Casper Holstein
Casper Holstein | |
|---|---|
Casper Holstein, in Opportunity magazine | |
| Born | December 6, 1877 |
| Died | April 5, 1944 (aged 66) New York, NY, USA |
Casper Alexander Holstein (December 6, 1877 – April 5, 1944) was a prominent New York mobster involved in the Harlem "numbers rackets" during the 1920s. He was also a philanthropist and small banker. His giving funded literary prizes during the Harlem Renaissance. Born in the Virgin Islands, he continued to support and aid his community from New York through lobbying for civil rights and providing direct economic aid.
Early life
Caspar Alexander Holstein was born on December 6, 1875 in Christiansted when the islands were under Danish rule.[1][2] He attended schools in the Danish school system on Saint Croix.[1] In 1888, Holstein moved to New York City with his mother.
During World War I, he was able to revisit his birthplace while stationed in what had become the United States Virgin Islands.[3] He served in the United States Navy for more than four years.[1] He learned embalming in Chicago, but didn't complete his courses.[4]
Rebirth of the Harlem numbers racket
By the end of the 1920s, Holstein had become a dominant figure among Harlem's numerous policy operators.[5] Although both he and rival, Stephanie St. Clair, claimed to have invented the way that "numbers games" chose the winning number, both claims have long been in dispute.[6]
Political activism
Holstein was a major donor towards charitable purposes such as building dormitories at black colleges, as well as financing many of the neighborhood's artists, writers, and poets during the Harlem Renaissance.
He bought the mortgage on the New York hall of the Universal Negro Improvement Association.[7] He was a supporter of Marcus Garvey.[8] He also helped establish a Baptist school in Liberia and supported an orphanage in Gary, Indiana.[9]
He supported the literary arts. He was a financial contributor to the literary banquets hosted by Opportunity: A Journal of Negro Life.[2] He also wrote for Opportunity, especially on topics relating to the Virgin Islands.[10]
Virgin Islands
Holstein felt connected to the Virgin Islands and provided economic aid to the islands, spending more than $250,000 in Saint Croix.[11] Holstein was against martial rule in the Virgin Islands, going to the Federal government of the United States to lobby against "naval rule" of the islands.[12] Holstein provided hurricane relief for his native Virgin Islands in 1924 and 1928 providing large sums of money and building materials.[11][13][14]
Kidnapping and loss of fortune
On September 21, 1928, Holstein was kidnapped and held for a ransom of $50,000.[15] He was released three days later, insisting that no ransom was paid.
After the kidnapping his fortune began to decline.[13] By 1931, Holstein was considered "broke" as gambling began to prove less lucrative and white gangsters pushed Black competition away.[16][17]
Death and legacy
Holstein died in New York on April 5, 1944 in the home of Alverstone Smothergill, a beneficiary of his philanthropic work.
In popular culture
Casper Holstein appears by name portrayed by actor Rony Clanton as the largest operator in the New York City numbers game in the 1984 movie, The Cotton Club.[18] Valentin Narcisse, played by Jeffrey Wright, on season 4 and 5 of the HBO period crime-drama Boardwalk Empire was inspired by Holstein.[19]
References
- ^ a b c Chepesiuk 2007, p. 23.
- ^ a b Charles 1999, p. 563.
- ^ Fabre, Geneviève Fabre and Michel Feith. Temples for Tomorrow: Looking Back at the Harlem Renaissance. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 2001. ISBN 0-253-21425-4
- ^ Hall 1939, p. 2.
- ^ Hall 1939, p. 3.
- ^ Crime Library, Black Gangs of Harlem : 1920-1939, "Harlem gangs from the 1920s and 1930s - the Crime library". Archived from the original on 2006-03-07. Retrieved 2006-03-31.
- ^ Chepesiuk 2007, p. 27.
- ^ Hall 1939, p. 7.
- ^ Hall 1939, p. 6.
- ^ Charles 1999, p. 565.
- ^ a b "Black History Spotlight: Casper Holstein". St. John Source. 2008-02-07. Retrieved 2025-11-08.
- ^ Frank, Bill (1970-02-25). "College of Virgin Islands Offers No Black Studies". The Morning News. p. 10. Retrieved 2025-11-07 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Caspar Holstein, Harlem Magnate, Is in Island Row". The Buffalo News. 1935-04-12. p. 24. Retrieved 2025-11-07 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Chepesiuk 2007, p. 28.
- ^ De Jongh 1990, p. 75-76.
- ^ "Caspar Holstein, New York Policy King, Reported 'Broke'; Friends Refuse Aid". The Northwest Enterprise. 1931-04-09. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-11-07 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Kahn 1987, p. 262.
- ^ Berry, Faith (1985-03-10). "'Cotton Club' Doesn't Tell It Like it Was". Oakland Tribune. p. 25. Retrieved 2025-11-08 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Moaba, Alex (2013-09-05). "'Boardwalk Empire': Jeffrey Wright On The Real-Life Racketeer Who Inspired His Season 4 Character (VIDEO)". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2013-09-17.
Sources
- Charles, Mario A. (1999). "Caspar A. Holstein". In Smith, Jessie Carney (ed.). Notable Black American Men. Gale Research, Inc. ISBN 0787607630 – via Internet Archive.
- Chepesiuk, Ron (2007). Gangsters of Harlem. Barricade Books Inc. ISBN 9781569803189 – via Internet Archive.
- De Jongh, James (1990). Vicious Modernism: Black Harlem and the Literary Imagination. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521326206 – via Internet Archive.
- Hall, Sadie (29 August 1939). "Caspar Holstein". Writers' Program, New York City: Negroes of New York Collection. Works Progress Administration – via New York Public Library.
- Kahn, Bonnie Menes (1987). Cosmopolitan Culture: The Gilt-Edged Dream of a Tolerant City. New York: Atheneum. ISBN 0689118457 – via Internet Archive.
External links
- "Harlem's Virgin Islanders" (PDF). (88.8 KiB) by Sara Smollett