Many people think the Rockford branch of La Cosa Nostra were always just a crew in the Chicago Outfit, but they were actually an independent crime family. These are all the members who were made. This family is still around, but they only have a few members left. Some of the members and associates were sent to prison for illegal gambling in 2005 and 2006.


Bosses

Antonio "Tony" Musso (1893-1958) Born in Partinico, Sicily. Boss from 1933 until he died in 1958.
Gaspare “Jasper” Calo (1897-1973) Born in Casteldaccia, Sicily. Boss from 1958 until he stepped down in 1959.
Joe Zammuto (1896-1990) Born in Aragona, Sicily. Boss from 1959 until he stepped down in 1967.
Frank Buscemi (1912-1987) Born in Aragona, Sicily. Owner of Stateline Vending Co. Boss from 1973 until he died in 1987.
Salvatore “Sam” Galluzzo (1934-Present) Born in Aragona, Sicily. Became a made member in 1980. Boss from 1987.

Underbosses

Charles Vince (1907-1994) Born in New Orleans, Lousiana. Rockford underboss from 1973 until he died in 1994.


Consigliere

Joe “Diamond Joe” Zito (1904-1981) Born in San Giuseppe Jato, Sicily. Brother of the Springfield Mob boss Frank Zito. Part owner of Rockford Disposal Co. Rockford's first and only consigliere from 1933 until he died in 1981.



Captains

Lorenzo “Lawrence” Buttice (1892-1967) Born in Aragona, Sicily. Rockford capo from 1958 until 1967.
Sebastian “Knobby” Gulotta (1930-2000) Born in Rockford. Became a made member in February of 1965. He was questioned in the 1959 gangland slaying of Joe Greco and Donald Burton. Suspected in the 1965 slaying of Charles LaFranka. Rockford capo from 1981 until he died in 2000.


Soldiers

Tony Basile (1908-1977) Born in Rochester, New York. Moved to Denver, Colorado in 1967.
Joe “Blackie” Calderotta (1910-1948) Born in Rockford. Killed in a car crash near Ottawa, Illinois, Oct. 1948
Phil Caltagerone (1895-1971) Born in Aragona, Sicily. He was questioned in the 1917 murder of Joe Tarantola.
Phil Cannella (1914-1971) Born in Rockford.
Steve Cascio (1891-1952) Born in Roccamena, Sicily.
Frank Correnti (1911-1985) Born in Rockford. He was questioned in the 1959 gangland slaying of Joe Greco and Donald Burton.
Anthony DiGiovanni (1907-1958) Born in Diboll, Texas. Killed in a car crash in 1958.
Joe DiGirolamo (1891-1965) Born in Marsala, Sicily. Represented the family’s interests in southern Wisconsin.
Phil Domiano (1902-1978) Born in San Gregorio, Sicily. Moved to the San Diego area in the late 1950s.
Phil “The Tailor” Emordeno (1911-1981) Born in Frankfort, New York.
Frank Giardono (1911-1954) Born in Baton Rouge, Lousiana.
Joe Guttilla (1888-1963) Born in Casteldaccia, Sicily.
Tony Lomonaco (1880-1947) Born in San Giuseppe Jato, Sicily.
Joe “Gramps” Marinelli (1918-1980) Born in Rockford. Bodyguard to Tony Musso. Became a made member around 1954.
Sam Oliveri (1895-1969) Born in Corleone, Sicily. Attended the Mafia Summit in Cleveland in 1928.
Phil Priola (1907-1987) Born in Chicago, Illinois.
George Saladino (1892-1964) Born in Roccamena, Sicily.
Peter SanFilippo (1885-1958) Born in Renella, Italy.
Paul Scamardo (1884-1956) Born in San Giuseppe Jato, Sicily.
Joe Stassi (1892-1963) Born in San Giuseppe Jato, Sicily.
Filippo Vella (1895-1958) Born in Siculiana, Sicily.
Phil Cannella (1914-1971) Born in Rockford.
Joe Maggio (1936-1980) Born in Rockford. Became a made member in 1965. Suspected of the 1965 murder of Charles LaFranka. Murdered in 1980.
Natale Galluzzo (1936-Present) Born in Aragona, Sicily. Became a made member in 1987. Brother of Sam Galluzzo. Owns Gerry's Pizza in Rockford.
John Domino (1899-1977) Born in New Orleans, Louisiana. Parents are from Roccamena, Sicily. Became a made member in 1967. Died in Tucson, Arizona in 1977.
Alex Cicero (1934-1987) Born in Rockford.
Theodore Misuraca (1925-1986) Born in Rockford.
Joe W. Saladino (1945-Present) Not related to Chicago family mobster Frank Saladino.
Joe "Pep" Fiorenza (1945-Present) A Rockford gambler and bookmaker. Became a made member in 1989. Arrested once for impersonating a County Sheriff Deputy.
John "Tiger" Frisella (1949-Present) A Rockford gambler and bookmaker. Became a made member in 1992.

The chart looks great NJ! I love these charts!

The family is still around? This comes back to the old question, does every last guy have to be dead before it's really stopped being a family? If we use that way of thinking, the Denver family still exists because Eugene Smaldone Jr. is still alive. Never mind the fact he's in his 70's, inactive, and doesn't even live in Denver anymore.

For an LCN family to be considered viable, it must meet the two fundamental elements of the RICO law - "an ongoing pattern of racketeering in behalf of an enterprise." This is not automatically met by residual activity engaged in by individual members making up the remnants of an LCN family. Let alone them simply being alive.

Places like Rockford, Madison, etc. having their own families is debatable to begin with. And, in any event, by the 1990's, you basically had 11 viable families left - the 5 NY families, New England, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Chicago, Buffalo, and Detroit. And now in 2012 you can scratch Buffalo, and probably Detroit, off that list too.

WOW! 5 active members?

Then my family (during Super Bowl season) can be consider a livable LCN family.

I suppose one could argue that Pittsburgh was also still viable up until the destruction of the Youngstown branch around 1999-2000 and the rapid dying off of old members/associates around that time and afterwards.

What there was in Pittsburgh in the 1990's and into the 2000's somewhat is what I would consider residual activity.

Burl Ives, obviously you are right on the money about a family not being able to servive with only five made guys. However, out of respect for Ladri, who helped me out with a few of the younger and current Rockford mobsters, I decided to say they still are around. He says they aren't defunct. Even though I agree with you. Let's not forget that in the '80's the SF family had about eight made guys and they were still an active family according to the FBI, and even Scott M. Deitche has wrote stuff on SF still being a crime family of LCN in the late 1980s. Also, the Madison family was the smallest and only had five. I think the reason the families that were close to Chicago were allowed to function being as small as they were is because of the fact they were close to Chicago and the Outfit backed these small families up all the way if any other organizations tried to screw them over.

There is no one, save for the mobsters themselves, who knows more about Rockford than ladri. I've pestered him for a while about writing a book.

Good chart on the little-known family.

I'd say the feds know about Rockford than even ladri. You won't see Rockford on any list of viable families for God knows how long. Beyond that, there's only been one relatively small gambling case out of there in recent years. And the top guy was identified as an Outfit associate.

But, again, if we want to recognize any family as long as they're are a few guys still breathing, I suppose Rockford and other places still have families as well. Of course, looking at it that way isn't very practical. Seems some forget we're talking about organized crime here and exactly what that entails.