Gangs of St. Louis: The Curious Case of Harry "Cherries" Dunn

The Fallout Between Cherries Dunn and the Egan's Rats That Led to A Deadly Feud

Depiction of Harry “Cherries” Dunn

Harry Dunn known by his nickname “Cherries” was born and raised in 1892 in an Irish-American household in North St. Louis, which was the home turf of the infamous Egan’s Rats gang. Harry and his younger brother John joined the gang as teenagers, and by all accounts, the brothers were well-liked and respected members of the gang and were accomplished street fighters and hardened killers.

However, a series of events would unfold that would cause Harry to feud with the Rats and even defect to one of their hated rivals, culminating in several violent encounters that would ultimately cost Harry his life and have his younger brother John “Pudgy” Dunn seeking vengeance.

So what caused this rift in the first place? In November 1914, the Dunn brothers were in Chicago when they shot and killed a rival gangster named Robert Koch. They believed that Koch had be…