Download or read book Up at the 'Sky Edge' - 1917 written by Mark J. Foster and published by . This book was released on 2017-05-02 with total page 207 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Samuel Garvin and George Mooney were both notorious individual's, and much revered by local folklore with regard to the history of Sheffield, during the early part of the 20th century. Both were leaders of the opposing fractions of the Mooney Gang and the Park Brigade, which soon transcended into the brutal episode of the 'Sheffield Gang Wars,' escalating in the aftermath of World War One. Their prize being, for control of the lucrative 'Sky Edge Gambling Ring,' at a site located high above the city, and providing an ideal vantage point, to which the many willing punters could participate, in all forms of illegal gambling activity. Sheffield being such a major industrial city, concentrating on the manufacture of steel and associated engineering products, had grown rapidly during the earlier 'Industrial Revolution.' For many of the city inhabitants having to endure such hardship, poverty, and squalor of this time, gambling like alcohol, was often seen as an outlet of escapism for the many working men of the city, and with the added possibility to supplementing their meagre earnings. This was much frowned upon by the authorities, and like other such moral and social dilemmas of the time, the illegal gambling was soon driven 'underground,' and into the control of many unscrupulous, and questionable individuals.Activity on 'Sky Edge' began during the turn of the 20th century, where many working men would congregate after their work shift, in an attempt to further boost their income. Gambling activity at 'Sky Edge' increased significantly after 1914, by the new emergence of readily available money, the result being in the upturn of Sheffield's economy, during the 'boom years' of the First World War.The book 'Up at the Sky Edge- 1917' highlights the fortunes of two men, heavily involved in the early years of the gang struggle in Sheffield. Both determined to escape from the horrors of World War One, and of their return to Sheffield, with a view to controlling the lucrative 'Sky Edge' operation.Samuel Garvin was a petty criminal before the time of his Army service, and was soon to take a leading role in the emergence of the Park Brigade, along with his associate William Francis, who would be instrumental as a 'trusted and valued' aid to Garvin, in his struggle to oust the Mooney Gang from 'Sky Edge.'Sheffield could be a violent place at the time, with both groups emerging from the working class areas of the Park district located in the shadow of Sky Edge, and the notorious West Bar area, home to much of the Irish community in Sheffield at that time. As the conflict between the two groups escalated following the immediate years after World War One, it would not be until the mid-1920s that the gangs were eventually brought under control, by the questionable Policing tactics, of Chief Inspector Percy Stiletto, of the Sheffield City Police, and his notorious 'Flying Squad.'