1, 1937

     In May 1938, Cincinnati Post reporters found slot machines “in taverns and cafes” in Fairfax and Mariemont. They also found gambling in a barroom in Madison Place where the patrons were mostly beer-guzzling women. A loudspeaker there announced horse racing results. There had been no attempt to hide this operation.

     A couple of months later, the Post reported that “authoritative” sources had informed them that a “politically controlled ring” had taken over slot machine operations in the county. Proceeds from the slot machines not only benefited the leaders of the ring, but were being diverted to political campaigns. The ring was allegedly led by a “prominent local political leader.” Independent slot machine operators were said to have been put out of business by uniformed police officers under the direction of a superior who was paid by the ring. The confiscated slot machines were replaced by machines owned by the ring. The ring then guaranteed protection to the operators. The slots were rigged and rarely paid out.

From the Cincinnati Post, July 1, 1938

     In August 1938, a grand jury investigated gambling in Hamilton County. The mayor of Reading testified that he had twice been approached by the fixer and collector of the slot machine ring. Sheriff’s deputies and café owners were called to testify. The Cincinnati Post reported that they had been informed that people associated with the slot machine ring had coached café owners how to testify. All café owners who testified denied having slot machines on their premises.

     The grand jury heard testimony from 104 witnesses, but disbanded without any indictments. The Post was critical of the grand jury’s report, which they said showed “clear indication of wholesale perjury.” The witnesses, they wrote, gave routine testimony for 10 to 15 minutes with no attempt to elicit the truth.

     For his part, Sheriff Lutz said he didn’t believe a slot machine ring was operating in the county and that he had questioned his deputies and they denied being bribed or influenced by anyone. The grand jury examined deputies’ bank accounts, safety deposit boxes, and property and found no evidence of bribery.

     In November 1938, Republican Fred Sperber was elected sheriff of Hamilton County. He promised to enforce gambling laws in unincorporated areas “as much as possible at least” and would allow local authorities to enforce laws in their own municipalities.

     A month later, slot machines were again operating in both incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county. Sheriff-elect Sperber vowed to initiate a drive to close down gambling in unincorporated areas and warn officials in incorporated areas. After he took office, Sperber’s men raided an establishment in Elmwood Place, the first gambling raid by the Sheriff’s Office in an incorporated area in years. The sheriff said he was targeting dice and card games, roulette, and slot machines. He said he didn’t have the manpower to take on bookmaking.

     The following day, deputies seized 10 slot machines that were openly displayed in establishments in unincorporated areas of the county. The day after that, Sperber announced that a routine inspection found no slot machines or open gambling. The Cincinnati Post loved to disprove this kind of statement and did so the following day, reporting that the politically-connected ring they reported on the prior summer was again operating slot machines.

     A month later, Sheriff Sperber announced that nearly all slot machine operations in the county had been shut down due to his department’s efforts. However, other observers attributed the apparent absence of slot machines to the expected enforcement campaign by state liquor agents at local drinking and gambling establishments.

     In August 1939, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office made its first arrest on bookmaking charges in several years when they arrested an Elmwood Place man at the Jungle Club in Fairfax. The man was fined $100, $50 of which he paid with the remaining $50 remitted by the Columbia Township magistrate. It is probably a good bet that he returned to bookmaking shortly after paying his fine.

     So, admittedly, Part I of this story doesn’t have a lot of Fairfax in it. Stay tuned for Part II next month, when Fairfax not only increasingly captures the attention of the press, law enforcement, and thieves, but also a local gambling bigwig.

LINK TO PART II