America’s Most Notorious Mob Bosses

While organized crime syndicates are a global issue, few countries have seen the rise of criminal networks within immigrant communities as prominently as the United States. This distinctive growth led to the emergence of some of the most infamous mob bosses and underworld figures in history.

To assemble a list of the most famous mobsters in U.S. history, 24/7 Tempo consulted various sources such as the Crime Museum, the Mob Museum, Crime Library, American Mafia History, the website for the FBI. We created our list based on the power and influence a given gangster wielded and the historical and cultural impact the criminal had on American society.

As the United States industrialized and urban populations expanded, tensions arose among immigrant groups vying for territory and influence. Successive waves of ethnic communities – Irish, Chinese, Italians, Albanians, Greeks, Hispanics – were targeted by criminal gangs that initially posed as protectors. The African American community faced similar threats from organized syndicates seeking to control cities wracked by poverty and institutional bias in housing and jobs.

Gang influence tends to recede as each ethnic group becomes part of mainstream America. Even so, organized crime still remains a threat to U.S. society. According to the FBI, there are 33,000 violent gangs operating in the U.S. today. (Click here for the most notorious cases in FBI's history.)

Here are America's most notorious mob bosses:

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, racketeering, extortion
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: 1902-1931
• Fate of mobster(s): Allegedly executed by associates of Lucky Luciano

• Criminal activity: Bookmaking, loan sharking, hijacking, prostitution, and opium trafficking
• Area(s) of operation: Chicago
• Time period of criminal activity: Early 1900s-1925
• Fate of mobster(s): Retired and died in 1957 from a heart attack

• Criminal activity: Larceny, prostitution, gambling, narcotics, extortion
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: 1890s-1920
• Fate of mobster(s): Killed by a crooked Prohibition law enforcement officer

• Criminal activity: Gambling, narcotics, bootlegging
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: Early 1900s-1928
• Fate of mobster(s): Allegedly killed by gambling partner

• Criminal activity: Robbery, assault, bootlegging, gambling, prostitution
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: 1908-1957
• Fate of mobster(s): Retired from crime life after assassination attempt, died in 1973

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, rigging boxing matches, extortion
• Area(s) of operation: New York City/Hot Springs, Ark.
• Time period of criminal activity: 1903-1965
• Fate of mobster(s): Died at home

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, newspaper wars, robbery, assault
• Area(s) of operation: Chicago
• Time period of criminal activity: Early 1900s-1924
• Fate of mobster(s): Gunned down in his flower shop

• Criminal activity: Racketeering, gambling, murder, prostitution, extortion, bootlegging, tax evasion
• Area(s) of operation: Chicago/New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: Early 1900s-1931
• Fate of mobster(s): Convicted of tax evasion, died from syphilis in 1947

• Criminal activity: Racketeering, murder, prostitution, extortion, bootlegging
• Area(s) of operation: New York City/Chicago
• Time period of criminal activity: 1912-1928
• Fate of mobster(s): Gunned down in Brooklyn

• Criminal activity: Labor racketeering, bootlegging, murder
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: 1915-1944
• Fate of mobster(s): Became only organized-crime figure to die by execution in 1944

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, hijacking
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: Early 1900s-1931
• Fate of mobster(s): Shot in his bed in 1931

• Criminal activity: Gambling, narcotics, prostitution
• Area(s) of operation: New York City/Las Vegas
• Time period of criminal activity: 1918-1947
• Fate of mobster(s): Shot to death at his home in Hollywood

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, kidnapping, gambling
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: Early 1900s-1935
• Fate of mobster(s): Gunned down in Newark, N.J., restaurant

• Criminal activity: Prostitution, drug smuggling, bootlegging
• Area(s) of operation: New York City/Sicily
• Time period of criminal activity: 1919-1931
• Fate of mobster(s): Allegedly executed by associates of Lucky Luciano

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, racketeering, extortion
• Area(s) of operation: Chicago
• Time period of criminal activity: Early 1900s-1946
• Fate of mobster(s): Died in prison in 1957

• Criminal activity: Kidnapping, robbery, burglary, murder
• Area(s) of operation: Midwest
• Time period of criminal activity: 1934-1936
• Fate of mobster(s): Convicted and paroled in 1960s, died in Spain in 1979

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, extortion, murder, hijacking, and gambling
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: 1918-1970
• Fate of mobster(s): Died of lung cancer in 1983

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, prostitution, racketeering, gambling, extortion
• Area(s) of operation: Chicago
• Time period of criminal activity: 1920-1943
• Fate of mobster(s): Committed suicide

• Criminal activity: Kidnapping, robbery, burglary, murder
• Area(s) of operation: Midwest
• Time period of criminal activity: 1934-1936
• Fate of mobster(s): Fred killed, Arthur arrested

• Criminal activity: Racketeering, murder, prostitution, gambling, extortion, bootlegging
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: Early 1900s-1962
• Fate of mobster(s): Died of heart attack in 1962 in Italy

• Criminal activity: Narcotics smuggling, gambling, casinos, prostitution
• Area(s) of operation: Chicago
• Time period of criminal activity: 1920s-1960s
• Fate of mobster(s): Died in 1992 from natural causes

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, murder, robbery, assault, theft
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: Early 1900s-1959
• Fate of mobster(s): Sentenced to 15 years in federal prison

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, labor racketeering, truck hijacking, white-collar crime
• Area(s) of operation: New York City, New England, New Jersey, New Orleans, Florida, Chicago, California, Pennsylvania and Detroit
• Time period of criminal activity: Early 1900s-1976
• Fate of mobster(s): Died in 1976

• Criminal activity: Gambling, racketeering, bootlegging
• Area(s) of operation: Philadelphia/South Jersey
• Time period of criminal activity: 1920s-1980
• Fate of mobster(s): Murdered in 1980

• Criminal activity: Murder, car theft, burglary, bootlegging
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: 1920s-1967
• Fate of mobster(s): Executed at his home in Oak Park, Illinois in 1975

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, murder, robbery, assault
• Area(s) of operation: Chicago
• Time period of criminal activity: 1921-1925
• Fate of mobster(s): 3 brothers killed, 3 others fled Chicago

• Criminal activity: Bootlegging, gambling, bookmaking, extortion, tax evasion
• Area(s) of operation: Los Angeles
• Time period of criminal activity: 1922-1961
• Fate of mobster(s): Died in 1976 after release from jail

• Criminal activity: Murder, racketeering, extortion, drug trafficking, armed robbery, loansharking
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: 1940s-1982
• Fate of mobster(s): Sentenced to 20 years in jail, died in 1996

• Criminal activity: Numbers rackets, bribery, murder, gambling
• Area(s) of operation: Chicago
• Time period of criminal activity: 1940s-1987
• Fate of mobster(s): Died in Houston in 1987

• Criminal activity: Breaking and entering, prostitution, murder, bootlegging, pornography, truck hijacking
• Area(s) of operation: New England
• Time period of criminal activity: 1925-1984
• Fate of mobster(s): Died at home in 1984

• Criminal activity: Drug distribution
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: 1960s-1980s
• Fate of mobster(s): Died in 2019 at age 88

• Criminal activity: Murder, racketeering, extortion, loansharking, bookmaking, drug dealing
• Area(s) of operation: Philadelphia/South Jersey
• Time period of criminal activity: 1950s-2017
• Fate of mobster(s): Died in 2017 in prison

• Criminal activity: Truck hijackings, murder, illegal gambling, loansharking
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: 1950s-1992
• Fate of mobster(s): Died from cancer while in prison

• Criminal activity: Racketeering, loansharking, gambling, drug distribution
• Area(s) of operation: New York City
• Time period of criminal activity: 1960s-1988
• Fate of mobster(s): Serving 60-year sentence in prison

• Criminal activity: Racketeering, money-laundering, bribing law enforcement, extortion, murder
• Area(s) of operation: Boston
• Time period of criminal activity: 1943-1995
• Fate of mobster(s): Convicted in 2013 and died in 2018