Mugs in the Jug: 1920s Mugshots

“Of what good could can these twisted and unnatural faces be?  Were their owners met in the streets their countenances would be composed…No one would know them then.  Well, that is all wrong…The sun has been too quick for them, and has imprisoned the lines of the profile and the features and caught the expression before it could be disguised.  There is not a portrait here but has some marked characteristic by which you can identify the man who sat for it.  That is what has to be studied in the Rouges’ Gallery—detail.”

–Chief Inspector Thomas Byrnes, referring to the “Rogue’s Gallery,” his collection of identifying photographs of career criminals throughout New York City, in his book, Professional Criminals of America, 1886¹

A Brief History of the Mug Shot:

Some of the earliest photographs ever taken were of criminals.²  The first recognizable mug shot was taken in Belgium in 1843, with police in Liverpool following close behind in 1848.³  The kind of mug shots we all recognize today, however—a full-on portrait next to a profile shot—didn’t appear until the 1880s, when a man named Alphonse Bertillon invented the first organized system for criminal identification in Paris.  Known as the Bertillon System, it involved taking precise measurements of a criminal’s body, noting things like arm length and the “lengths of the middle left fingers” in order to help police identify repeat offenders who might give another name when arrested.⁴  While Bertillon started out with meticulous lists of arm, leg, forehead and finger measurements, his system grew over time to include height, weight, hair and eye color, fingerprints—and mug shots.

Alphonse Bertillon, testing out his own photograph system.

Bertillon’s photos were very different from the previous ones, however.  Earlier mug shots were often low quality images taken by “indifferent commercial photographers,” with little attention paid as to whether or not the criminal was attempting to “intentionally distort their face to disguise their appearance” or if the background was distracting.⁵  Instead, Bertillon favored a “stark and simple” background with minimal distractions for his mug shots and encouraged neutral expressions.⁶

Bertillon’s non-nonsense photo style caught on quickly in America.  His entire System was first introduced to American law enforcement in 1887 by R. W. McClaughry, the Warden of the Illinois State Penitentiary in Joliet, IL, who translated his books into English and applied his measuring system to his inmates.⁷  Shortly afterward the Chicago Police Department adapted Bertillon’s system, becoming the first police department in America to do so.  They then went on to demonstrate his system at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893 for visiting foreign police, encouraging the spread of the mug shot internationally.⁸

Bertillon’s System, including mug shot set-up, from the Chicago 1893 World’s Fair.

Allan Pinkerton, founder of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency, was another early proponent of mug shots.  While sometimes credited with the creation of the mug shot, Pinkerton is also known for being one of the first people to compile his photos into a “mug book”—a “primitive database” of known criminals—and sending it to banks and “cops across the country” along with pertinent details about the subjects’ crimes, thus creating early “rap” sheets.⁹  Pinkerton also popularized mug shots by slapping them on “Wanted” posters across the nation, forever associating mug shots with established criminal records.¹⁰

A sample page from one of Pinkerton’s “mug books.” Note the guy in the middle right who had to be held down for his portrait!

Mug shots are still part of today’s criminal booking process.  After recording the suspect’s name, the next step in booking is to take a mug shot.¹¹  These shots can be used in court, but many see them as having a negative effect on juries.  Ever since Pinkerton’s Wanted posters, most people naturally assume that any individual depicted in a mug shot must have some kind of criminal record.¹²  As a result, a number of states have disallowed their use in court.¹³

Some people consider mug shots to be art.  Mark Michaelson is an avid collector of mugshots, which he reposts on a Flickr stream as found art objects.  Michaelson was originally given his first mugshot as a birthday gift.¹⁴  Since then, his haunting collection of “hookers, stooges, grifters and goons…punks, sneaks, mooks and miscreants…men and women…Elderly and adolescent…Rich and poor” has grown to over 10,000 photos over a period of ten years.¹⁵  Not just any mugshot will do, however.  Michaelson says about choosing the photos for his collection: “[after a while] I started to figure out that I wasn’t interested in famous criminals or people who’d committed big crimes or very violent crimes…I wanted the small-time people, petty crooks who just fell through the cracks.  Instead of being most wanted, these were the least wanted.”¹⁶

Michaelson’s “strange kind of scavenger hunt” was recently turned into another kind of art.¹⁷  Not only were some of his photos published in a 2006 book, but he and his collection  were the subject of a 2014 Toronto documentary called American Mugshot. His Flickr stream, Least Wanted, which he updates daily, can be found here.

The Mugshots:

The following Roaring Twenties mug shots are some of my favorites from around the internet.  Most of the “artsy”-looking ones are public domain photos courtesy of The Sydney Living Museum’s collections, while the rest are from the Nebraska State Historical Society.  The Australian ones are more informal than the others, but that’s just part of their charm.  Personally I think they’re all wonderful.  Not only does each one showcase period dress in crisp detail, but the best ones are bursting with personality.  The occasional notes written about the person’s crimes are fascinating, too.  For me, they spark all sorts of questions and story ideas…

What do they make you think of?

I love the “screw you, coppers” attitude these guys have. They remind me of the characters in my novel, even though they’re from Australia. Heck, de Gracy (left) might as well be my zombie gangster, Pierce. He’s certainly got the cheekbones for it, plus the creepy dead eyes… 😉

William Cahill, arrested in Sydney in 1923 for reasons unknown. Looks like a nice fella 🙂

This classy egghead was arrested in 1924 for impersonating a businessman in Sydney. He could be a cousin of another fella a few photos down from Nebraska…

“Silent Tom” Richards and some of his buddies, circa 1920. I like how “silent” Tom (far left) looks like he’s just about to speak…

Arrested for stealing books in 1921 and again in 1922. Went on to become a gang member in Sydney, Australia

A confident-looking safebreaker from Australia, circa 1924.

The written note says it all, I think. Sydney, Australia, 1928.

Hampton Hirscham and others. Looks like just another day at the office for these fellas, am I right? 😉 Sydney, 1921.

James Pappas, arrested in Nebraska for arson. Looks a lot like Skukerson, doesn’t he? 1926.

 

Didn’t think I’d leave out the women, did you?  A. Gunderson, 1922, Sydney, Australia. Nice coat!

P. Neil, not sure about the year.  Sydney, Australia. That dress is…interesting.

Interesting face. Also a vicious murderer, apparently. Sydney, 1921.

E. Ashton, a socialite with an interesting and illegal hobby: backyard abortionist. I love how she poses for the full-body shot, too.  Sydney, Australia, 1929.

C. Randall, a very tired-looking–and accomplished–con artist. Sydney, Australia, 1923.

Fay Wilson, socialite and cocaine junkie. Awesome pearls, and love the hair and shoes. Sydney, Australia, 1928.

Such a nice old lady, right? Nope! Ada McGuinnus here was one of the biggest cocaine dealer in Sydney at the time. Go figure! New South Wales, Australia, 1929.

Doris Winifred Poole, shoplifter. Sydney, Australia, 1924.

F. Murray, known thief with a “quiet” disposition.  OMG, the hair! And the angsty glare. And the hair! Sydney, Australia, 1929.

H. Ellis, professional thief and jack-of-all-trades, including safebreaking. Love the attitude here! Totally a repeat offender. Sydney, Australia, circa 1920s.

Not Period, But Still Awesome:

For a guy getting 10 years for manslaughter, he looks pretty damn happy! Ray George, from 1890s Nebraska.

This prim and proper Victorian lady was convicted of blackmail and prostitution. Love the monocle, classy! Mrs. H.C. Adams, Omaha, Nebraska, 1900.

This angry woman was a Chicago prostitute who got picked up in Omaha for vagrancy. Goldie Williams, Omaha, Nebraska, 1898.

 

Want More Photos?

Most of these images came from here–and there are a LOT more there.  As for the Nebraska ones, they came from here.

Works Cited:

^{1. Conway, J. North. The Big Policeman: The Rise and Fall of America’s First, Most Ruthless, and Greatest Detective. Guilford, CN: Lyons Press. 2010. 191.←}

^{2. Papke, David R. “A History of the Mug Shot,” Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog. http://law.marquette.edu/facultyblog/2013/10/16/a-history-of-the-mug-shot/←}

^{3. Wikipedia contributors, “Mug shot,” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mug_shot&oldid=645213872←}

^{4. Fisher, Jim. “Alphonse Bertillon: The Father of Criminal Identification,” Jim Fisher: the Official Website. January 8th 2008. http://jimfisher.edinboro.edu/forensics/bertillon1.html←}

^{5. Ibid.←}

^{6. Wikipedia, “Mug Shot.”←}

^{7. “Bertillon System of Criminal Identification,” National Law Enforcement Museum Insider. Vol. 3, Issue 9, November 2011. http://www.nleomf.org/museum/news/newsletters/online-insider/november-2011/bertillon-system-criminal-identification.html←}

^{8. Deflem, Mathieu. 2004. Policing World Society: Historical Foundations of International Police Cooperation. Oxford University Press. 94.←}

^{9. Kovalchik, Kara. January 29, 2015. “Who Originated the Mug Shot?” mental_floss. http://mentalfloss.com/article/61358/who-originated-mug-shot-america←}

^{10. Wikipedia, “Mug Shot.”←}

^{11. Berman, Sarah J. “What Happens During Booking?” NOLO: Law for All. 2014. http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/what-happens-during-booking.html←}

^{12. Wikipedia, “Mug Shot.” ←}

^{13. Ibid.←}

^{14. Michaelson, Mark, and Steven Kasher. 2006. Least wanted: a century of American mugshots. New York: Steven Kasher Gallery.←}

^{15. Ibid.←}

^{16. Kennedy, Randy. September 15th, 2006. “Grifters and Goons, Framed (and Matted),” The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/15/arts/design/15mugs.html?n=Top%2FReference%2FTimes%20Topics%2FPeople%2FH%2FHearst%2C%20Patricia&_r=1&←}

^{17. Ibid.a title=”Jump back to footnote 17 in text.”>←}