GANGSTERS, BOOTLEGGERS, & FEDS
WANTED! You! To discover the seedy side of Prohibition Era St Paul!
“If you were looking for a guy you hadn’t seen for a few months, you usually thought of two places — prison or St. Paul.” - Alvin “Creepy” Karpis
In the 1930s St Paul was known as a “crooks haven”, a safe place for criminals to hide or reside under the knowing gaze of the city police force. During this 2-hour tour, your guide brings the past to life as you walk the same streets that made our capital city so attractive to gangsters and bank robbers, bootleggers and kidnappers. Discover how dirty cops, Prohibition, and the Great Depression combined to create a St Paul for sinners and see where many were eventually brought to justice.
Includes a drink in a former notorious gambling den and speakeasy AND popcorn from a St Paul institution that got its start during the gangster days.
Tour Information
2024 DATES
- Public Tour: 3pm-5pm Fridays (Jun - Sep)
- Private Tour: Select your own day and time! Contact us for availability and booking
PRICE
- Public Tour: $45 per person
- Private Tour: Varies depending on number of guests
LOCATION
- Begins at Science Museum of Minnesota (120 W Kellogg Blvd, St Paul, MN 55102) outside main entrance on Kellogg Blvd; ends on St Peter Street
Highlights
- Hear how St Paul became a safe haven city, opening the door for many of America's most wanted criminals to hide out during prohibition and beyond
- Learn about Prohibition and its Minnesota connections
- Visit sites where hideouts and speakeasies and gangsters mixed in with ordinary businesses and citizens
- Munch on popcorn from a St Paul institution that got its start during the gangster days
- Have a drink in a former notorious gambling den and speakeasy
- See where bootleggers and other notorious gangsters faced the music in federal court
- Walk in the footsteps of the likes of John Dillinger, Pretty Boy Floyd, Doc Barker, "Creepy" Karpis, Bugs Moran, J Edgar Hoover and more
- Researched and accurate historical facts
Includes
- A choice of our signature Bootlegger cocktail, craft beer, wine or MN made Lift Bridge Root Beer Soda at a revitalized gangster’s hangout – drink where the gangsters drank!
- The same tasty popcorn that gangsters enjoyed before going to the pictures – this historic shop is a real treat!
- Knowledgeable tour guide
Overview
WANTED! You! To discover the seedy side of Prohibition Era St Paul!
“If you were looking for a guy you hadn’t seen for a few months, you usually thought of two places — prison or St. Paul.” ~Alvin “Creepy” Karpis
In the 1930s St Paul was known as a “crooks haven”, a safe place for criminals to hide or reside under the knowing gaze of the city police force. Police profited off the nefarious activities of infamous criminals John Dillinger, “Baby Face” Nelson, “Machine Gun" Kelly, the Barker-Karpis Gang, “Scarface” Al Capone, and many more. Your guide brings the past to life as you walk the same streets that made our capital city so attractive to gangsters and bank robbers, bootleggers and kidnappers. Below your feet lie miles of dank, disused tunnels once the network for transporting illicit beer and liquor. Sip your included cocktail at a modern-day speakeasy located in a former notorious gambling den. Discover how dirty cops, Prohibition, and the Great Depression combined to create a St Paul for sinners and see where many were eventually brought to justice.