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Oct 29, 2009 · The Mafia’s influence in Sicily grew until the 1920s, when Prime Minister Benito Mussolini came to power and launched a brutal crackdown on mobsters, who he viewed as a threat to his Fascist...
- 4 min
- Southern Roots: New Orleans Black Hand. Most assume that the American mafia had its roots in New York City, home of the Five Great Crime Families, the Godfather, melting pot extraordinaire, and the first destination of millions of Italian immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who disembarked and were processed into the US at nearby Ellis Island.
- Prohibition. By the early 20th century, Italian criminal gangs had begun forming in the northeast, most notably in New York City, as the US became increasingly attractive to Italian immigrants, competing with South America as a destination of choice.
- Mussolini’s Crackdown on Camorra and Sicilian Mafia. Just as Prohibition was producing a business boom for organized crime in the US in general, and the Italian mafia in particular, Benito Mussolini and his fascists came to power in Italy.
- Paul Kelly. Paolo Antonio Vaccarelli, better known as Paul Kelly (1876 – 1936), was an early New York City Mafiosi who started off as a boxer, invested his prize money in a string of brothels, then founded the Five Points Gang – the Big Apple’s last dominant street gang.
Origins: The Black Hand. Paolo Antonio Vaccarelli (also known as Paul Kelly), founder of the Five Points Gang. The first published account of what became the Mafia in the United States dates to the spring of 1869.
Oct 14, 2009 · Al Capone was one of the most infamous gangsters in American history. During the height of Prohibition, Capone’s multi-million dollar Chicago operation in bootlegging, prostitution and gambling...
- 4 min
5 days ago · Mafia, hierarchically structured society of criminals of primarily Italian or Sicilian birth or extraction. The term applies to the traditional criminal organization in Sicily and also to a criminal organization in the United States. Most scholars agree that the Mafia emerged in Sicily in the 19th.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Jan 17, 2024 · January 17 marks 125 years since the birth of Al Capone — one of the most notorious gangsters of all time. He embodied organized crime and has been immortalized in films such as...
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May 26, 2024 · Born out of the feudal system in 19th-century Sicily, the Mafia emerged as a powerful organized crime syndicate that would eventually extend its reach across the Atlantic. In this article, we‘ll delve into the origins of the Sicilian Mafia in America, its rise to power, and its ongoing impact on society.