A Long Reach

The American Mafia had a wide reach that went beyond the confines of the Big Apple. Almost every major American city from Boston to Chicago to Los Angeles had its own mafia family. Small cities like Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Dallas, Texas also had a mafia family to call its own.

And even smaller cities like Madison, Wisconsin; San Jose, California; and Springfield, Illinois had a mafia presence as well.

Upstate New York had a plethora of mafia activity including the Falcone regime of Utica which fell under the auspices of the Stefano Magaddino crime family of Buffalo. But there was also a mafia presence in cities like Syracuse, Schenectady, Albany, Rochester, and Binghamton, to name but a few.

In fact, the infamous 1957 mafia meeting in Apalachin, New York was hosted by Joseph Barbara Sr., who oversaw a large swathe of organized crime activity not only in Binghamton but also just over the border in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

This brings us to Russell Bufalino, perhaps one of the most underrated bosses of all time.

Bufalino assumed the mantle of power after Barbara's death in 1959. But he had ruled over the Northeastern Pennsylvania area as Barbara's trusty underboss years before and became a powerhouse in his own right. And he never looked back.

And that's just a small teaser of the kind of stories you can read in this section. Not only will you find in-depth articles about nearly all of the mafia families that ever operated across the U.S., but we've also written extensive stories on mafia families and regimes in Canada and Sicily, Italy as well.

In addition, you'll find articles about various regimes and crews of New York's Five Families and the DeCavalcante Family of New Jersey that also stretched their tentacles beyond their home bases.

Plus, you'll find interesting articles about the mob's presence in south Florida (and we're not talking just the Trafficante Crime Family here) and more.

So, take a seat and dig in. You'll be here a while.

Mobster Frederico Randaccio, better known as Lupo the Wolf, was the underboss of the Magaddino Crime Family in Buffalo, New York. His reputation as a top strong-arm man, capable enforcer, and competent killer in Buffalo's underworld would soon precede him everywhere he went.

Richie the Boot Boiardo was a notoriously dangerous and powerful Genovese Crime Family mobster who ruled Northern New Jersey with an iron fist. He was, perhaps, one of the most treacherous mobsters of all time and is one of the inspirations for The Sopranos TV show.

John Gambino was a powerhouse in the Gambino Family of Cosa Nostra, but how did he get his start and how and why did his two brothers, Joe and Rosario, end up in Cherry Hill? Part 1 of the Cherry Hill Gambino series.