Henry Tameleo - Bonanno connection? (New England transfers)

[B.]

Tom Hunt's site mentions the following in its NE Family breakdown:

Henry Tameleo (July 12, 1901, to August 1985), who transferred into New England from New York City's Bonanno family, served as his Providence-based underboss.

Enrico "Henry" Tameleo as far as I can tell was always a resident of Rhode Island and though there have been a lot of weird induction/transfer arrangements between NE and NYC, I haven't seen anything about Tameleo. I noticed some other sites online mention the same thing, maybe they got it from Hunt's site, but I'm curious what the source is. Some of my interpretations differ from Hunt but he's as great of a researcher as there is so I'm sure there's a source of some kind.

Side note, but also not sure Tameleo was ever underboss. In 1966 Greg Scarpa went to Rhode Island where he was formally introduced to Joe Lombardo as underboss and Tameleo as a capodecina. Lombardo died in 1969 and the FBI has Angiulo as underboss by that year.

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The NE Family does have a long history with inductions / transfers involving other Families:

- Ray Patriarca Sr. was recorded saying he was a member of an NYC Family circa 1946 when Phil Buccola asked him to transfer back to NE. He brought this up while talking about Tommy Eboli and Frank Costello, so Patriarca may have been a Genovese member. He would remain close to the Genovese Family, who represented him on the Commission.

- Patriarca inducted NJ-based member John Lardiere and transferred him to the Genovese. He described John Williams as Lardiere's "goombata" so maybe Williams stood in as sponsor / godfather, or they otherwise had a close relationship.

- Patriarca inducted many of the Springfield / Worcester Genovese members and transferred them to Genovese around the mid-1950s.

- Patriarca inducted a redacted member into his Family around the 1950s, with this member moving to NYC and transferring to one of the local Families. Patriarca said there was an open invitation for the member to transfer back to New England if he wanted. This might be Andy Parillo, close Patriarca associate from Rhode Island who moved to NYC and ended up a Gambino member in the Robilotto-Eppolito crew but stayed very close to Ray.

- Patriarca went to NYC with Henry Tameleo in 1963 where they presided over Nicky Bianco's induction as an NYC-based New England member. Patriarca had to get special Commission approval for this one induction and it related to Bianca's intended role as mediator in the Gallo dispute. Bianco would transfer to the Colombos in 1965 then transfer back to NE in 1973.

- After Nick Bianco was made, he requested that Patriarca induct some of the unmade Gallo crew associates in order to give them protection. Patriarca told him he couldn't because the books were closed.

- In September 1964, Patriarca was recorded discussing how Genovese member Johnny Foto Biele should contact Jerry Angiulo about getting an unknown man "straightened out". Sounds like the NE Family was going to again make someone for the Genovese Family.

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Wouldn't be that crazy if Tameleo was inducted elsewhere and transferred, like these other situations, I just don't see any personal connection he had to the Bonannos. The only Bonanno connection I've seen is that when Joe Bonanno was deposed and the Commission sent word to stop recognizing Bonanno members loyal to JB, Patriarca had Tameleo take the news/instructions to Joe Lombardo in Boston.

Curious if anyone knows the original source for that info about Tameleo being a Bonanno or anything else relevant to these inductions and transfers between NE and different Families.

[B.]

- The old AmericanMafia.com article on NE makes the claim that Tameleo was originally a Bonanno as well. I checked the internet archive and the Tameleo/Bonanno info was on the AmericanMafia site by the year 2000.

- The claim that Tameleo was first with the Bonannos was published in print as early as 2003 in "Mobsters: A Who's Who of America's Most Notorious Criminals" by Tonny Rizzo. This is one of those generic mafia encyclopedia type books so he probably pulled the info from AmericanMafia.com or somewhere else.

- A 2006 book by Thomas Repetto says Tameleo "apprenticed" with the Bonannos "in Brooklyn". I haven't found any records placing him in Brooklyn. He was born in Rhode Island in 1901 and the 1915, 1920, and 1950 censuses show him living there (haven't found 1930 or 1940). His son and daughter were born in RI in 1921-1922 and his grandchildren who lived with him were born in RI during the 1940s.

- A 1979 article in the Hartford Courant interviews Vinny Teresa where he says Tameleo was a close friend of Joe Bonanno. However, this is the article where Teresa makes ludicrous claims about what the "Sicilian Dons" will do to retaliate against Joe Bonanno for having his notes confiscated by the FBI from the trash. Maybe Tameleo did know Bonanno but the overall context is questionable.

- Tameleo was part of a conversation with Ray Patriarca and Jerry Angiulo recorded by the FBI in 1964 where they discuss the beginnings of the Bonanno conflict. Ray Patriarca tries to explain Bonanno's background/connections, making some mistakes in the process. Tameleo says nothing to indicate he was a former member of Bonanno's Family.

- Tameleo's parents came from Caserta province in Campania.

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So far haven't found the original source for the Tameleo/Bonanno claim. It was published online by AmericanMafia 22 years ago and in a book 19 years ago but neither of them seem to be the original source.

Did Vinny Teresa provide this info somewhere? He was close to Tameleo and made the claim about Bonanno being a close friend of Tameleo but I don't see any info where Teresa said Tameleo was a former Bonanno member.

Given Patriarca was a member of an NYC Family for a time I can't rule this out, but it looks highly questionable to me without a concrete source.

[Joeyboy1982]

I saw in a Facebook group post, Tameleo was quoted as saying he never did business with Gerry A and didn't care for him much(not in those words). Did anyone else come across this?

[Pmac2]

Alot of people didn't like Jerry Anguilla. He was a shrewd business man. That guy made so much money whitey Bulger and his whole crew couldn't shine his shoes. Some how the media twisted this all up. Anguilo real estate in boston was insane. He even owned a golf club in westbourough that guy made dough. Also why he wasn't liked and caused his downfall

[B.]

- Tom Hunt's site and Bill Feather have the Teresas coming from Monreale, but two different online genealogy sites have them from Termini Imerese, their true name being Teresi. All Vinny Teresa said to the FBI was his grandfather was a "Don" from "Palermo".

- Tom Hunt has Gaspare DiCola as a possible early New England boss. DiCola was from Termini Imerese, so if it's true the Teresas are from the there as well it indicates this is yet another city in the early US mafia where Termini played a role.

- Vinny Teresa told the FBI that Dominic Tringale was "in control" of Detroit. Tringale was at that time a younger Detroit figure, so an odd name for him to mention. However, Tringale (Tringali) was born and raised in Boston and was actually Vinny Teresa's first cousin so he had reason to know him. Dominic's father Salvatore Tringali married the sister of Vinny Teresa's father. Tringali was from Siracusa province so probably not from a mafia background but Dominic Tringale's path from the Teresa clan in Boston to the Detroit mafia is a new connection to me.

- Teresa on terminology in NE:



- Reference to grandfather in testimony:



^^^ Vincenzo Teresi lived in Boston and died in 1912 so he'd be one of the earliest known Boston members along with Girolamo Asaro.

[SB1825]

Any one know if any of the NE member source’s have said anything about whether or not NE used the terms “Cosa Nostra” or “family”?

[CornerBoy]

amazing info

[PolackTony]

- The old AmericanMafia.com article on NE makes the claim that Tameleo was originally a Bonanno as well. I checked the internet archive and the Tameleo/Bonanno info was on the AmericanMafia site by the year 2000.

- The claim that Tameleo was first with the Bonannos was published in print as early as 2003 in "Mobsters: A Who's Who of America's Most Notorious Criminals" by Tonny Rizzo. This is one of those generic mafia encyclopedia type books so he probably pulled the info from AmericanMafia.com or somewhere else.

- A 2006 book by Thomas Repetto says Tameleo "apprenticed" with the Bonannos "in Brooklyn". I haven't found any records placing him in Brooklyn. He was born in Rhode Island in 1901 and the 1915, 1920, and 1950 censuses show him living there (haven't found 1930 or 1940). His son and daughter were born in RI in 1921-1922 and his grandchildren who lived with him were born in RI during the 1940s.

- A 1979 article in the Hartford Courant interviews Vinny Teresa where he says Tameleo was a close friend of Joe Bonanno. However, this is the article where Teresa makes ludicrous claims about what the "Sicilian Dons" will do to retaliate against Joe Bonanno for having his notes confiscated by the FBI from the trash. Maybe Tameleo did know Bonanno but the overall context is questionable.

- Tameleo was part of a conversation with Ray Patriarca and Jerry Angiulo recorded by the FBI in 1964 where they discuss the beginnings of the Bonanno conflict. Ray Patriarca tries to explain Bonanno's background/connections, making some mistakes in the process. Tameleo says nothing to indicate he was a former member of Bonanno's Family.

- Tameleo's parents came from Caserta province in Campania.

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So far haven't found the original source for the Tameleo/Bonanno claim. It was published online by AmericanMafia 22 years ago and in a book 19 years ago but neither of them seem to be the original source.

Did Vinny Teresa provide this info somewhere? He was close to Tameleo and made the claim about Bonanno being a close friend of Tameleo but I don't see any info where Teresa said Tameleo was a former Bonanno member.

Given Patriarca was a member of an NYC Family for a time I can't rule this out, but it looks highly questionable to me without a concrete source.

As you noted, there doesn’t seem to be any documentation that places Tameleo (originally Tammelleo) in NYC. He married Giovaninna Borelli in 1919 in RI and their son Saverio was born in Providence a year later; in 1920, Henry also appears in the census still living with his parents in Providence. While I haven’t found a 1930 census record for him, there was a 1934 Providence city directory that listed an Enrico Tameleo, which should be him. Also, in 1931, the Providence Evening Bulletin noted a sale of warehouse goods to Henry Tameleo. While it’s possible that he was in NYC in the intervening years, nothing seems to directly support that. I had actually looked into Tameleo briefly myself after I came across the assertion that he had been with the Bonannos in BK, as it seemed odd to me that a Napolitan’ guy from RI would’ve wound up with them, of all scenarios. Unless some firm evidence surfaces, I’m inclined to take this as myth.

Thanks also for the notes on local nomenclature. At this point, it’d be easier to list the families that did not use “outfit” instead of listing those that did; so far as I can recall at the moment, Philly is practically the only city where I haven’t seen the term recorded as a euphemism for the mafia. Yet we persist in referring to the Chicago family as “The Outfit”, with a capital O, even though it’s by now become abundantly clear that “outfit” was a nationwide term of reference for the mafia — both the mafia as a whole and individual families. Goes to really show that, while many of us may specialize or focus on specific families, we stand to miss a lot if we don’t have the context to put them in a comparative light.

[MightyDR]

I thought for sure that Teresa mentioned this in his book and that the original source was just one of his dubious stories, but the best I could find was that it mentions that Tameleo worked in the rackets in New York as a young man.

[B.]

I thought for sure that Teresa mentioned this in his book and that the original source was just one of his dubious stories, but the best I could find was that it mentions that Tameleo worked in the rackets in New York as a young man.

Thanks DR -- I don't have any of Teresa's books. I know there was a second one called "Vinny Teresa's Mafia" or something, curious if that says anything.

Wouldn't be surprised if the Tameleo / Bonanno thing comes from Teresa in some way given he was the major source (for better and worse) for a lot of the public info about the Patriarcas during that era. I doubt people like Tom Hunt and Allan May pulled it out of nowhere even though it's questionable.

[Antiliar]

I have both books. I went through the second book, "Vinnie Teresa's Mafia," looking for answers. It had some. The structure that he lays out is that Raymond Patriarca Sr was the New England boss and Henry Tameleo was his underboss. Teresa was the number 3 man and answered to Tameleo, but wasn't made. Then there were bosses over specific locations. Gerry Angiulo was designated the boss of Boston around 1962, but he answered to Patriarca and Tameleo. While Teresa wasn't always honest, he clearly knew a lot. Ed wrote an article that shows he'd been informing the FBI since 1962, so a lot of the info we have on Boston in the 1960s actually came from him.

I'll look at the earlier book when I get a chance. I do recall that he spoke a lot about Carmine Galante, describing him as an ultra-tough killer who ran the Italian section of Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary. It makes me wonder if this book helped allow Galante to wrestle control of the Bonanno Family.

[Antiliar]

Went through the first book (neither book is indexed) and it said that Tameleo was previously the top man under Butsey Morelli in Rhode Island. Doesn't say anything about a Bonanno association.

[B.]

Thanks a ton for going through it.

- Teresa saying Tameleo was "underboss" and Angiulo was Boston "boss" shows the difference between an associate's POV versus member. We know from Scarpa that Tameleo was a capodecina through the period Teresa knew him and from wiretaps that Angiulo was promoted to capodecina around the time Teresa refers to him becoming Boston "boss". You can understand why Teresa might not know those specifics given he was a non-member, though he understood who was powerful.

- He's also the source who said the New England Family used a council that Joe Lombardo presided over. He called it the "round table" and said they met above a music shop where they discussed policy and high-level matters. He was consistent about that in his FBI cooperation and in interviews. Ed's article says he also refers to the "round table" in his second book.

^^^ If it's true New England had a consiglio it could explain some of the confusion over ranks as it would mean around five members had a vote in high-level matters. I don't know if the round table group described by Teresa was Boston-centric or if it included the Providence faction. If a group of senior leaders from both Boston and Providence were part of the round table it must be a consiglio but if it was only Boston I'm not sure.

- The consiglio angle could also explain some of the confusion over Gaspare Messina. He stepped down as boss decades before his death but is believed to have acted as an elder statesman until he passed. It's not clear if he was still official boss when he moved back to NYC in 1927 but he was living in NYC and associating with the Maranzano Family when he was elected acting capo dei capi. Don't know if non-bosses could serve in that position, but the other capi we know of were Family bosses in addition to capo dei capi. He was either still official boss of Boston but living remotely in NYC or he was a former boss / elder statesman chosen as interrim capo.

- We've talked about Messina being a Bonanno member, but Joe Lombardo was from Salemi like Messina and lived in Brooklyn too before moving to Boston. His wife was born in Brooklyn, her surname being Pagnotta, the same name as Gaspare Messina and Frank Cucchiara's Boston business partner Paolo Pagnotta. There were some Pagnottas from Monreale but I can't confirm where these ones were from -- they were certainly connected to mafiosi from Salemi on two fronts. Seems Lombardo would have associated with the Bonannos in NYC like Messina.

[B.]

Gaetano Marino:

- Gentile's close friend who had a residence in Boston. When Gentile arrived in Boston from Sicily in the early 1920s he was greeted by Marino and had dinner at his house. Marino was familiar to the Boston Family, as Gaspare Messina sent men to Marino's house to contact Gentile.

- Gaspare Messina wanted to host a banquet for Gentile, so Gentile asked if his friend Marino could attend too as Marino was not part of the Boston Family. Though Gentile didn't attend his own banquet, Messina held the banquet regardless and Gaetano Marino attended, telling Gentile they toasted in Gentile's honor.

- Gentile only says Marino was not a member of the Boston Family -- he doesn't say Marino wasn't a mafioso. Marino was a confidant of Gentile who was allowed to attend a mafia Family's banquet so I suspect he was both Sicilian and a made member, but Gentile indicates he was a member of a different Family while living/staying in Boston. We know those arrangements existed (i.e. Cadillac Charlie getting assigned to the Gambinos but living in Youngstown).

- Hard to narrow down who Marino was given his generic name. I found an interesting guy named Gaetano Marino (b. 1885) from Siculiana, same hometown as Gentile. This Marino arrived to his brother-in-law Giuseppe Piro in New Orleans in 1910, his wife Francesca Pira remaining back in Siculiana. In 1914 she joined husband Marino who was living in New Orleans. This Gaetano Marino, his wife Francesca, and bro-in-law Giuseppe Piro all ended up settling permanently in Chicago in later decades. I haven't found where they lived circa 1920 nor have I found a Boston link -- based on Gentile's account this guy would have been present in Boston 1921-1922 but Gentile says he wasn't a member of the Boston Family which could suggest his stay there was temporary and he may have split time elsewhere, making documentation difficult to find.

[Antiliar]

- Tom Hunt has Gaspare DiCola as a possible early Boston boss. This came from the article I wrote on Gaspare Messina several years back. I speculated that DiCola could have been an earlier boss.

- The FBI has Anthony Santaniello as the underboss in its 1960 chart, but he died on Sept 30, 1960, so someone likely replaced him soon after. Santaniello was born in Boston in 1903 to parents from Avellino.

- There appears to be confusion over Temeleo's position. As I noted earlier, Teresa consistently calls him an underboss, but we've seen other examples where an underboss means top lieutenant or something similar. Teresa also said that in the New England office (or "The Office"), Patriarca was number 1, Tameleo was no. 2, and Teresa was no. 3. An FBI report from 1968 called Tameleo "Lieutenant for Patriarca" and Angiulo "LCN leader in the Boston area." In a 1967 report, Tameleo is the "chief lieutenant for Patriarca" and Angiulo is the LCN capo at Boston. A 1972 report says that Patriarca had sent orders out through Tameleo. The Boston Globe from May 19, 1967 cites numerous FBI reports of Patriarca sending Tameleo out to pass along orders to Angiulo and others within his borgata as well as New York Families. So his activities certainly fit within the role of underboss. Newsday staff writer Bob Greene on the other hand called Tamaleo a soldier, but Thomas C. Renner, another Newsday writer who cowrote Teresa's books, said he was an underboss.

- Whatever the case, Tameleo was convicted and sent to prison in March 1968, and in its 1969 chart the FBI had Angiulo as underboss.

- So far, the earliest book I could find that connected Tameleo to Bonanno is "Mobsters: A Who's Who" by Joe Corrina and published in 2003. If I see anything earlier, I'll post it.

- This Giuseppe Piro of New Orleans - I wonder if he's related to Vincenzo Piro.