Gambino- Giuseppe Balsamo was described as an adviser to Salvatore A'quila from 1914 till Salvatore A'quila was killed in 1928, Balsamo retired shortly after A'quila was killed. Balsamo and Mineo are said to not get along. Balsamo is the closest to being the family Consigliere before 1931.
Bonanno- Salvatore Grippi and Benjamin Gallo were powerful members in the family. Grippi was known to visit Nicola Schiro numerous times during the the week and gave his advice on important meetings, before he moved to New Jersey were he visited Schiro once a week. Benjamin Gallo was an adviser to the Bonventre family notably Vito and Giovanni Bonventre, it is reported he was Vito Bonventre successor, before he was killed in his own restraunt in 1930. Those are the two who were the closest to being the family Consigliere.
Colombo- Giuseppe Peraino was either the underboss or Consigliere to the family before 1931.
Lucchese- no ideal.
Thank you. Also, was Maranzano either the street boss or the underboss to Nicola Schiro before Schiro was forced out of the position in 1930 or was he merely a capo?
Re: 1931 Five Families Admin and Capos
[Re: Njein]
#993217 06/28/2006:59 PM06/28/2006:59 PM
Underboss
Joined: Dec 2013
Posts: 2,781 Larry's Bar
Maranzano was a group leader. Caporegime did not exist at the time. Vito Bonventre was slated to become boss at the next family gathering, where everyone that was a member was to vote for the next boss this included soldiers. Bonventre was killed on July 15 a week or two after Schiro stepped down. Whether it was Masseria or Maranzano and Stefano Magaddino who ordered the killing is up to debate. Either way, Maranzano was a war chief and that is what the family voted for. Angelo Caruso became Maranzano underboss.
"I have this Nightmare. I'm on 5th avenue watching the St. Patrick's Day parade and I have a coronary and nine thousand cops march happily over my body." Chief Sidney Green
Re: 1931 Five Families Admin and Capos
[Re: Njein]
#993218 06/28/2007:07 PM06/28/2007:07 PM
For anybody but @Giacomo (because I assume you might know). Has There ever been any clarification on Valachi's claim's of a "Sandino" Pandolfo being a Consiglieri in the Luciano Family? And His Role during The Castellamarese War?
"Joe Bananas went after Carlo Gambino, the war went on for seven years..... When guys go to the mattresses, they're not out earning" -Tony Soprano
Re: 1931 Five Families Admin and Capos
[Re: Njein]
#993231 06/28/2011:37 PM06/28/2011:37 PM
Underboss
Joined: Dec 2013
Posts: 2,781 Larry's Bar
Alessandro Pandolfi cousin to Charles Pandolfi a major player in Italian Harlem back in the mid 1900 till Caetano DelGaudio is killed then disappears. Charles is a chief suspect in the East Harlem Murder Stable aftermath since he shot Aniello Prisco in 1909 that gave him that limp. Alessandro arrives in NYC during the 1920s.
"I have this Nightmare. I'm on 5th avenue watching the St. Patrick's Day parade and I have a coronary and nine thousand cops march happily over my body." Chief Sidney Green
Re: 1931 Five Families Admin and Capos
[Re: Njein]
#993232 06/29/2006:08 AM06/29/2006:08 AM
Valachi described Pandolfo as Tony Bender's consigliere, so it's unclear whether he was actually the consigliere of the entire family or just an adviser within the Strollo crew. It's quite hard to decipher the things Valachi said about the position of consigliere.
Re: 1931 Five Families Admin and Capos
[Re: Njein]
#993485 07/05/2011:56 AM07/05/2011:56 AM
I often wonder why since there is Five boroughs, why each Family weren't given one area of operation? Even if they chopped up Manahattan and it was neutral (because of Legitimate business), there is enough surrounding area to work out that 5th territory..... especially in those days
Last edited by Dob_Peppino; 07/05/2011:57 AM.
"Joe Bananas went after Carlo Gambino, the war went on for seven years..... When guys go to the mattresses, they're not out earning" -Tony Soprano
Re: 1931 Five Families Admin and Capos
[Re: Dob_Peppino]
#993489 07/05/2001:09 PM07/05/2001:09 PM
I often wonder why since there is Five boroughs, why each Family weren't given one area of operation? Even if they chopped up Manahattan and it was neutral (because of Legitimate business), there is enough surrounding area to work out that 5th territory..... especially in those days
They could have, but most of the early mafiosi were concentrated in the following areas:
-Williamsburg, Bushwick, Knickerbocker Avenue - this area became the stomping grounds for the Bonannos and is still their main turf. -Little Italy, West Side, Greenwich Village, Lower East Side -Bensonhurst, Dyker Avenue, Brighton Beach -East Harlem, South Bronx -Carroll Gardens, Red Hook -Canarsie, Bed-Stuy, Flatbush Avenue
Re: 1931 Five Families Admin and Capos
[Re: Dob_Peppino]
#993490 07/05/2001:51 PM07/05/2001:51 PM
I often wonder why since there is Five boroughs, why each Family weren't given one area of operation? Even if they chopped up Manahattan and it was neutral (because of Legitimate business), there is enough surrounding area to work out that 5th territory..... especially in those days
Territory was determined by who got to a place first and this was influenced by chain migration. For example, the Gambino and Colombo families trace their roots back to immigrants from, predominantly, Palermo and Villabate, which explains their proximity and overlap in territories in Brooklyn. Mafiosi originally settled mostly in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the Bronx, but demographic changes brought about movement to Queens, Staten Island, and areas outside of NYC. By the 1920s, all five families were already established, so to reorganise them in such a way as to relegate one family per borough would have been a disaster.
Re: 1931 Five Families Admin and Capos
[Re: Njein]
#993491 07/05/2002:42 PM07/05/2002:42 PM
It's interesting to see that the Colombo family has always operated almost strictly around Brooklyn. They had a big crew in Queens (Vic Orena, Joe Scopo) and had some guys here and there but compared to the other families, the Colombos didn't really expand their territory as much. I think it's one of the main reasons why there has been so much internal feud within the family. There wasn't any balance of power between the boroughs like you could see with the other families.
As for the Genovese, it's interesting to note that their powerbase has always been in Manhattan (Greenwich Village, East Harlem and Little Italy). So many key Genovese leaders are from there (Gigante, Salerno, Ida, Bellomo, Iannello...). It remains the case today despite the fact that the mob are not as strong in Manhattan as theu used to be.
I've only recently understood how much the dynamics of each borough affected the organization of the 5 families. I though this subject was particularly well covered in Al D'Arco's book. He explained quite clearly how the Lucchese family made sure to have a good balance between the different crews in the 5 borough and Jersey. It was obvious in their list of inductees. Whenever they would induct new members they would usually pick guys from every crew.
Re: 1931 Five Families Admin and Capos
[Re: Njein]
#993495 07/05/2006:13 PM07/05/2006:13 PM
Underboss
Joined: Dec 2013
Posts: 2,781 Larry's Bar
The territories were first come first served. Alot of territories owned were overlapped since crews of leaders before 1931 split into the five families when their leader died or was killed. Staten Island had the Gambinos and Genovese before anyone else, with a few soldiers from different families living there but they belonged to a Brooklyn, Manhattan, or New Jersey (Newark) crew.
"I have this Nightmare. I'm on 5th avenue watching the St. Patrick's Day parade and I have a coronary and nine thousand cops march happily over my body." Chief Sidney Green
Re: 1931 Five Families Admin and Capos
[Re: Njein]
#993496 07/05/2006:41 PM07/05/2006:41 PM
This is kinda silly but I wonder if you were all the original bosses "known" throughout NY or were there guys for example a capo in the Luciano Family thinking to himself "How the fuck is Tom Gagliano a Don" or "who the fuck is Joe Profaci".... obviously they found out pretty quick Even still I can see all the administration being acquainted and respectful of the top guys but I'm sure at the caporegime level there was jealously looking up, I'm just curious how ignorant were the soldiers of what the big shots were doing
"Joe Bananas went after Carlo Gambino, the war went on for seven years..... When guys go to the mattresses, they're not out earning" -Tony Soprano