One of the earliest established Mafia Families in the United States was the criminal network that formed down in Tampa, Florida. By the late 1800s to early 1900s, Italian immigrants from Sicily were drawn to the City of Tampa and a tight-knit “Little Italy”-type community soon developed.
Immigrating right along with these hard-working early Sicilian immigrants came a band of shadowy criminal figures from their homeland. Among the very first mafiosi to ever “set up shop” in Tampa were members of the Antinori, Italiano, and Scaglione families, who were all mafiosi back in Sicily.
Other “men of honor” considered to be contemporaries included such iconic names as Santo Trafficante Sr., Alfonso Diecidue, and the Lazzara family.
