Rosario Dispenza was an Italian-born American mobster. He was head of the Sicilian mafia in the Near North Side neighborhood of Chicago from 1909 to 1914.[1]

Born circa 1870 in Ciminna, Italy, Dispenza immigrated to the United States in 1899 on board the SS Aller. He was a contact of the Morello crime family and known associate of Anthony D'Andrea.[2][3]

Alongside his business partner Anthony Puccio, Dispenza co-owned the Banca Siciliana, a bank on Milton Avenue, and a saloon on the intersection of Milton Avenue and Hobbie Street.[4] This area was colloquially referred to as the "Black Hand Belt" or "Death Corner".[5] In 1908, Dispenza was fined $100 for allowing patrons to gamble for drinks.[6]

On January 22, 1914, hours after Puccio was murdered outside of the saloon, Dispenza was shot and killed. Although police did not arrive in time to apprehend the assailant, a search of the area revealed two sawed-off shotguns in a neighboring alley. Police suspected that the killings may have been related to the murder of Charles Catalino, which had occurred a week prior.[7]

References

  1. ↑ Warner, Richard N. (April 2009). "The Dreaded D'Andrea". The Journal of American Mafia History. 2 (2): 17–18.
  2. ↑ Critchley, David (2009). The Origin of Organized Crime in America: The New York City Mafia, 1891-1931. New York: Routledge. p. 56. ISBN 978-0415882576.
  3. ↑ Flynn, William James (September 30, 2020). The Barrel Mystery. Lector House. pp. 207–211. ISBN 978-9390198696.
  4. ↑ Lombardo, Robert M. (2010). The Black Hand: Terror by Letter in Chicago. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. p. 140. ISBN 9780252076756.
  5. ↑ Adler, Jeffrey S. (2006). First in violence, deepest in dirt : homicide in Chicago, 1875-1920. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press. p. 186. ISBN 9780674021495.
  6. ↑ "125 SALOONS SHUT; CUTS CITY INCOME". Chicago Daily Tribune (1872-1922). May 5, 1908. p. 2.
  7. ↑ "EYE WITNESS TO DOUBLE MURDER FOUND IN HOSPITAL". Chicago Daily Tribune (1872-1922). January 24, 1914. p. 13.
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