and the ends aimed at the disenfranchisement of adopted citizens, and their exclusion from office, and perpetual war upon the Catholic religion." Originally, the Know Nothings were known as the Native American Party, but changed their name in 1855. Members of the Know Nothing Party had to "be a native-born citizen, of native-born parents, and not of the Catholic religion". The goal was to organize native-born White Anglo-Saxon Protestants to defend and preserve their religion and control of American politics from enfranchised Catholics, Jews, immigrants, and their descendants. Poole was nominated by the Whig party in April 1848 as a candidate for alderman, representing the Sixth Ward. Poole fared poorly in the general election, receiving only 199 votes and tying for last place with his ticket-mate against four other candidates. In February of 1853, Poole was appointed to represent the Sixth Ward on the New York City Board of Education. Attack at Florence's Hotel As a well-known gang leader and pugilist, Poole was frequently involved in fights, brawls, and other confrontations. The New York Daily Times reported the following on October 23, 1851: Dispute with John Morrissey Poole's arch rival, John Morrissey, was an Irish immigrant and worked for the political machine at Tammany Hall. Morrissey was also a popular bare-knuckle boxer and challenged Poole to a match. Though the two men were of differing ethnic backgrounds and political parties, the initial grounds for their dispute may have arisen from an earlier bet by Poole on a boxing match at Boston Corners on October 12, 1853, in which Poole had placed his bet on Morrissey's opponent, "Yankee Sullivan". The results of the boxing match were disputed—Sullivan beat Morrisey but was then distracted into leaving the ring by Morrisey's friends and the referee announced Morrisey winner for being in the ring—and Poole was against Morrissey being paid. In 1854 a fight was arranged between Morrissey and Poole, which Poole won. Shooting and death Morrissey plotted revenge and on February 25, 1855, recently fired NYPD patrolman Lewis Baker and Jim Turner, who were allegedly acting as enforcers for Morrissey, shot Poole in the leg and chest at Stanwix Hall, a bar on Broadway near Prince, at that time a center of the city's nightlife. The New York Daily Times reported on February 26, 1855 the following: Several days after the shooting, on March 8, 1855, Poole died in his home on Christopher