Galveston's Maceo Family Empire: Bootlegging and the Balinese Room

by Richard B. McCaslin

At the dawn of the twentieth century, Galveston was a beacon of opportunity on the Texas Gulf Coast. Dubbed the "Wall Street of the Southwest," its laissez-faire reputation called those hungry for success to its shores. Led by brothers Salvatore and Rosario at the height of Prohibition, the Maceo family answered that call and changed the Oleander City forever. They built an island empire of gambling, smuggling and prostitution that lasted three decades. Housed in their nightclubs frequented by stars like Peggy Lee, Frank Sinatra and Duke Ellington, they endeared themselves to their Galveston neighbors by sharing their profits, imitating crime syndicates in their native Sicily. Though certainly no saints, the Maceos helped bring prosperity to a community weary from a century of turmoil. Discover the history of Galveston's famous crime family with authors Nicole Boatman, Dr. Scott Belshaw and Texas historian Richard McCaslin.

146 pages, Hardcover

Published November 18, 2014

Reviews

[Glen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was an interesting read. If you are interested in the mob, or Galveston, Texas you will be happy with it. It has hundreds of end notes to properly validate their statements. The one bad thing is there were paragraphs that repeated other ones word for word. That got old quick. I’m not sure if that was the trio of authors not paying attention or if it was printers error. I’m guessing the later as they looked like things were copied and pasted elsewhere. Regardless, its still worth the read. .