It was lunch time on September 16th of 1920 when a plain looking man drove an old horse pulling a heavy horse cart down the streets of New York stopping in front of the U.S. Assay office directly across the street from the J.P Morgan building in the center of Wall Street. The plain looking driver got down from the cart and disappeared into the crowd. Minutes later there was a mighty explosion, killing more than 30 people and injuring at least 300. The cart, which was loaded with explosives and metal fragments tore through the crowd wreaking havoc among the pedestrians. The horse was vaporized.
At first no one was sure why the wagon had exploded or if it was intentional. That night cleaning crews cleared the debris and the next morning Wall Street was open for business, broken windows covered in canvas and workers in bandages.
Theories ran rampant as to what happened, and soon it became clear that this had to be an act of terrorism. The Bureau of Investigation, predecessor to the FBI, came on the scene, working with the U.S. Secret Service, and attempted to piece together what had happened. Leads were few, and there were no useful descriptions of the horse, cart, or the man who drove it. Eventually the NYPD was able to construct a crude reproduction of the bomb however no one was certain what explosive was used.
The best evidence was flyers from a group calling themselves the American Anarchist Fighters, demanding the release of political prisoners. They were similar to ones used in other bombings carried out by Italian anarchists. Efforts to trace who printed the flyers were fruitless. Based on the assumption that the bombing may be related to the previous incidents, the Bureau began to investigate the followers of anarchist Luigi Galleani. It was widely believed that Galleani was responsible for earlier bombings, but many witnesses fled the country and the case could not be proven, so no charges were pressed. A 1944 re-investigation by the FBI affirmed the belief that the attack was probably performed by Italian Anarchists.
To this day this is officially a cold case, with no resolution. The New York Times commented at the time.
"The details of the plot may never be uncovered. The miscreants responsible may go unwhipped of justice....The most reasonable theory of the explosion is that it was intended as a terrorizing demonstration. It is not the first. It surely will not be the last....The community must show that it is not to be intimidated....By keeping cool and firm we begin their defeat....They will be hunted down in their lairs like wild animals."
-Professor Walter
Comments