When Does "Gangs of New York" (2002) Take Place?
"Gangs of New York" is a crime historical fiction film written by
Jay Cocks with Hossein Amini, Steven Zaillian, and Kenneth Lonergan and released December 20th, 2002.
It takes place in the years:
We know this because at the end of the 1846 AD prologue, there's a time and place setting title card reading "16 Years Later".
1862 AD - 1863 AD
We know this because at the end of the 1846 AD prologue, there's a time and place setting title card reading "16 Years Later".
1846 + 16 = 1862.
Furthermore, just after the end of the prologue Amsterdam narrates, "In the second year of the great Civil War". The famous and tragic American Civil War started in 1861 AD so its second year was indeed 1862 AD.
A little more than halfway through the movie, the film definitively crosses into 1863 AD when a poster is clearly visible announcing a party commemorating the 16th anniversary of the "Battle of 1846" (the fight depicted in the prologue). The poster reads "February 3, 1863 Commencing 8 o'clock" and the party happens simultaneously with this shot.
This second year is confirmed when the famous and tragic Civil War draft riots erupt in Lower Manhattan. They occurred in the real world from July 13th to July 16th in 1863 AD.
Additionally, there's an 1846 AD prologue that ends with a time and place setting title card that clearly reads, "New York City 1846".
