Joseph Gayles (c. 1844 – May 29, 1873), also known as ''Socco the Bracer'', was one of the leaders of the

Patsy Conroy Gang The Patsey Conroy Gang or Patsy Conroys were a group of river pirates active along the New York City waterfront of the old Fourth Ward during the post-American Civil War era. For nearly twenty years the Patsy Conroys dominated the area of C ...

which plagued the dockyards of the

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

waterfront during the 1860s and 1870s. Described by New York police as one of the most vicious criminals on the docks, Gayles was suspected to be responsible for the murders of at least 20 men. According to one account, after finding little worth stealing in a raid on a

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the l ...

, Gayles tied a sailor to a sea chest filled with sugar and heaved the chest overboard along with the sailor as he and three other members of the gang watched the man drown. On the night of May 29, 1873, Gayles sailed out into New York Harbor with Bum Mahoney and

Billy Woods Billy Woods (born 1978) is an American rapper based in New York. He is the founder of the record label Backwoodz Studioz, and has been a member of Armand Hammer, Super Chron Flight Brothers, and The Reavers. Early life Billy Woods was born in W ...

with the intention of raiding the brig ''Margaret'' while waiting to be loaded with cargo. While successfully sneaking on board, the captain and two crew members were awakened while the three river pirates were attempting to open a sea chest. After fighting with the crew, the three men were forced to flee and managed to sail away disappearing in the fog. As they attempted to sail to shore however, Gayles and his accomplices were spotted by a police patrol in a rowboat and, exchanging fire with the officers, Gayles was shot in the chest. As the two other gang members continued to row, Woods told Mahoney to dump Gayles overboard to lighten their weight in an attempt to outrun their pursuers. Gayles managed to swim back to the boat and, despite Woods' calls to beat the gang leader's knuckles with the oar; Mahoney pulled Gayles back on. He soon died however, and the two men once again threw him over the side as they made their escape. His body was found floating in the harbor four days later.

References

* Asbury, Herbert. ''The Gangs of New York''. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1927. *Sifakis, Carl. ''The Encyclopedia of American Crime''. New York: Facts on File Inc., 2005. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gayles, Joseph 1840s births 1873 deaths Gang members of New York City American pirates 19th-century pirates