Anthony D'Andrea
Anthony D'Andrea | |
|---|---|
| Born | Antonio D'Andrea June 7, 1872 |
| Died | May 12, 1921 (aged 48) Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Priest, Translator, Politician, Gangster |
| Years active | 1902–1921 |
| Spouse | Carolina Wagner (1899–1921) |
Anthony D'Andrea (born Antonio D'Andrea; Italian pronunciation:
Early life
D'Andrea was born in
In Chicago, D'Andrea met a young German woman, Carolina "Lena" Wagner. D'Andrea fell in love with Lena, left the priesthood, and married her in Milwaukee. However, after their marriage, Lena suddenly disappeared. D'Andrea suspected that the people who sheltered Lena after her parents' deaths were holding her. With help from the police, D'Andrea and Lena were reunited. Now that he was no longer a priest, D'Andrea decided to become a teacher of modern languages. His brother Louis also left the priesthood and married.[1]
The middle years
D'Andrea, because of his education, assisted other
Later years
In 1911, D'Andrea co-owned a company with Martin Merlo, a brother of close associate
It was also around this time that he became the Mafia boss of Chicago, following the murder of the previous leader. At one point, several young men committed certain crimes without D'Andrea's permission, and he ordered their deaths. One of them, identified only as Paolinello, sought refuge in Pittsburgh with Mafia boss Nicola Gentile. Gentile persuaded D'Andrea to allow Paolinello to join the Pittsburgh crime family. Gentile would later describe D'Andrea as a terrible and fearful man.
In 1916, D'Andrea ran for the office of
In 1919, D'Andrea became president of the Chicago head chapter of the
Mike Merlo, who was vacationing in Italy when he heard the news, immediately ordered the assassin's murder. After his return to Chicago, Merlo became the Mafia boss and Unione Siciliana president. D'Andrea's nephew, Philip D'Andrea, later became a member of (the Chicago Outfit) under boss Al Capone.[5]
See also
References
- ^ a b Napoli 2004, p. 31.
- ^ Gentile (1963).
- ^ Kendall, Todd D. (2009-05-17). "Alderman John Powers' Home Bombed by Political Rivals". Chicago Crime Scenes Project. Retrieved 2012-06-20.
- ^ "Take Cousin of Labriola for D'Andrea Death," The Chicago Tribune, May 13, 1921.
- ^ Nelli 1976, pp. 134–136.
Further reading
- Gentile, Nick; Chilanti, Felice (1963), Vita di Capomafia, Rome: Editori Riuniti
- May, Allan, "Chicago's Unione Siciliana: 1920: A Decade of Slaughter (Part One).", Crime Magazine: An Encyclopedia of Crime.
- Napoli, Antonio (2004), The Mob's Guys, College Station, TX: Virtualbookworm
- Nelli, Humbert S. (1973), Italians in Chicago, 1880-1930: A Study in Ethnic Mobility., New York: Oxford University Press
- Nelli, Humbert S. (1970), "John Powers and the Italians: Politics in a Chicago Ward, 1896-1921.", Journal of American History, 57 (1): 67–84, JSTOR 1900550
- Nelli, Humbert S. (1976), The Business of Crime: Italians and Syndicate Crime in the United States, New York: Oxford University Press
- Warner, Richard N. (2009), "The Dreaded D'Andrea: The Former Priest Who Became the Windy City's Most Feared Mafia Boss", Informer, 2 (2): 4–31
