Nucky Johnson's Organization

Nucky Johnson's Organization

Enoch "Nucky" Johnson (second from right) and Alphonse "Scarface" Capone (third from right) on the boardwalk during the Atlantic City Conference
Founded	1870s
Founded by	Louis Kuehnle
Founding location	Atlantic City, Atlantic County, NJ USA
Years active	c. 1870s–1970s
Territory	South Jersey
Criminal activities	Racketeering, illegal gambling, prostitution, bootlegging, number writing, bribery, bookmaking, police corruption, political corruption, extortion, money laundering, smuggling, and drug trafficking
Allies	Charlie Luciano, Johnny Torrio, Benny Siegel, Frank Hague, Walter Evans Edge, and Arnold Rothstein

Nucky Johnson's Organization was a political machine based in Atlantic City, New Jersey that held power during the Prohibition era. Its boss, Enoch "Nucky" Johnson, coordinated the Organizations's bootlegging, gambling, racketeering, and prostitution activities.

Before the rise of German American political boss Louis "Commodore" Kuehnle and Irish American treasurer Nucky Johnson, Atlantic City's government was run by a three-man group, including: Atlantic County Clerk Lewis P. Scott (1854-1907) and Congressman John J. Gardner (1845-1921), and Mays Landing sheriff and Atlantic City undersheriff Smith E. Johnson.

After the conviction of Kuehnle in 1911, Smith Johnson's son became boss of the organization. Under his son's new regime, the organization became more successful for the next 30 years than it would ever be.

Smith Johnson's son Enoch Lewis "Nucky" Johnson was born in 1883. Nucky became undersheriff in 1905 while his father was sheriff of Atlantic City. The younger Johnson was eventually elected sheriff in 1908. In 1909, he secretary of the very powerful Atlantic County Republican Executive Committee. After the conviction of Kuehnle on corruption charges in 1911, the younger Johnson became boss of the organization.