256

Records of the Piping Rock casino connected to mafia figure Meyer Lansky.

Saratoga Springs, NY, 1928-1933
5 items, minor to moderate wear.

The Piping Rock casino was among the most prominent of the Saratoga Springs lake houses that  offered illicit gambling, and formed a gaudy vacation destination in the early 20th century. It opened circa 1928, was controlled by the famous gangster Meyer Lansky, and was destroyed by suspected arson in 1954. It should not be confused with the posh country club with a similar name which has operated on Long Island since 1911. This lot includes:

Original stock certificate book of Piping Rock-Saratoga, Inc. Oblong folio, 8½ x 15 inches, original cloth with gilt lettering on front board, minor wear. Includes 13 completed transfer stubs, 4 with completed certificates still attached, 3 detached cancelled certificates, and 12 blank certificates still attached to the stubs. Stockholders included local lawyer Carleton J. King (later a congressman). Lansky is not listed as stockholder or officer. No place, August 1930 to September 1932.

Bernard Audit Company. "Report of the Piping Rock." 3, [14] typescript carbon pages including folding tables, signed by accountant. Covers 1 August to 12 September 1933, including a balance sheet, lists of accounts payable and receivable, a detailed daily summary of casino income, and more. Over this six-week period, Piping Rock drew in $39,588 of gross income from its restaurant, $138,995 from the casino, but with $188,653 of operating expenses reported a $10,070 loss. The daily casino income is broken down for roulette, hazzard, craps, black jack, money wheels, bird cage, and chemin de fer, with roulette and craps generating most of the income. Categories which lost money on the day are typed in red. New York, 15 September 1933.

Typescript list of daily liquor inventory purchases, 1928-1929.

3 leaves of miscellaneous account memoranda, 1928-1933.

Newspaper clipping regarding an injunction granted to the club, 25 July 1932.

With--Certified typescript record of the Saratoga Springs criminal docket for 10 September 1952, in case of "the People against Meyer Lansky," typed and certified on 6 September 1974; and other research materials. 

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