The Pickwick Club Disaster

Episode of Morbid · June 15, 2026 · 47 min

Morbid hosts Alaina Urquhart and Ash Kelley recount the 1925 Pickwick Club collapse in Boston, its rescue, investigation, and trial, and call for a memorial.

Summary

After brief banter and plugs for their Radio City Music Hall live show and the novel The Butcher Legacy, the hosts turned to the Pickwick Club disaster, a 1925 building collapse in Boston's theater district that neither had previously known about. The narrator traced the club's origins in the former Cafe Dreyfus building owned by Hyman Bloomberg, its operation as a Prohibition-era speakeasy under Timothy Barry, who was suspected of organized-crime ties, and a string of police raids, brawls, and a sham closure in which the club reopened upstairs under the name Greenwich Village Club. A fire in a third-floor tailor shop led firefighters to cut drainage holes that were later patched cheaply.

The episode described the "Before-the-Fourth" dance on the night of July 3–4, 1925, when around 3:30 a.m. the five-story building collapsed as couples danced the Charleston, drawing on survivor accounts from orchestra leader Billy Glennon, cab driver Tom Garvey, and John Owen. The hosts detailed the rescue, including firefighter Larry Doyle's efforts and Dr. Michael Garrity's amputation of a trapped man's finger in the rubble, as well as crowds of onlookers and the arrest of a worker for robbing the dead. The final death toll was 44.

The narrator reviewed competing explanations, from Mayor James Curley's blame on overcrowding to the popular belief that the Charleston caused the collapse, before engineers pointed to a weakened party wall and poorly built concrete piers, with resonance from dancing contributing. Six people were indicted, including Barry, Bloomberg, and architect George Funk, but all defendants were acquitted and civil suits were settled for roughly $1,000 per life lost. The site later became the Naked Eye Cabaret and then a parking garage with no memorial. The hosts read the victims' names, said they intended to petition for a plaque, possibly by contacting Governor Maura Healey, and closed with a fun fact about Play-Doh's origins as wallpaper cleaner.

Chapters

0:00
Intro and plugs
The hosts joke about listener reactions to a sick-voiced episode and promote their Radio City Music Hall live show and The Butcher Legacy.
2:22
A forgotten Boston tragedy
The narrator introduces the Pickwick Club disaster and notes it has no plaque or memorial, unlike the Cocoanut Grove fire.
3:34
From Cafe Dreyfus to speakeasy
Timothy Barry rents Hyman Bloomberg's building to open the Pickwick Club, a Prohibition-era speakeasy posing as a social club, prompting a tangent on 1920s aesthetics.
7:39
Raids, brawls and a bad reputation
A series of police raids, assaults, a car chase and a stabbing give the club an underworld reputation.
12:45
Sham closure and the fire
The club fakes a closure and reopens upstairs as the Greenwich Village Club, and a tailor-shop fire leaves floor holes that are cheaply patched.
15:09
The Before-the-Fourth dance and collapse
During a crowded holiday dance to 12th Street Rag, the ceiling and then the entire building collapse around 3:30 a.m., as recounted by survivors.
23:01
Rescue efforts
Firefighters, doctors and volunteers dig through the rubble, including Larry Doyle's rescues and an in-rubble finger amputation, as the death toll reaches 44.
29:15
Onlookers and early blame
Crowds gather at the scene while officials offer competing explanations, with Mayor Curley blaming overcrowding.
Linked moment · 31:46Skip to 31:46 using a listen link in the info box.
31:46
The Charleston theory and engineering findings
The dancing theory, mechanical resonance, looting of the dead, and engineers' focus on the weakened party wall are discussed.
36:30
Indictments and trial
Six people are indicted, and expert testimony blames poorly built concrete piers before all defendants are acquitted.
40:23
Aftermath and the site today
Civil suits settle for about $1,000 per death, and the site becomes the Naked Eye Cabaret and then a parking garage without a memorial.
41:48
Victims' names and memorial campaign
The narrator reads the 44 victims' names, and the hosts pledge to petition for a plaque.
44:19
Play-Doh fun fact
The episode closes with the story of Play-Doh's origin as a wallpaper cleaner.

People

In the conversation

Alaina UrquhartCo-host of Morbid, autopsy technician and author of the Butcher novels
Ash KelleyCo-host of the true crime podcast Morbid

Discussed

Timothy BarryOperator of the Pickwick Club, suspected of organized-crime ties; indicted for manslaughter and acquitted.
Hyman BloombergOwner of the Beach Street building that housed the Pickwick Club; indicted for manslaughter and acquitted.
James Michael CurleyMayor of Boston in 1925 who blamed the collapse on overcrowding.
Billy GlennonOrchestra leader at the Pickwick Club who survived the collapse; his brother James died in it.
Larry DoyleBoston firefighter with Ladder 8 who rescued survivors from the rubble.
Michael GarrityBoston City Hospital doctor who amputated a trapped man's finger inside the rubble.
Frank DeckerSinger at the club who blamed the collapse on dancers doing the Charleston.
George FunkArchitect of the post-fire repairs, indicted for manslaughter and acquitted.
John KeefeAuthor who has written about the Pickwick Club and Timothy Barry.
Maura HealeyGovernor of Massachusetts, whom the hosts suggested contacting about a memorial.

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From the publisher

In the early morning hours of July 4, 1925, the crowd at The Pickwick Club in Boston were celebrating the holiday at the “Before-the-Fourth” dance when roughly fifty couples took to the dance floor for one of the final songs of the night. With so much revelry and vibrations from the dancing, no one noticed the subtle sounds distressed infrastructure makes just before a tragedy, and even if they had, there likely wasn’t enough time to avoid the disaster. Around 3:30 am, the ceiling above them collapsed, as the entire five-story building came down on top of them, killing forty-four people and injuring countless more. At the time, the Pickwick Club disaster was the deadliest building collapse and one of the worst accidents in in the city’s history. It was followed by large investigation, during which the disaster was temporarily blamed on the Charleston, and a sensational trial aimed at punishing those responsible. However, in the one hundred years since the disaster, the tragedy at the Pickwick Club has been largely forgotten, overshadowed by larger and more devastating accidents.

Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on September 29, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.

Categories: History·True Crime