Enoch L. Johnson

Enoch Lewis "Nucky" Johnson (January 20, 1883 – December 9, 1968) was an Atlantic City, New Jersey political boss and racketeer. He was the undisputed "boss" of the political machine that controlled Atlantic City and the Atlantic County government from the 1910s until his conviction and imprisonment in 1941. His rule encompassed the Roaring Twenties when Atlantic City was at the height of its popularity as a refuge from Prohibition. In addition to bootlegging, his organization also was involved in gambling and prostitution.

Early life

Enoch Lewis Johnson was born on January 20, 1883 in Galloway Township, New Jersey to Smith E. and Virginia Johnson. His nickname "Nucky" was derived from his forename Enoch.

In 1886, Johnson's father was elected sheriff of Atlantic County for a three-year term, and the family moved to Mays Landing, the county seat. His career in law enforcement alternated between the roles of sheriff of Mays Landing and undersheriff of Atlantic City. Along with Atlantic County Clerk Lewis P. Scott (1854–1907) and Congressman John J. Gardner, the elder Johnson was a member of the three-man group dominating the governments of Atlantic City and Atlantic County prior to the rise to power of Louis Kuehnle. In 1905, Nucky Johnson became his father's undersheriff in Mays Landing. In 1908, he was elected Sheriff of Atlantic County when his father’s term expired, a position he held until ousted by a court order in 1911.