With all due respect, I for one disagree with the theory of Calegero Vizzini being the founder of the Sicilian Mafia. While there is no question that he was a catylist in the organization, he was not the original founder of it. Here is the history of The Black Hand, which initially started as a terrorism society and how it eventually evolved into a Sicilain organization.
__________________________________________________
The Original Black Hand was an extremist Serbian terrorism society. Alternate name is Ujedinjenje ili Smrt, meaning Union or Death.
The group is most well known for its plot to kill Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The Black Hand was upset over the annexation of Bosnia by the Austro-Hungarian Empire. They wanted the region to be ruled by Slavic people, a popular notion due to the recent movement of Panslavism in the area at that time. Since Austria--a non-slavic country--controlled Bosnia, the group decided to assassinate a head of state. Ergo...bye Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
The theorys and ideas of the original Black Hand eventually became the foundation for the Sicilian Mafia/Black Hand.
The black hand was a handprint on a piece of paper that would be left to intimidate extortion victims. It let them know that they were marked for death by the one of the gangs that were the predecessors to the more organized La Cosa Nostra groups. It had started in Sicily during the 1700's. Pictures of a black hand were distributed to the wealthy. This was an unspoken request for an amount of money in return for protection. If the money wasn't paid, the recipients could expect violence such as kidnappings, bombings, and murder. In contrast when it arrived in New York it was mainly against the poor immigrants, those that would not go to the police out of fear or lack of knowledge.
Colegero Vizzini was born on July 24th 1877. By the turn of the century he became embedded with many barons and marquis. In 1917 he was arrested and sentenced to prison for fraud, corruption and murder, but was absolved of those charges becasue of his connections to high ranking friends and officials. By 1919 he owned many sulfer mines, shops and fields. In 1931 he was "sent" away from Sicilay for a while because he was suspected of involvment with other mafia bosses and crimes. By 1937 he returned to Sicily and was welcomed back with open arms by his village. His involvment in driving the American army through Sicily in 1943 helped him to become Mayor of Vilalba, Sicily. In 1949 Vizzini and Vito Genovese opened a factory which was used as a cover for heroin trafficking.
He eventually formed a friendship with Furure Philadelphia mob boss Angelo Bruno, who had been born in Vilalba, the same town that Vizzini had become the mayor of. Vizzini dies in 1954 and his funeral was attended by hundereds of people, many of them being high ranking officials and mob bosses.
__________________________________________________
Don Cardi