This is an article about the small city across the river from my hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio. Newport is home to the Southgate House, which is sometimes referred to as the birthplace of the Tommy Gun. The city of Newport was also one of the worst illegal gambling spots in the country, which is stated in the article below. I haven't been able to find a whole lot of good information about Newport's organized crime, so if anyone knows anything about it, please fill me in!
And here is a picture I took of what used to be called the Syndicate, which I've been told was a popular hangout for gangsters.
How Newport, Kentucky went from ‘sin city’ to sunny side of CincinnatiLinda Prince didn’t feel “called” to fight pornography in Northern Kentucky.
“Nor do I feel called to clean the toilets in my home,” she said. “But when you consider the alternative, there are some things we just have to do.”
Prince is among several citizens and government officials in Newport, Ky., who work to keep the city clean of sexually oriented businesses.
Known for its aquarium and quaint, historical neighborhoods, Newport is a “sunny-side” suburb of Cincinnati.
But its history is dark.
The start of illegal gambling and prostitution in Newport is traced to activities near the city’s U.S. Army barracks following the Civil War. By the early 1900s, gambling and prostitution were well-established businesses. In the 1930s, the growing city boasted a population of 30,000. It also had 44 gambling establishments and 14 houses of prostitution.
After the enactment of prohibition, organized crime became a prominent force in Northern Kentucky. Local government officials and law enforcement became corrupt.
In 1951, the United States Senate Committee on Organized Crime named Northern Kentucky one of the worst illegal gambling spots in the country.
In the midst of open corruption and crime, the Newport Ministerial Association began to meet regularly. The members earnestly sought reform.The ministers formed a social activism committee and recruited other members from throughout the community.
“Where illegal activity existed, it existed because the public officials allowed it to be there,” said committee members, who proceeded to file charges against corrupt officials including the county judge, county police chief, the sheriff, the district detective, the mayor of Newport and the Newport chief of police.
The social activism committee successfully removed about six officials from office.
Despite the victories, sexually oriented businesses continued to thrive in Newport.
Then, in 1961, George Ratterman, a former Notre Dame football star, ran for sheriff. Announcing his candidacy, he said, “I have eight children and I don’t want them to be in a community where prostitution flourishes.”
A month later, Ratterman was arrested with prostitute April Flowers at the Glenn Hotel in Newport. At the sensational trial, Ratterman maintained that he had been drugged and set up. Ratterman said he was disrobed by corrupt police officers while still groggy.
A surprise witness in Ratterman’s defense was a photographer who said he had been asked to take compromising photographs of Ratterman with the prostitute.
Evidence revealed Ratterman had been drugged as he claimed. He was found not guilty, and public opinion backlashed against corruption in Newport.
After the scheme to discredit Ratterman backfired, he was swept into office in a landslide.
Other public officials concerned with cleaning up the city were elected. They worked with Ratterman to close illegal gambling operations and sexually oriented businesses.
By the 1970s, Newport had not completely recovered from the sins of its past. The city was still infamous for its “adult entertainment.”
In 1978, citizens organized against prostitution and sexually oriented businesses in their city.
Citizens complained about the X-rated theater, adult bookstores and the 17 strip clubs that fostered prostitution and illegal drug usage in Campbell County.
Newport suffered from higher crime rates and lower property values. It couldn’t shed its reputation as “Sin City.”
In 1978, the community’s new County Attorney Paul Twehues and Assistant County Attorney Justin Verst heeded public outcry against the sexually oriented businesses that were choking the community.
“A lot of people were concerned about what was going on in Newport, and they wanted us to see what we could do about cleaning it up,” said Verst, who now is the Campbell County Attorney.
Verst and Twehues began to enforce Kentucky’s obscenity laws, and every one of the jury trials returned a guilty verdict with maximum penalties.
“Once people see government can change it, they realize obscenity doesn’t have to be here,” Twehues said. “Then more and more people get interested in saying, ‘Let’s get it out of here.’ Then, if they see elected officials not doing their jobs, those people are gone.”
Verst agrees.
“I think we have made Newport a better place to live,” he said. “It’s cleaner. It’s more family friendly. You don’t have all the garbage going on that you had back then.
“I think it’s just a better community with higher morals than it was before we started the fight,” Verst said. “You can’t just sit back once you’ve had some success and think, well, the job’s done.
“We found that some of the larger video chains were selling obscene material and so were some of the mom and pop video stores,” he said. “We prosecuted them and we were successful. It’s an ongoing battle that you need to keep on top of and shut them down before they get a foothold. You need to be continually observant.”
Twehues said all someone has to do is to look at Newport’s riverfront to see the positives of removing sexually oriented businesses.
“There’s a new aquarium and a lot of new projects,” Twehues said. “I don’t think they would be here had we still had Cinema X, had we still had the adult bookstores, had we still had the 17 strip clubs up and down Monmouth Street.”
