Cincinnati has always been infested with thieves, burglars, robbers and other rapscallions. Long ago, these illicit occupations acquired some quite colorful nicknames. This is especially true in the decades on either side of 1900. Here is a selection of underworld slang that is no longer in common parlance.

Porch-Climber

House burglars had any number of sobriquets at the turn of the last century, including house-man, parlor-jumper and stair-dancer. The Cincinnati Enquirer [21 December 1894] explained the origin of one term:

“The porch-climber, or second-story worker, is the burglar who climbs a porch or in some other way gets to the upper floors and robs the house – usually while the family are at supper or otherwise engaged down stairs.”

Keyworker

“The keyworker is a thief who uses a skeleton key, a pick, a pair of outsiders [strong steel clippers] or something else to unlock the doors of houses. He is the most dangerous thief, as he only has to assure himself that the coast is clear, and has no difficulty getting into any house.” Cincinnati Enquirer [21 December 1894]

Moll-Buzzer (or Molly Buzzer)

Some pickpockets specialized in victims of a particular gender. According to Cincinnati Enquirer [21 December 1894]:

“One class of ‘dip’ or pickpockets is the ‘moll-buzzer.’ He edges up to a woman in a crowd, and when he gets a chance grabs her purse and runs. He may have a pal who jumps in front of him and helps his escape.”

Gopher Man

The gopher man is a safecracker, but most often one who tunnels into the vault room from a next-door building. The Cincinnati Commercial [9 June 1876] described a most unusual hiding place for a gopher man’s tools:

“Yesterday forenoon while some parties were repairing a privy on the premises No. 353 Central avenue, a sort of bag, made from the foot of an old stocking, and containing some peculiar steel implements, was found fastened to the under side of the privy-seat with a gimlet. The bag and its contents were soon taken to the office of the Police Superintendent, as they appeared to be first-class burglar’s tools, probably made by James F. Dunbar, the gopher man who shot Officer Gallagher recently, and who had occupied a room in the house.”

Pennyweighter

A particular type of shoplifter, the pennyweighter, specialized in thefts from jewelry stores. The pennyweighter would often bring a cheap imitation piece into the store, walk off with an expensive item, and leave the imitation in its place. According to the Cincinnati Post [18 August 1898]:

“One of the schemes, as practiced by women, is to carry a roll of music loosely in the hand, or if a man, a newspaper, and when an article is obtained, to either drop it into the folds of the roll or let the edge of the roll pick it up.”

Pappy Rouster

The type of robbers known as “pappy rousters” were mostly found among the hangers-on at circuses and traveling shows. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer [23 June 1906], these crooks would …

“ … ‘go through’ a likely looking elderly man by surrounding him in a crowd and then deftly cleaning out his pockets, known as ‘breeches,’ right, left, ‘insiders’ and ‘peat’ or lock pockets before he can call for help.”

Stiff Grafter

A “grafter” of any type was a thief, but the stiff grafter, also known as a “funeral dip,” was a pickpocket who specialized in stealing from mourners attending funerals. One such stiff grafter was Dan “the Goat” Foley, who shot Cincinnati Detective Cal Crim. According to the Cincinnati Post [21 October 1901]:

“In Foley’s possession were found a list of death notices clipped from a Cincinnati newspaper, in which he had marked those of persons of wealth, showing that he intended to continue his old criminal specialty as a robber of persons attending funerals.”

Queer Pusher

As an example of how slang evolves over the years, this term had nothing to do with sexual preference, but described a criminal adept at circulating counterfeit money. Although counterfeiters (sometimes called “penmen”) were good artists, they had little skill at “pushing the queer,” or selling their wares at a discount to other criminals.

Panel Worker

The panel worker was not a carpenter, but a thief who hid in a hotel room – sometimes in a closet, but often in a compartment covered by a panel of wainscoting. When a prostitute brought a customer into the room, she gave a signal when he fell asleep. At that point, the panel worker emerged, emptied the customer’s pockets and escaped before he woke up.

Badger Game

The badger game was somewhat related to panel work, and was often practiced by the same gangs. In the badger game, a woman brought a man into a hotel room, or into a bedroom at a house or apartment. She signaled when the man had undressed. In reply, another man, claiming to be her husband, rushed into the room and demanded satisfaction from the home-wrecker. The victims, often rural gentlemen in town to sell produce or livestock, usually gave up all their money rather than cause a public scene.

Short Worker

This dodge has nothing to do with height. If a pickpocket or thief is said the “work the shorts,” it means that he specializes in robbing passengers of their packages as they enter or exit a streetcar. Sometimes, “working the shorts” meant picking pockets on a moving streetcar.

Soap Caper

Some dishonest men practiced the soap caper because it generated a fair amount of money without breaking any laws. A couple of guys bought a case of cheap soap and some cheaper perfume. They cut of the soap into smaller bars, sprayed it with perfume and wrapped it in colorful paper. One of the men, dressed as a “dude” or “fancy-pants” set up a sidewalk stand and did a terrible job selling his wares. The other fellow, after harassing the dude, challenged him to a sales contest. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer [5 July 1884]:

“The bet is generally quite a large one, and as sympathy is entirely with the common-looking fellow, the crowd comes to his support, and he rapidly sells out his share of the soap, and finally also disposes of the greater part of the other’s packages.”

No theft, no fraud, no crime; only the perennial frailty of human credulity.