February 13-15: FOURTH ANNIVERSARY REUNITES TOMMY GUNS and new ballistics evidence WITH ST. VALENTINE’S DAY MASSACRE WALL

Events

February 13-15: FOURTH ANNIVERSARY REUNITES TOMMY GUNS and new ballistics evidence WITH ST. VALENTINE’S DAY MASSACRE WALL

Date: February 13, 2016 to February 15, 2016
Time: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Cost: February 13: Free for Museum Members and free with Museum admission.
February 14: Free for Nevada residents and buy one, get one for non-locals.
February 15: Free for Museum Members and free with Museum admission.

Together for the first time since February 14, 1929

  • Be the first to get a sneak peek at The Mob Museum’s newest artifacts: Ballistics evidence from the scene of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, some of the earliest forensics artifacts of their kind. These artifacts will not go on display again until 2017.
  • Learn more about the Tommy guns scientifically linked to the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre in this once-a-year series of presentations.
  • Special presentations on the Tommy guns are planned for 12 p.m., 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Feb. 13 and Feb. 14, as well as one presentation at 11 a.m. on Feb. 15.
  • Educators will be on hand to answer questions about the ballistics evidence.

To those planning to attend the free day at the Museum on Sunday, February 14 for our 4th Anniversary, be advised that the Museum will be busy throughout the day and there may be a wait time outside the Museum to get inside. Starting at 9 a.m., a check-in table for locals will be set up on the front steps where you and your families will show your IDs before entering the Museum. Each family member must be present to receive a wristband (one person cannot collect wristbands for the entire group). Non-locals may enter through the doors and proceed to the box office to receive the 2-for-1 price. Presentations of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre Tommy guns will also take place on February 13 for those who choose not to come on Sunday.

Original crime scene evidence

Massace collection_web

The Mob Museum recently acquired the original crime scene evidence from the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre.

This one-of-a-kind collection – never before put on public display – includes:

    • Bullets removed from the bodies of the seven victims.
      • Bullet fragments and cartridge cases picked up from the garage floor.
      • Test bullets fired from the Tommy guns later proved to have been used in the Massacre.
      • Original coroner’s documents concerning the victims.
      • Reports prepared by the “Father of Ballistics” Calvin Goddard, who used pioneering ballistics testing techniques to identify the weapons used in the crime.

Tommy guns and ballistics evidence will be available for viewing from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. in the second floor Courtroom on February 13-15. The ballistics evidence will remain on view through February 29 in the Museum.

The artifacts go hand-in-hand with the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre Wall that has been part of the Museum’s collection since its opening on February 14, 2012. In Chicago’s infamous St. Valentine’s Day Massacre of 1929, seven members of Bugs Moran’s gang were lined up against this wall, shot and killed allegedly by Al Capone’s gang.

The two machine guns were first positively identified by Colonel Calvin Goddard, forensic scientist specializing in ballistics, in December 1929 after investigating many Thompson guns found in the Chicago area. Artifacts on display will include the two guns and ballistics evidence from Dr. Goddard’s lab.

Image at left shows the massacre wall that is part of The Mob Museum’s permanent collection.