Italian Crime Family of New Orleans

Novel 1920's New Orleans

The New Orleans crime family is one of the oldest American criminal organizations in activity. It is based in New Orleans and parts of southern Louisiana in the United States. Its status today is unknown, as it remained in the shadows since 1993. While some rumors claim that it is nearly defunct, others claim that it is one of the most powerful families in the United States today.

Matranga crime family

The Matranga crime family, established by Charles (1857 - October 28, 1943) and Antonio (Tony) Matranga (d. 1890 ?), was one of the earliest recorded American Mafia crime families, operating in New Orleans during the late 19th century until the beginning of Prohibition in 1920.

Born in Sicily, Carlo and Antonio Matranga settled in New Orleans during the 1870s where they eventually opened a saloon and brothel. Using their business as a base of operations, the Matranga brothers began establishing lucrative organized criminal activities including extortion and labor racketeering. Receiving tribute payments from Italian laborers and dockworkers, as well as from the rival Provenzano crime family (who held a near monopoly of commercial shipping from South American fruit shipments), they eventually began moving in on Provenzano fruit loading operations intimidating the Provenzanos with threats of violence.

Although the Provenzanos withdrew in favor of giving the Matrangas a cut of waterfront racketeering, by the late 1880s, the two families eventually went to war over the grocery and produce businesses held by the Provenzanos. As both sides began employing a large number of Sicilian mafiosi from their native Monreale, Sicily, the violent gang war began attracting police attention, particularly from New Orleans police chief David Hennessy who began investigating into the warring organizations. Within months of his investigation, Hennessy was shot and killed by several unidentified attackers while walking home on the night of October 15, 1890. The assailant was never identified and remains an unsolved crime.

The murder of Hennessey created a huge backlash from the city and, although Charles and several members of the Matrangas were arrested, they were eventually tried and acquitted in February 1891 with Charles Matranga and a 14-year-old member acquitted midway through the trial as well as four more who were eventually acquitted and three others released in hung juries. The decision caused strong protests from residents, angered by the controversy surrounding the case (particularly in the face of incriminating evidence and jury tampering), and the following month a lynch mob stormed the jail hanging 11 of the 17 Matranga members still waiting to be brought to trial including Antonio Bagnetto, Bastiano Incardona, Antonio Marchese, Pietro Monastero and Manuel Politzi on March 14, 1891. The Hennessey lynchings led to the American Mafia adopting a hard and fast rule that policemen and other law enforcement officials were not to be harmed.

Matranga was able to escape from the vigilante lynchings and, upon returning to New Orleans, resumed his position as head of the New Orleans crime family eventually forcing the declining Provenzanos out of New Orleans by the end of the decade. Matranga would rule over the New Orleans underworld until shortly after Prohibition when he turned over leadership over to Sylvestro "Sam" Carollo in the early 1920s.

Silver Dollar Sam

Slot machines were installed in towns throughout Louisiana, generating a dependable stream of revenue for the "family". "Silver Dollar Sam" Carolla led the New Orleans crime family transforming predecessor Charles Matranga's Black Hand gang into a modern organized crime group.

Born in Sicily, Carolla immigrated to the United States with his parents in 1904. By 1918, Carolla had become a high-ranking member of Matranga's organization, eventually succeeding him following Matranga's retirement in 1922. Assuming control of Matranga's minor bootlegging operations, Carolla waged war against rival bootlegging gangs, gaining full control following the murder of William Bailey in December 1930.

Gaining considerable political influence within New Orleans, Carolla is said to have used his connections when, in 1929, Al Capone supposedly traveled to the city demanding Carolla supply the Chicago Outfit (rather than Chicago's Sicilian Mafia boss Joe Aiello) with imported alcohol. Meeting Capone as he arrived at a New Orleans train station, Carolla, accompanied by several police officers, reportedly disarmed Capone's bodyguards and broke their fingers, forcing Capone to return to Chicago.

Carlos Marcello

Born Calogero Minacore to Sicilian parents in Tunis, Carlos Marcello was brought to the United States in 1911 and his family settled in a decaying plantation house near Metairie, Louisiana. Marcello later turned to petty crime in the French Quarter, which was then New Orleans' Little Italy. He was imprisoned for leading a crew of teenage gangsters who carried out armed robberies in the small towns near New Orleans. These charges were later dropped, but the following year he was convicted of assault and robbery, and was sentenced to the State penitentiary for nine years, eventually serving five.