Visiting Rockford

Discuss all mafia families in the U.S., Canada, Italy, and everywhere else in the world.

Moderator: Capos

User avatar
cavita
Full Patched
Posts: 1955
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:04 am

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by cavita »

cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 9:02 am
Chris Christie wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 6:59 am I'm mostly finished. I'll email the excel for you and B. to look over.

A few things-
1
Phillip Frances Cannella
7/8/1914 Illinois
1008 S Main St, Rockford, IL
Luca Cannella Palermo? - Were the Cannellas from Palermo city? I see his wife was from Santi Stefano
Nicolina Cannova Santo Stefano Quisquina, Agrigento, Sicilia
Constance Mary Saladino

Philip J. Priola
4/11/1907
Illinois
Giuseppe Priola
Maria Cannova or Ventimiglia
Margherita Sciortino
Can't find where Priola came from.

2
I need Addresses for.
Francesco Buscemi
Philip J. Priola

3 - Can you provide the Boss Succession?
Cannella's family was from Villafranca and his wife Connie was the daughter of Rockford LCN member George Saladino. Saladino sponsored Cannella for membership around 1953.
I can get addresses at a later date. Boss succession was:
1931-1958 with Caltagerone acting boss from 1931-1932 when Musso was in jail.
1958-1990 Joe Zammuto
1990-? Salvatore Galluzzo
While in Rockford Frank Buscemi lived at 4619 Sequoia Circle and Phil Priola lived at 1220 8th Street.
User avatar
cavita
Full Patched
Posts: 1955
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:04 am

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by cavita »

I must say while Milwaukee informant Augie Maniaci filled the FBI in on Rockford's members and early history, he didn't know everything. There was one FBI file where he told the FBI about a certain member that he didn't think of previously because he hadn't seen that member in a while and forgot about him. Maniaci lived in Rockford starting around 1934 when he married the daughter of Rockford LCN member Joe Guttilla. Maniaci moved to Milwaukee sometime around 1940. While I don't believe Maniaci was made a member until he moved to Milwaukee he knew at the very least that Tony Musso was the boss since 1931 as he stated that Phil Caltagerone was acting boss while Musso was in Leavenworth which was from February 21, 1931 to September 10, 1932. Maniaci didn't know the positions of any of the other members from that time but did say that George Saladino "bossed a gang of men" which to me signifies that Saladino was an early capo.
User avatar
cavita
Full Patched
Posts: 1955
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:04 am

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by cavita »

PolackTony wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 8:04 am
cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 5:52 am
Chris Christie wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 4:35 am FBI reports say Rockford opposed Frank Buscemi as Joe's successor due to his close ties to Chicago: 1950 census shows Frank Buscemi living in Chicago.
43290879-Illinois-157506-0002.jpg

These reports below are from 1967 I believe, but they mention Charles Vince as a capodecina and mentions Jasper Calo. Was Calo a member in 1963?
buscemi.PNG
rockford 1967.PNG
Buscemi was living next door to his parents and sister Rose. Rose ended up marrying a Giammarese. Don't know if that name is connected or not.
As Cavita knows better than me, Buscemi was in Chicago from his arrival in the US in 1926. His wife, Giovanna “Jennie” DeMaria was from Chicago and in the 1940s Buscemi stated that he was employed by her father, Vincenzo DiMaria (from Pietraperzia). I’m not sure the exact year that the Buscemis relocated to Rockford but it was obviously after 1950. Vincenzo DiMaria died in ‘57, so was it after that?

Rose Buscemi’s husband, Santo Giammarese, was born in Chicago to Francesco Giammarese and Rosalia D’Aquisto of Bagheria. I don’t know for a fact that they were connected; his stepmother was Grazia LoGalbo. Given their Bagherese origins, good likelihood that someone was connected. There was a Tony Giammarese who was part of a Near Northside robbery “gang” in 1942 that allegedly killed a cop; doesn’t seem to be an immediate relative, however. Interestingly, the ringleader was a kid named Joseph Morreale, a Bagherese name that had some major mafia connections in the 1920s in Chicago; this kid lived on the same block of Evergreen as Frank Buscemi. Tony Priola, Phil Priola’s younger brother, married a Morreale.
Yes, Phil Priola's younger brother Anthony married Anna Morreale and her parents were Vincenzo Morreale and Rosina Carramusa.
User avatar
PolackTony
Filthy Few
Posts: 5766
Joined: Thu May 28, 2020 10:54 am
Location: NYC/Chicago

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by PolackTony »

cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 11:05 am
PolackTony wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 10:58 am
cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 9:06 am
PolackTony wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 8:04 am
cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 5:52 am
Chris Christie wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 4:35 am FBI reports say Rockford opposed Frank Buscemi as Joe's successor due to his close ties to Chicago: 1950 census shows Frank Buscemi living in Chicago.
43290879-Illinois-157506-0002.jpg

These reports below are from 1967 I believe, but they mention Charles Vince as a capodecina and mentions Jasper Calo. Was Calo a member in 1963?
buscemi.PNG
rockford 1967.PNG
Buscemi was living next door to his parents and sister Rose. Rose ended up marrying a Giammarese. Don't know if that name is connected or not.
As Cavita knows better than me, Buscemi was in Chicago from his arrival in the US in 1926. His wife, Giovanna “Jennie” DeMaria was from Chicago and in the 1940s Buscemi stated that he was employed by her father, Vincenzo DiMaria (from Pietraperzia). I’m not sure the exact year that the Buscemis relocated to Rockford but it was obviously after 1950. Vincenzo DiMaria died in ‘57, so was it after that?

Rose Buscemi’s husband, Santo Giammarese, was born in Chicago to Francesco Giammarese and Rosalia D’Aquisto of Bagheria. I don’t know for a fact that they were connected; his stepmother was Grazia LoGalbo. Given their Bagherese origins, good likelihood that someone was connected. There was a Tony Giammarese who was part of a Near Northside robbery “gang” in 1942 that allegedly killed a cop; doesn’t seem to be an immediate relative, however. Interestingly, the ringleader was a kid named Joseph Morreale, a Bagherese name that had some major mafia connections in the 1920s in Chicago; this kid lived on the same block of Evergreen as Frank Buscemi. Tony Priola, Phil Priola’s younger brother, married a Morreale.
Buscemi arrived in Rockford in late 1958 and attempted to get a job at Midwest Vending but was turned down. He then formed Stateline Vending himself. Buscemi was made in May 1959 and immediately started pressuring area businesses to start using his vending services and extorting Midwest Vending.
I believe Santo Giammarese was a police officer and may have died in the line of duty.
Yeah, seems that Buscemi relocated to Rockford after his father-in-law died. Hard to believe that he went fro 0 to 60, hitting the ground running in Rockford like that without pre-existing connections, so I think he was almost certainly a Chicago associate prior to Rockford. Again, no indication that his father-in-law was connected -- the only Chicago guys that we know of (as of yet) from Pietraperzia were the Virrusos, but presumably, they had paesani who were part of the network in Chicago.

If you have anything stating that Santo Giammerese was CPD, let me know. He died in 1964 and I see no indication of foul play in the papers and his obit doesn't list him as CPD. He was, however, a member of the mobbed-up IBT Local 705, a member of the Dominic Nuccio American Legion Post (in the '60s this was being used, unsurprisingly, as an illegal nightclub and house of prostitution), and a member of the Sambuca Society; given that his parents were Bagheresi, one wonders how he got plugged in with the Sambucesi. This makes me wonder if the Aragonese Buscemis were members of the Sambuca Society, though Aragona also had its own Society in Chicago (not sure if it was still extant as of 1964, though). In the 1940s, Santo was living on Huron in the Grand Ave Patch and working at his father Frank Giammerese's grocery store on Oak St in Little Sicily (notable red flag occupation, IMO).

Now, here's something. Santo's older brother, Nick Giammerese (b. 1916), also employed at the family grocery business, was married to Carmella LoPiccolo, sister of outfit-connected narcotics trafficker Joe LoPiccolo: viewtopic.php?f=29&t=9419&p=236569&hili ... lo#p236569
Buscemi's meteoric rise in Rockford was because his sister was married to Joe Zammuto's son. The familiarity was already there and that probably caused the move to Rockford. Before Zammuto was boss he was in charge of slot machines in Rockford and made frequent trips to Chicago in relation to this. This was in the 1940s.
That makes snse. Could be a push-pull thing, given that he only left Chicago after his father-in-law, how was ostensibly his employer, died and he would've clearly had opportunities in Rockford. The connection between the Giammereses and LoPiccolos is really making me wonder about the Giammareses having possibly been a connected family. Maybe none of them were ever formal outfit associates, but almost certainly they were part of the broader social network that extended out from the mob; e.g., Santos's connections to the Nuccio American Legion club and Local 705.
"Hey, hey, hey — this is America, baby! Survival of the fittest.”
User avatar
cavita
Full Patched
Posts: 1955
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:04 am

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by cavita »

PolackTony wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 5:24 pm
cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 11:05 am
PolackTony wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 10:58 am
cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 9:06 am
PolackTony wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 8:04 am
cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 5:52 am
Chris Christie wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 4:35 am FBI reports say Rockford opposed Frank Buscemi as Joe's successor due to his close ties to Chicago: 1950 census shows Frank Buscemi living in Chicago.
43290879-Illinois-157506-0002.jpg

These reports below are from 1967 I believe, but they mention Charles Vince as a capodecina and mentions Jasper Calo. Was Calo a member in 1963?
buscemi.PNG
rockford 1967.PNG
Buscemi was living next door to his parents and sister Rose. Rose ended up marrying a Giammarese. Don't know if that name is connected or not.
As Cavita knows better than me, Buscemi was in Chicago from his arrival in the US in 1926. His wife, Giovanna “Jennie” DeMaria was from Chicago and in the 1940s Buscemi stated that he was employed by her father, Vincenzo DiMaria (from Pietraperzia). I’m not sure the exact year that the Buscemis relocated to Rockford but it was obviously after 1950. Vincenzo DiMaria died in ‘57, so was it after that?

Rose Buscemi’s husband, Santo Giammarese, was born in Chicago to Francesco Giammarese and Rosalia D’Aquisto of Bagheria. I don’t know for a fact that they were connected; his stepmother was Grazia LoGalbo. Given their Bagherese origins, good likelihood that someone was connected. There was a Tony Giammarese who was part of a Near Northside robbery “gang” in 1942 that allegedly killed a cop; doesn’t seem to be an immediate relative, however. Interestingly, the ringleader was a kid named Joseph Morreale, a Bagherese name that had some major mafia connections in the 1920s in Chicago; this kid lived on the same block of Evergreen as Frank Buscemi. Tony Priola, Phil Priola’s younger brother, married a Morreale.
Buscemi arrived in Rockford in late 1958 and attempted to get a job at Midwest Vending but was turned down. He then formed Stateline Vending himself. Buscemi was made in May 1959 and immediately started pressuring area businesses to start using his vending services and extorting Midwest Vending.
I believe Santo Giammarese was a police officer and may have died in the line of duty.
Yeah, seems that Buscemi relocated to Rockford after his father-in-law died. Hard to believe that he went fro 0 to 60, hitting the ground running in Rockford like that without pre-existing connections, so I think he was almost certainly a Chicago associate prior to Rockford. Again, no indication that his father-in-law was connected -- the only Chicago guys that we know of (as of yet) from Pietraperzia were the Virrusos, but presumably, they had paesani who were part of the network in Chicago.

If you have anything stating that Santo Giammerese was CPD, let me know. He died in 1964 and I see no indication of foul play in the papers and his obit doesn't list him as CPD. He was, however, a member of the mobbed-up IBT Local 705, a member of the Dominic Nuccio American Legion Post (in the '60s this was being used, unsurprisingly, as an illegal nightclub and house of prostitution), and a member of the Sambuca Society; given that his parents were Bagheresi, one wonders how he got plugged in with the Sambucesi. This makes me wonder if the Aragonese Buscemis were members of the Sambuca Society, though Aragona also had its own Society in Chicago (not sure if it was still extant as of 1964, though). In the 1940s, Santo was living on Huron in the Grand Ave Patch and working at his father Frank Giammerese's grocery store on Oak St in Little Sicily (notable red flag occupation, IMO).

Now, here's something. Santo's older brother, Nick Giammerese (b. 1916), also employed at the family grocery business, was married to Carmella LoPiccolo, sister of outfit-connected narcotics trafficker Joe LoPiccolo: viewtopic.php?f=29&t=9419&p=236569&hili ... lo#p236569
Buscemi's meteoric rise in Rockford was because his sister was married to Joe Zammuto's son. The familiarity was already there and that probably caused the move to Rockford. Before Zammuto was boss he was in charge of slot machines in Rockford and made frequent trips to Chicago in relation to this. This was in the 1940s.
That makes snse. Could be a push-pull thing, given that he only left Chicago after his father-in-law, how was ostensibly his employer, died and he would've clearly had opportunities in Rockford. The connection between the Giammereses and LoPiccolos is really making me wonder about the Giammareses having possibly been a connected family. Maybe none of them were ever formal outfit associates, but almost certainly they were part of the broader social network that extended out from the mob; e.g., Santos's connections to the Nuccio American Legion club and Local 705.
The regular members had distrust of Buscemi because he was from Chicago and because they put up money for shares in a vending machine business with Joe Zammuto. When Buscemi came to Rockford, Zammuto decided Buscemi was going to run it and returned the money to the other members so that put a bad taste in their mouths. They didn't trust Buscemi but they respected Zammuto so much, they abided by his decision to have Buscemi be underboss. It should be noted that the distrust came from the members who though Sicilian, were born in the United States so they were a little more "Americanized."
User avatar
cavita
Full Patched
Posts: 1955
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:04 am

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by cavita »

cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 9:06 am
PolackTony wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 8:04 am
cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 5:52 am
Chris Christie wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 4:35 am FBI reports say Rockford opposed Frank Buscemi as Joe's successor due to his close ties to Chicago: 1950 census shows Frank Buscemi living in Chicago.
43290879-Illinois-157506-0002.jpg

These reports below are from 1967 I believe, but they mention Charles Vince as a capodecina and mentions Jasper Calo. Was Calo a member in 1963?
buscemi.PNG
rockford 1967.PNG
Buscemi was living next door to his parents and sister Rose. Rose ended up marrying a Giammarese. Don't know if that name is connected or not.
As Cavita knows better than me, Buscemi was in Chicago from his arrival in the US in 1926. His wife, Giovanna “Jennie” DeMaria was from Chicago and in the 1940s Buscemi stated that he was employed by her father, Vincenzo DiMaria (from Pietraperzia). I’m not sure the exact year that the Buscemis relocated to Rockford but it was obviously after 1950. Vincenzo DiMaria died in ‘57, so was it after that?

Rose Buscemi’s husband, Santo Giammarese, was born in Chicago to Francesco Giammarese and Rosalia D’Aquisto of Bagheria. I don’t know for a fact that they were connected; his stepmother was Grazia LoGalbo. Given their Bagherese origins, good likelihood that someone was connected. There was a Tony Giammarese who was part of a Near Northside robbery “gang” in 1942 that allegedly killed a cop; doesn’t seem to be an immediate relative, however. Interestingly, the ringleader was a kid named Joseph Morreale, a Bagherese name that had some major mafia connections in the 1920s in Chicago; this kid lived on the same block of Evergreen as Frank Buscemi. Tony Priola, Phil Priola’s younger brother, married a Morreale.
Buscemi arrived in Rockford in late 1958 and attempted to get a job at Midwest Vending but was turned down. He then formed Stateline Vending himself. Buscemi was made in May 1959 and immediately started pressuring area businesses to start using his vending services and extorting Midwest Vending.
I believe Santo Giammarese was a police officer and may have died in the line of duty.
I erred when I posted this- Santo Giammarese was not a police officer but was in the military in WWII. I saw a photo of him in his military uniform years ago and thought it was a police uniform. I saw that photo again last night and realized my mistake. So, he died pretty young in 1964 and after his death, his wife and kids moved to Rockford from Chicago to join the Buscemi family there.
User avatar
cavita
Full Patched
Posts: 1955
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:04 am

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by cavita »

PolackTony wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 8:04 am
cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 5:52 am
Chris Christie wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 4:35 am FBI reports say Rockford opposed Frank Buscemi as Joe's successor due to his close ties to Chicago: 1950 census shows Frank Buscemi living in Chicago.
43290879-Illinois-157506-0002.jpg

These reports below are from 1967 I believe, but they mention Charles Vince as a capodecina and mentions Jasper Calo. Was Calo a member in 1963?
buscemi.PNG
rockford 1967.PNG
Buscemi was living next door to his parents and sister Rose. Rose ended up marrying a Giammarese. Don't know if that name is connected or not.
As Cavita knows better than me, Buscemi was in Chicago from his arrival in the US in 1926. His wife, Giovanna “Jennie” DeMaria was from Chicago and in the 1940s Buscemi stated that he was employed by her father, Vincenzo DiMaria (from Pietraperzia). I’m not sure the exact year that the Buscemis relocated to Rockford but it was obviously after 1950. Vincenzo DiMaria died in ‘57, so was it after that?

Rose Buscemi’s husband, Santo Giammarese, was born in Chicago to Francesco Giammarese and Rosalia D’Aquisto of Bagheria. I don’t know for a fact that they were connected; his stepmother was Grazia LoGalbo. Given their Bagherese origins, good likelihood that someone was connected. There was a Tony Giammarese who was part of a Near Northside robbery “gang” in 1942 that allegedly killed a cop; doesn’t seem to be an immediate relative, however. Interestingly, the ringleader was a kid named Joseph Morreale, a Bagherese name that had some major mafia connections in the 1920s in Chicago; this kid lived on the same block of Evergreen as Frank Buscemi. Tony Priola, Phil Priola’s younger brother, married a Morreale.
PT do you know where these Morreales were from? There were a few of them in Rockford that tied in to the DiSciacca and Galluzzo families and I believe they were from Aragona.
User avatar
cavita
Full Patched
Posts: 1955
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:04 am

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by cavita »

PolackTony wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 10:58 am
cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 9:06 am
PolackTony wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 8:04 am
cavita wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 5:52 am
Chris Christie wrote: Fri Sep 16, 2022 4:35 am FBI reports say Rockford opposed Frank Buscemi as Joe's successor due to his close ties to Chicago: 1950 census shows Frank Buscemi living in Chicago.
43290879-Illinois-157506-0002.jpg

These reports below are from 1967 I believe, but they mention Charles Vince as a capodecina and mentions Jasper Calo. Was Calo a member in 1963?
buscemi.PNG
rockford 1967.PNG
Buscemi was living next door to his parents and sister Rose. Rose ended up marrying a Giammarese. Don't know if that name is connected or not.
As Cavita knows better than me, Buscemi was in Chicago from his arrival in the US in 1926. His wife, Giovanna “Jennie” DeMaria was from Chicago and in the 1940s Buscemi stated that he was employed by her father, Vincenzo DiMaria (from Pietraperzia). I’m not sure the exact year that the Buscemis relocated to Rockford but it was obviously after 1950. Vincenzo DiMaria died in ‘57, so was it after that?

Rose Buscemi’s husband, Santo Giammarese, was born in Chicago to Francesco Giammarese and Rosalia D’Aquisto of Bagheria. I don’t know for a fact that they were connected; his stepmother was Grazia LoGalbo. Given their Bagherese origins, good likelihood that someone was connected. There was a Tony Giammarese who was part of a Near Northside robbery “gang” in 1942 that allegedly killed a cop; doesn’t seem to be an immediate relative, however. Interestingly, the ringleader was a kid named Joseph Morreale, a Bagherese name that had some major mafia connections in the 1920s in Chicago; this kid lived on the same block of Evergreen as Frank Buscemi. Tony Priola, Phil Priola’s younger brother, married a Morreale.
Buscemi arrived in Rockford in late 1958 and attempted to get a job at Midwest Vending but was turned down. He then formed Stateline Vending himself. Buscemi was made in May 1959 and immediately started pressuring area businesses to start using his vending services and extorting Midwest Vending.
I believe Santo Giammarese was a police officer and may have died in the line of duty.
Yeah, seems that Buscemi relocated to Rockford after his father-in-law died. Hard to believe that he went fro 0 to 60, hitting the ground running in Rockford like that without pre-existing connections, so I think he was almost certainly a Chicago associate prior to Rockford. Again, no indication that his father-in-law was connected -- the only Chicago guys that we know of (as of yet) from Pietraperzia were the Virrusos, but presumably, they had paesani who were part of the network in Chicago.

If you have anything stating that Santo Giammerese was CPD, let me know. He died in 1964 and I see no indication of foul play in the papers and his obit doesn't list him as CPD. He was, however, a member of the mobbed-up IBT Local 705, a member of the Dominic Nuccio American Legion Post (in the '60s this was being used, unsurprisingly, as an illegal nightclub and house of prostitution), and a member of the Sambuca Society; given that his parents were Bagheresi, one wonders how he got plugged in with the Sambucesi. This makes me wonder if the Aragonese Buscemis were members of the Sambuca Society, though Aragona also had its own Society in Chicago (not sure if it was still extant as of 1964, though). In the 1940s, Santo was living on Huron in the Grand Ave Patch and working at his father Frank Giammerese's grocery store on Oak St in Little Sicily (notable red flag occupation, IMO).

Now, here's something. Santo's older brother, Nick Giammerese (b. 1916), also employed at the family grocery business, was married to Carmella LoPiccolo, sister of outfit-connected narcotics trafficker Joe LoPiccolo: viewtopic.php?f=29&t=9419&p=236569&hili ... lo#p236569
I was able to find a pic of the Giammarese Grocery Store on Oak Street- hope you enjoy!
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
B.
Men Of Mayhem
Posts: 10640
Joined: Mon Oct 27, 2014 10:18 pm
Contact:

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by B. »

What's really interesting to me about Rockford is how little Chicago actually influenced them. Maniaci said Jim DeGeorge supported Phil Priola to become Family boss but the rest of the Rockford Family wanted someone from Aragona instead so they voted for Zammuto. They were ultra traditional, having mostly Sicilians, used the consiglio, and compaesani politics was still influencing how they elected people.

Maniaci also said Chicago could only influence things if the Families invited them in. That's what Frank Balistrieri did in Milwaukee. Calabrese supports that idea where Chicago respected Rockford's claim over their associates when Chinatown wanted to officially take them.
User avatar
Snakes
Full Patched
Posts: 4352
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 7:00 am
Location: Elvis Country

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by Snakes »

I'm still puzzled by the idea that the FBI had Rockford as a crew under the Outfit. *Someone* reliable had to plant that the bug in the FBI's ear, as they held onto it for a decade plus. They had them as separate families in the sixties, but I wonder what caused them to reverse course later on.
User avatar
Snakes
Full Patched
Posts: 4352
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 7:00 am
Location: Elvis Country

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by Snakes »

I also have to say that pound-for-pound, I'm not sure anyone knows more about a specific family than Cavita does Rockford. I can't imagine where our knowledge would be without him!
User avatar
cavita
Full Patched
Posts: 1955
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:04 am

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by cavita »

Snakes wrote: Sun Sep 18, 2022 5:56 pm I'm still puzzled by the idea that the FBI had Rockford as a crew under the Outfit. *Someone* reliable had to plant that the bug in the FBI's ear, as they held onto it for a decade plus. They had them as separate families in the sixties, but I wonder what caused them to reverse course later on.
Snakes, I'm convinced that it was easier for the government to lump them in with Chicago Outfit and even though they dropped off the FBI lists of functioning families by the end of the 1980s I never saw any of the Rockford members included in an official list of Chicago Outfit members. My FBI files showed they were still functioning into the 1990s with a more Sicilian flavor if you will, and some of your files confirm that as well. My hope is that with more FBI files requested it will become clearer if they were indeed absorbed in the Outfit or just continued to partner with them.
I also appreciate the kind words- my research is a labor of love and becomes even more personal when I return to Rockford, hear the info firsthand and see the guys.
User avatar
cavita
Full Patched
Posts: 1955
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:04 am

Re: 1963 Chart Discussion/Suggestions.

Post by cavita »

Boss: Joe Zammuto (1896-1990) Origin: Aragona, Sicily Address: 1320 Montague Street, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Owner Reliable Distributing Company Wife: Elena Schiro

Underboss: Frank Buscemi (1911-1987) Origin: Aragona, Sicily Address: 1509 Montague Street, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Owner Stateline Vending Wife: Jennie DiMaria

Consigliere: Joe Zito (1904-1981) Origin: San Giuseppe Iato, Sicily Address: 2312 Rural Street, Rockford, Illinois
Occupation: Retired- secretly controlled about two dozen taverns Wife: Maria Gaziano

Capo: Lorenzo Buttice (1892-1967) Origin: Aragona, Sicily Address: 1112 Kent Street, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Retired Wife: Giuseppa Russo

Street Gambling Boss: Charles Vince (1907-1994) Origin: Union, Louisiana- family was from Camporeale, Sicily Address: 1904 Auburn Street #5, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: none Wife: Nunzia “Nancy” Gullotto

Soldier: Tony Basile (1907-1977) Origin: Rochester, New York- family was from San Giuseppe Iato, Sicily Address: 525 Indiana Avenue, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Unknown Wife: Giovanna Triolo

Soldier: Phil Caltagerone (1895-1971) Origin: Aragona, Sicily Address: 523 Michigan Avenue, Rockford, Illinois
Occupation: Retired Wife: Maria Provenzano, sister of Joe Stassi’s wife

Soldier: Phil Cannella (1914-1971) Origin: Rockford, Illinois- father from Villafranca, Sicily mother from Roccamena, Sicily Address: 1308 Victoria Avenue, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Owner of Phil’s Tavern, 217 East State Street Wife: Concetta Saladino, daughter of George Saladino

Soldier: Alfred Cicero (1906-1994) Origin: Lasalle, Illinois- family was from Sambuca, Sicily Address: 1118 Dickerman Street, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Custodian-Engineer at Barbour School Wife: Laura Teresi

Soldier: Phil Emordeno (1911-1981) Origin: Frankfort, New York- family was from San Giuseppe Iato, Sicily Address: 1223 Montague Street, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Bartender at Grant Park Tavern Wife: Mary DeFay (DeFaio)

Soldier: Joe Guttilla (1887-1963) Origin: Casteldaccia, Sicily Address: 1628 Montague Road, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Retired Wife: Giuseppa Corso

Soldier: Joe Marinelli (1918-1981) Origin: Rockford, Illinois- family was from Ferentino, Italy Address: 409 South Johnston Avenue, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Home improvement salesman Wife: Vivian Nau

Soldier: Sam Oliveri (1895-1969) Origin: Corleone, Sicily Address: 735 Sanford Street, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Co-owner Gasparini-Oliveri Funeral Home Wife: Vincenza Marino

Soldier: Phil Priola (1907-1987) Origin: Chicago, Illinois- family was from Ficarazzi, Sicily Address: 1220 Eighth Street, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Car salesman Wife: Margaret Sciortino

Soldier: George Saladino (1892-1964) Origin: Roccamena, Sicily Address: 1103 Kent Street, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Retired Wife: Giuseppa Patti

Soldier: Joe Stassi (1892-1963) Origin: San Giuseppe Iato, Sicily Address: 531 Indiana Avenue, Rockford, Illinois Occupation: Retired Wife: Giuseppa Provenzano, sister of Phil Caltagerone’s wife
User avatar
Angelo Santino
Filthy Few
Posts: 6563
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 8:15 am

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by Angelo Santino »

I asked before, not seeing it, what was the boss succession up to Zammuto?
User avatar
Angelo Santino
Filthy Few
Posts: 6563
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 8:15 am

Re: Visiting Rockford

Post by Angelo Santino »

Stats
rockfordstats.PNG
Majority of the membership wasn't from Aragona by this point in time. With the example of one Lazian, the entire family was Sicilian. All of them had legitimate employment or were retired from a job. 100% lived in Rockford.
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
Post Reply