New York's Five Families are the core of the American mafia story. For decades they controlled rackets, unions and businesses across the city, fought wars against each other, and eventually fell to informants, wiretaps and federal prosecutors. This guide explains each family and points you to the books that tell their stories.
How the Five Families began
In the late 1920s, New York's Italian-American gangs were fighting for control of Prohibition's enormous profits. The war between the forces of Joe Masseria and Salvatore Maranzano, known as the Castellammarese War, ended in 1931 with Masseria's murder.
Maranzano reorganized the underworld into five families and named himself boss of bosses, but he too was killed within months. Charles "Lucky" Luciano then set up the Commission, a council of bosses meant to settle disputes and prevent another war. That structure lasted for decades.
The Brooklyn Underworld Prince tells the story of Joe Masseria, whose rise and fall set the stage for the families that followed.
The five families at a glance
| Family | Named after | Known for | Books on BooksOasis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gambino | Carlo Gambino | Size and influence; the Gotti era | The House of Gambino; The Legacy of the Dapper Don; Breaking Omerta |
| Genovese | Vito Genovese | Secrecy and discipline | The Chin's Secret Empire |
| Bonanno | Joe Bonanno | The Banana War; later FBI infiltration | The Banana War and the Last Man of Honor |
| Colombo | Joe Colombo | Internal wars; public protest | Power and Public Image; Joe Gallo and the Fracturing of Authority; The Bull of the Bronx |
| Lucchese | Tommy Lucchese | Garment district and airport rackets | No dedicated book yet |
The Gambino family
For much of the twentieth century, the Gambino family was the largest and most powerful in America. Its story runs from Sicilian origins through Albert Anastasia, the quiet authority of Carlo Gambino, the business-minded Paul Castellano, and the flamboyant John Gotti, who seized power after Castellano's murder in December 1985.
Three books cover it from different angles:
- The House of Gambino by Bruno Mancini: nearly a century of the family, its influence on unions, business and politics, and its fall.
- The Legacy of the Dapper Don by Luca Bellarosa: how John Gotti became a media celebrity, and what that cost him.
- Breaking Omerta and the Beginning of the End by Bruno Mancini: Sammy "the Bull" Gravano, Gotti's underboss, who became the government's star witness.
The Genovese family
The Genovese family, rooted in Luciano's original organization, became known for discipline and secrecy. Its most extraordinary leader was Vincent "Chin" Gigante, who for decades wandered Greenwich Village in a bathrobe, feigning mental illness to avoid prosecution while running the family.
The Chin's Secret Empire by Luca Bellarosa tells that strange story, which ended when Gigante admitted the act in court in 2003.
The Bonanno family
Joe Bonanno was a founding member of the Commission at just twenty-six, and ran his family for three decades while keeping his name out of the papers. In the 1960s, his ambitions led to a conflict inside and around his family that the press called the Banana War.
The Banana War and the Last Man of Honor by Luca Bellarosa follows Bonanno and that battle for control.
Later, the Bonanno family became famous for another reason: an FBI agent, Joseph Pistone, working undercover as "Donnie Brasco", infiltrated it for years in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
The Colombo family
The Colombo family has one of the most turbulent histories of the five, with repeated internal wars.
- Joe Gallo and the Fracturing of Authority by Bruno Mancini: the Gallo brothers' rebellion against their own family, and Joe Gallo's murder in Little Italy in 1972.
- Power and Public Image by Bruno Mancini: Joe Colombo's unprecedented public campaign, picketing the FBI and founding a civil rights organization.
- The Bull of the Bronx by Luca Bellarosa: Sonny Franzese, whose career ran from 1938 to a federal sentence at ninety-four.
The Lucchese family
The Lucchese family, named after Tommy Lucchese, was known for its rackets in the garment district and at New York's airports. BooksOasis doesn't yet have a book dedicated to it, but it appears throughout the wider history of the families and the Commission.
Key moments in the Five Families' history
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1930 to 1931 | The Castellammarese War; Masseria and then Maranzano are killed |
| 1931 | The Five Families and the Commission take shape |
| 1957 | Police discover a national meeting of mafia leaders at Apalachin, New York |
| 1963 | Joseph Valachi describes the mafia's structure to a Senate committee |
| 1960s | The Banana War over the Bonanno family |
| 1970 to 1972 | Joe Colombo's public campaign; Joe Gallo killed in 1972 |
| 1985 to 1986 | The Commission Trial; Paul Castellano murdered; Gotti takes over |
| 1992 | John Gotti convicted, with Sammy Gravano's testimony |
| 2003 | Vincent Gigante admits feigning mental illness |
How the families were brought down
For decades, the code of silence protected the families. Three things broke it: the RICO law of 1970, which let prosecutors charge the leaders of criminal enterprises; wiretaps and bugs that recorded bosses in their own words; and informants willing to testify. The Commission Trial of the mid-1980s used all three against the leadership of several families at once.
How a family was organized
| Rank | Role |
|---|---|
| Boss | Leader of the family, with a seat on the Commission |
| Underboss | Second in command |
| Consigliere | Adviser to the boss |
| Capo (captain) | Leads a crew of soldiers |
| Soldier | A formally initiated, or "made", member |
| Associate | Works with the family without being a member |
This layered structure was designed to protect the boss: orders passed down through capos, so crimes were hard to trace to the top. Wiretaps and informants eventually defeated it.
The informants who changed everything
The code of silence, omerta, held for decades. A handful of people broke it and changed history. Joseph Valachi described the mafia's structure publicly in 1963. Sammy Gravano's testimony helped convict John Gotti in 1992. And in the 2000s, even a sitting Bonanno boss, Joseph Massino, cooperated with the government. Each broken silence made the next easier.
The Five Families in popular culture
Much of what people imagine about the mafia comes from fiction, above all Mario Puzo's novel The Godfather and its film adaptations, and later television dramas. These stories drew on real families and events but reshaped them. The history books in this guide show what really happened, which is often stranger than the fiction: a boss in a bathrobe feigning madness, or a mob leader leading civil rights marches.
Reading crime history thoughtfully
Mob history is gripping, and it is also a story of real victims: people killed, businesses extorted and communities intimidated. The best books tell it without glamour, showing how the families operated and what they cost. Read them as history, with an eye on how institutions, law enforcement and communities eventually pushed back.
A reading order
- The founding:The Brooklyn Underworld Prince.
- The first generation:The Banana War and the Last Man of Honor.
- The biggest family:The House of Gambino.
- Rebellion and protest:Joe Gallo and the Fracturing of Authority; Power and Public Image.
- The celebrity boss:The Legacy of the Dapper Don.
- The broken code:Breaking Omerta.
- The last act:The Chin's Secret Empire; The Bull of the Bronx.
Where to start, by interest
| If you want... | Start with |
|---|---|
| The whole sweep of one family | The House of Gambino |
| The founding era | The Brooklyn Underworld Prince |
| A story of rebellion | Joe Gallo and the Fracturing of Authority |
| Fame and the media | The Legacy of the Dapper Don |
| Betrayal and testimony | Breaking Omerta |
| The strangest true story | The Chin's Secret Empire |
Beyond New York
The Five Families were only part of the story. Chicago's Outfit, under Al Capone and later Sam Giancana, was just as powerful, and mob money shaped early Las Vegas. See books about Al Capone and the Chicago Outfit and the best books about the mafia.
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Reading mob history on BooksOasis
- Every book here as an ebook, a paperback and a hardcover.
- Ebooks open instantly in Oasis Reader; search inside for names and dates.
- Crime books often appear in daily deals and Editor's Pick bundles.
In short
The Five Families' story runs from a bloody war in 1931 to courtroom collapse in the 1990s and 2000s. Read it family by family, or follow the reading order above, and you will understand not just the famous names, but how the whole system rose, held power and fell.
Questions
What are the Five Families?
The five Italian-American crime families of New York, organized in 1931 and later named after bosses of the 1950s and 1960s: Gambino, Genovese, Lucchese, Bonanno and Colombo.
Who created the Five Families?
After the Castellammarese War of 1930 to 1931, Salvatore Maranzano reorganized New York's underworld into five families. After his murder later in 1931, Charles 'Lucky' Luciano set up the Commission to settle disputes between them.
Which was the most powerful family?
It changed over time. The Gambino and Genovese families were often considered the most powerful, especially from the 1950s onward.
What was the Commission?
The ruling body of the American mafia, formed in 1931, where the bosses of the major families met to settle disputes and approve major decisions.
Which books cover the Gambino family?
The House of Gambino covers nearly a century of the family, The Legacy of the Dapper Don focuses on John Gotti, and Breaking Omerta follows Sammy Gravano.
Do the Five Families still exist?
Law enforcement agencies report that the families still exist in weakened form, but prosecutions since the 1980s greatly reduced their power.
Who was Carlo Gambino?
A Sicilian-born boss who led the family that bears his name from the late 1950s until his death in 1976, known for keeping a low profile while expanding its power.
What was the Apalachin meeting?
A 1957 gathering of mafia leaders at a house in Apalachin, New York, discovered by state police. It became public proof that a national organized crime network existed.
Who was Donnie Brasco?
The undercover name of FBI agent Joseph Pistone, who infiltrated the Bonanno family for several years in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Why did Paul Castellano's murder matter?
Castellano, boss of the Gambino family, was shot outside a Manhattan steakhouse in December 1985 without the Commission's approval. John Gotti took over, beginning the most public and ultimately self-destructive era in the family's history.
Are these books suitable for readers new to the subject?
Yes. They are narrative histories written for general readers, so you can start with any family that interests you.
Who was Lucky Luciano?
Charles 'Lucky' Luciano was the Sicilian-born gangster who, after the killings of Masseria and Maranzano in 1931, helped set up the Commission that governed the families. His organization later became the Genovese family.
What does 'made man' mean?
A formally initiated member of a crime family. Only made men could hold ranks such as capo, and they were bound by the family's rules, including the code of silence.
Can I buy these books as a gift set?
Crime books often appear together in Editor's Pick bundles, and each is available in paperback and hardcover, shipped to the address you choose.
What was the Castellammarese War?
A war between New York mafia factions in 1930 and 1931, named after Castellammare del Golfo in Sicily, the hometown of many of Salvatore Maranzano's followers.
Are there books on the Chicago mob too?
Yes. The Crime Boss from Chicago covers Al Capone, and The Last Boss covers Sam Giancana and the Chicago Outfit.
Read the history of the Five Families
True stories of the bosses, rebels and informants of New York's underworld.