Don Peppino, I came to that conclusion some years ago. But growing up I was never told or realized as a young guy just how many Bonanno members there were all around us in NYC. So I do partially agree with you on that point.

And yes, Joe Bonanno had a more widely diversified family that most others crews, even most NY crews. The Bonanno's had an entire regime based up in Canada as we know, and a few members based in Florida, and some others in midwest and west coast states. Especially after Joe himself started to move west to Arizona, where they were estimated to have about a dozen members, and another dozen associate-members.

But I think you are getting a bit mixed up with just "who" was an "actual member of the Bonanno family," with the many men who originally had hailed from Castellammare del Golfo, Sicily, and later settled in other states across the U.S., after having first landed at Ellis Island and first resided in NYC before moving elsewhere.

Being an extremely tight knit group, 99.9% these mafiosi of Castellammrese heritage (although not Bonanno's per se) remained "amici" and "compare" with their New York based brethren. It was a strange phenomena, not unlike that of others groups (those from Palermo, Agrigento, Corleone, etc). But what makes the Bonanno's, and by extension all Castellammarese is the fact that they were elevated in stature and public exposure by the infamous "Castellammarese War" fought between 1929 and 1931 across the country, but most prominently in the New York "theatre of war."

Many future members who later migrated upstate to what became known as the Magaddino Family of Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY; or moved out west to Detroit's Zerilli family; some of Chicago's Aiello family; Joe Cerrito's and Jimmy Lanza's California families; among others across the country, were in fact from Castellammare del Golfo. Still others traveled back home to their ancestral hometown of Trapani like Frank Garofalo, or back and forth like the Buccellato's to and from America to name a few. This "thread" provided a continuing cross continental exchange of men and partnerships through the decades.

These men always maintained ties to Bonanno, and he and his family back to them. They were "compare" of course and had 'ties that bound" them forever. Many of these same men had fought side by side with Joe against Joe (The Boss) Masseria to later win that historical war. But these men were NOT necessarily members "under" Joe Bonanno per se. Some were. But many were not. Many were original members or affiliates under Salvatore Maranzano. Or were simpatico with him as a "supreme ruler" of the Castellammarese in America. They gave support to Maranzano and his NYC Castellammarese contingent. But many were in fact technically with "other borgatas."

So in a very real sense it later made it seem as though Joe Bonanno had "HIS" men all over the place. When in fact they were just allied as friends and former comrades in arms.

Understand what I'm trying to say here?