Sophie Lyons | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | December 24, 1848 Lauben, Germany |
| Died | May 8, 1924 (aged 75) Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
| Other names | Madame d'Varney Sophia Lyons Sophie Lyons-Burke Mary Watson |
| Occupation(s) | Thief, shoplifter, confidence woman |
| Spouse(s) | Maury Harris Ned Lyons Jim Brady Billy Burke (criminal) |
| Children | 7 |
Sophie Lyons (December 24, 1848 – May 8, 1924) was an American criminal and one of the country's most notorious female thieves, pickpockets, shoplifters, and confidence women during the mid-to-late 19th century. She and her husbands Ned Lyons, Jim Brady and Billy Burke were among the most sought-after career criminals in the U.S. and Canada, being wanted in several major cities including New York City, Philadelphia, Boston, Detroit and Montreal from the 1860s until the turn of the 20th century.
She and Lyons were prominent underworld figures in New York City during the post-American Civil War era as associates of Marm Mandelbaum, Lyons being a member of Mandelbaum's "inner circle" during the 1860s and 1870s.[1] She eventually retired from criminal life and spent her later years involved in the rehabilitation of juvenile delinquents, and providing financial assistance and housing for reformed criminals and their families. Her autobiography, Why Crime Does Not Pay (1913), was published and distributed by publisher William Randolph Hearst.[2][3]
- ^ Asbury, Herbert. The Gangs of New York: An Informal History of the New York Underworld. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1928. (pg. 197) ISBN 978-1-56025-275-7
- ^ Indianapolis News. "Criminology: Sophie Lyons' Success". Vol. I. No. 1. South Whitney, Indiana: Atoz Printing Company, 1916. (pg. 14)
- ^ Segrave, Kerry (2001). Shoplifting: A Social History. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 3. ISBN 978-0-7864-0908-2. Retrieved March 12, 2020 – via Internet Archive.