 Prominent members of the Whyos Gang during its heyday in the late 1870s-early 1880s
Top row left to right: Baboon Connolly, Josh Hines, Bull Hurley Middle row left to right: Clops Connelly, Dorsey Doyle, Googy Corcaran Bottom row left to right: Mike Lloyd, Piker Ryan, Red Rocks Farrell | |
| Founding location | Bowery, Manhattan, New York City |
|---|---|
| Years active | 1860s-1890s |
| Territory | The Bowery, Manhattan, New York City |
| Ethnicity | Irish American |
| Membership (est.) | ? |
| Criminal activities | street fighting, knife fighting assault, murder, robbery, arson, rioting, extortion, prostitution |
The Whyos or Whyos Gang, a collection of the various post-Civil War street gangs of New York City, was the city's dominant street gang during the mid-late 19th century. The gang controlled most of Manhattan from the late 1860s until the early 1890s, when the Monk Eastman Gang defeated the last of the Whyos. The name came from the gang's cry, which sounded like a bird or owl calling, "Why-oh!"