Bumpy Johnson Net Worth

Bumpy Johnson, a big name in the crime world of America, Bumpy Johnson, famously known as the “Godfather of Harlem” was a drug trafficker. He ruled the crime world of America for about 30 long years. The famous crime boss is one of the most cruel and clever Mafia that the world still remembers. He got locked up in the Jail for more than 40 times. He made a huge income from his illigal business. Bumpy Johnson Net Worth was about $100 million. The numbers say it all that it was not a small chain of rackets. A lot of movies and series were also made based on his character. Even though he was a negative character, no one can deny that he is a difficult character to forget.Keep on reading to know more interesting facts about Bumpy Johnson.

Net worth

Bumpy Johnson’s only source of income was from his criminal activities. He was indulge in illegal activities like drug trafficking, smuggling, kidnapping etc. His net worth was around $100 million  at that time.  His trafficking business used to earn a huge profit and he was the crime boss of the biggest drug trafficking of Harlem. The citizens were so afraid of him that it was impossible to stop him from continuing his illegal business.

Early Life

Bumpy Johnson, a well-known drug trafficker, was born on October 31, 1905, in Charleston, South Carolina, USA.His parents were Margaret Moultrie and William Johnson. Bumpy’s real name was

Ellsworth Raymond He was called “Bumpy” due to a unique bump on his head. He belonged to the black ethnicity. He is regarded as half American and half African.

When Bumpy was just 10 years old in 1915, his brother committed a murder. The  murder of a Whiteman. After the incident, he was forced to move from his birthplace to the north along with his family. They fled to escape from getting mob lynched by their own people. His parents modgraged their house to move to the north. There he got bullied for his accent and race. Soon he left his High school and from that tender age he started indulging in notorious acts. It was the starting of him to change into a whole criminal. And the saga continues till his entire twenties.

Rise of Bumpy Johnson

In the 1930s, he finally got out of prison. That time, he was broke and completely clueless. He kept on indulging in bribery and other small criminal acts. But these small criminal acts were going to get bigger in the future when he met the queen, the queen of Harlem’s crime world. Stephanie St. Clair, famously known as “Queen Madam”, Bumpy Johnson soon became the left hand of Queen Madam. Together, they destroyed the other mobstars of the area and became one of the most successful drug dealer of Harlem. But there was a strong competor of them “the Dutch Schultz”. While fighting with the Dutch, Bumpy and his companions murdered and kidnapping a lot of people.

The fight against the Dutch Schultz was not easy at all. They dominated the crime world of America for a long time, but all this came to an end when Luciano, the Italian mobstar, killed him in 1935. That time was the golden period of Bumpy Johnson. Soon after the death of Dutch Schultz, Bumpy got the authority of the business of Queen madam. She handed over the authority of her entire racket business to bumpy and he became the next crime boss of Harlem. There was no one to fight against him as he shook hand with luciano and they came partners on against a part of profit to lucianos crew.

Despite the fact that he was involved in negative activities and that the people of Harlem were afraid of him, people used to regard him as Robin Hood, as he was always there for their help and used to donate gifts and food on different occasions. He quickly gained the respect and love of the people of Harlem.

Married life

Bumpy Johnson married Mayme Hatter. Mayme Hatter was born in North Carolina in 1914. She worked as a waitress when she moved to New York from North Carolina in 1938. Later, she also worked as a hostess. In 1948, she met Bumpy Johnson, and soon after their meeting, they fell in love and decided to get married to each other. They have two children, Ruthie Johnson and Elease Johnson. Mayme died in 2009 when she was 94 years old due to respiratory failure. She also wrote a book about her husband. The name of the book is “Harlem Godfather: The Rap on My Husband.”

Movies of Bumpy Johnson

Bumpy Johnson story inspired many directors to portray the character in real life. There are several films and series made that were inspired by Bumpy’s character. His clothing style, poetry and interesting criminal stories are worth the attention of people. Movies like cotton club, the hoodlum and American gangster were among those movies which were inspired from his stories. In 2019, a series was also made named “The Godfather of Harlem.” It was acted by Forest Whitetaker. The story was also inspired by Bumpy Johnson’s life.

Last days

In 1952, Bumpy Johnson was arrested and imprisoned for 15 years due to drug conspiracy. He was imprisoned at Alcatraz Prison in San Francisco Bay, California. There he was under keen surveillance. The servitude was so strict that he even sat for a strike at the police station as a protest against the constant servitude. He was released in 1963. In 1968, on July 7th, when he was sitting with his friend in a restaurant in Harmels. His lunch was served on the table. Suddenly, Bumpy Johnson had a heart failure and he died on the spot. Bumpy Johnson’s life story has been coming up time and again through movies and stories. He is an unforgettable character. Even after so many years of his death,there is a huge interest among people to know more about his Life. He was that villain of real life who became a Hero in reel.