The Chicago Gaylords, also known as the Almighty Gaylords, is the oldest White Chicago street gang. It originated in the neighborhood of Grand and Noble. The original president of the Gaylords selected the name after reading about the Gaylords of France in the public library. The Chicago Gaylords started out as one of the clubs that were started by veterans post-World War II. Many of these social clubs had their own clubhouses and baseball teams. The Gaylord's clubhouse was on the corner of Ohio and Noble Street. The Chicago Gaylords would eventually leave the Ohio and Noble area as the neighborhood's population became more Latino.
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Gang expansion
During their peak period in the 1970s, the Chicago Gaylords held sets (or sections) in both the North Side and the South Side of Chicago. Their South Side sections included Back of the Yards (around 55th & Ashland, Sherman Park), Marquette Park, Pilsen (18th & Western), and Bridgeport (Throop Street). Their North Side presence included Humboldt Park (Moffat & Campbell); Logan Square (Palmer & California, Lawndale & Altgeld); Irving Park (Albany & Byron); Kilbourn Park (Cornelia & Kilbourn); Dunham Park (Montrose & Narragansett); Ravenswood (Seeley & Ainslie); and Uptown (Sunnyside & Magnolia, Lawrence & Broadway). During the 1960s thru the early 1980s, the Chicago Gaylords experienced tremendous growth and expansion, with sections popping up all over Chicago.
Greaser legacy
Gaylords were also into brawling with fists and traditional type weapons like bricks, baseball bats, chains and knives. As the rules of engagement on the streets of Chicago changed, the Gaylords were forced to use guns and increase their level of violence to combat their enemies. The Gaylords had a strong presense and experienced continual growth throughout the 1980s. They remained in their traditional neighbourhoods while White families moved to the suburbs, and gentrification of poor White neighborhoods eliminated their ability to recruit new talent. Today, they are a shell of what they used to be: a gang with over a thousand members.
Gang structure
Unlike other street nations or gangs, the Gaylords have never had any major president or leader that was in control of the entire collective group. The Gaylords have one or two leaders from each settlement:
| Divisions Within Sets | Age Group |
|---|---|
| Slylords/Palmer Puds | Under 13 |
| Midgets | 13 to 15 |
| PeeWees | 16 to 18 |
| Juniors | 18 to 20 |
| Seniors | 21 and older |
A Gang research map of Chicago shows the Gaylords having a large section in the North and North West Sides with many rival gangs surrounding their turf like the Royals and Imperial Gangsters there most heated rivals. The Chicago Gaylords were mentioned in print in the 1979 book Who Runs Chicago?. They were also listed as Chicago's fourth largest gang, and the largest White street gangs in the city.
References
- Kilian, Michael, Flether, Connie Flether, and Ciccone, Richard F. (1979). Who Runs Chicago:? New York: St. Martin's Press, p.165.
- Scott, Michael Lords Of Lawndale: My Life in a Chicago White Street Gang
