Al Capone was an American gangster who led a crime syndicate during the Prohibition era. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1899, and he rose to power in Chicago in the 1920s.
Capone's gang controlled a vast criminal empire that included bootlegging, prostitution, gambling, and racketeering. He was also known for his ruthlessness and violence.
Jump to:
Capone's reign of terror came to an end in 1931 when he was convicted of income tax evasion and sentenced to 11 years in prison. He served seven years of his sentence at Alcatraz, and he died in 1947 at the age of 48.
Capone is one of the most notorious gangsters in American history, and his story has been told in many books, movies, and television shows. He is a symbol of the violence and corruption that plagued American cities during the Prohibition era.
Family Overview
Al Capone and his family tree are full of what you may expect, with the exception of his oldest brother.
His father was an Italian immigrant who became a barber and died in 1920. At this point, Al has begun to play semi-professional baseball but has found a mentor who taught him about the mob. His father never saw how infamous he would become, but his mother did.
His mother lived until 1952, which was after the death of her son Al. She died in Chicago, Illinois, which is where Al Capone ran his syndicate. She would have known, and she was alive for three of her son's deaths.
Al Capone and his brothers were on different sides, with some being indifferent. What is true is that after his death, the siblings distanced themselves from him by changing their names. His own son did the same.
Capone lived a violent life and killed many people, but he is somehow celebrated for his cruelty. He was eventually caught in tax fraud and would eventually die of syphilis that was streaming through his body due to his promiscuity.
He had one son.
Family Tree Chart
Parents:
Gabriele Francesco Saverio Capone (1865 - 1920) - He was born in Italy and ran a barber shop when he came to America. He died in 1920, shortly before his son Al became a famous mobster during Prohibition.
Teresina Raiola (1867 - 1952) - She was married in 1891 and went on to have many children. Her son Al became the most infamous, but she had other sons who were involved with the mob in Chicago. She lived to see the death of some of her children, including Al Capone.
Spouse:
Mary Josephine Coughlin (1897 - 1986) - She met Al while working at a department store. The two had one child together. She outlived her infamous husband and would eventually die in Hollywood, Florida. She would have seen Central Florida explode, thanks to Walt Disney.
Children:
Alphonso Albert Francis Capone (1918 - 2004) - He changed his last name to Brown to avoid association with the Capone name. He and his first wife had four daughters. After they divorced, he remarried and would eventually die in Miami, Florida.
Siblings:
Vincenzo James Capone (1892 - 1952) - He changed his name later in life. He was a World War 1 veteran and would participate against his brother as a Prohibition Agent. He was known as "Two Guns," and if he participated in the Capone syndicate, it was short-lived, if at all. In 1927, James served as a bodyguard for President Calvin Coolidge when the President and his family vacationed in the Black Hills.
Ralph James Capone (1894 - 1974) - He was an Italian mobster and an older brother of Al Capone and Frank Capone. He got the nickname "Bottles" not from involvement in the Capone bootlegging empire but from his running the legitimate non-alcoholic beverage and bottling operations in Chicago.
Frank Salvatore Capone (1896 - 1924) - He was the firstborn son of the Capones, who was born in the United States. Frank was very violent. His saying was, "You never get no back talk from a corpse." The Capones set up operations outside of Chicago in Cicero in 1923. Frank and others used guns to get what they wanted, even to make sure people voted as the ‘Chicago Outfit’ (Al Capone's gang) wanted. In a shootout with the police, Frank was killed on April 1, 1924. The jury returned a verdict that Frank had been killed while resisting arrest.
Erminio John Capone (1901 - unknown) - worked with the 'Chicago Outfit' gang and his brother but wasn’t considered a leader. John served as the family spokesman, carefully giving out information to the media. He later changed his name and went off the grid. He died in 1985 and is buried in Hillsdale, Illinois.
Albert Umberto Capone (1905 - 1980) - He was in Chicago but did not get involved with the Chicago Outfit. Albert used aliases for a long time before legally changing his name in 1942 to Rayola, a version of his mother’s maiden name. He tried to avoid the spotlight.
Amadeo Nicholas Capone (1908 - 1967) - He was a rival to his brother Al Capone and lived longer than him. He went by Matt since it was easier than Amadeo. By the mid-1940s, Matt was running the Hall of Fame tavern in Cicero.
Mafalsa Gonzales Capone (1912 - 1988) - She was the only sister of Al Capone to live to adulthood and did not get involved with his syndicate. It is unknown how many children she had due to her connections with Capone and that they may still be alive.