Jacob Riis' 1887 photo of the Short Tail Gang, a working-class Irish gang, under the Corlear's Hook docks.

Corlear's Hook, located on Manhattan's Lower East Side, played a significant role in late-19th century New York City as a hub of both industrial activity and organized crime. Positioned along the East River, it was a center for shipyards and docks, making it a key site for maritime commerce. However, its waterfront location also attracted gangs who exploited the area’s bustling shipping industry by plundering cargo from anchored ships.

The Short Tail Gang—noted for their distinctive short-tailed jackets—operated in the 1880s and 1890s operated around Corlear's Hook, particularly near Rivington, Mangin, and Goerck Streets. This Irish gang, active along the New York City waterfront, was part of a network of criminal groups like the Daybreak Boys, Swamp Angels, and Hook Gang, who plundered cargo ships on the East River.

Jacob Riis' 1887 image of the Short Tails under a pier remains significant because it is one of the few images of a 19th-century gangs captured on film. At a time when most criminal imagery came from police mugshots, this photograph remains a rare visual record of New York's early underworld.