Saratoga Springs became a haven for gambling

[willychichi]

Saratoga Springs, N.Y., became haven for gambling, vice until 1950s

One name stood out like a red light among the metropolises examined in the famous Kefauver Committee reports on organized crime’s encroachment into American commerce, both the legit and down-low kind.

The 1951 roster of shame included all the big bent-nose towns you might expect — New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Detroit, Cleveland, St. Louis.

But tucked in among the smudgy colossuses was dainty Saratoga Springs, N.Y., population 15,000.

Sen. Estes Kefauver’s panel peeked behind the thoroughbred mecca’s flouncy bunting and regal Victorian facades and found frayed knickers:

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