One of the most famous, infamous, and embarrassing moments in Mafia legend, involving all five major families and most of the smaller families, was the conference held in Apalachin, New York, in 1957. They revealed themselves as the gangs that couldn't think straight in this fiasco that put the Mafia squarely in the national spotlight, a place that most Mafiosi were prudent to avoid.

Meeting of the Minds

The Commission met regularly to resolve disputes and doom any unlucky mobster who crossed them. But occasionally large-scale meetings were needed to make major policy changes, much like a meeting of all the office managers in a multinational corporation. In 1957 the meeting was held at the upstate New York estate of Pennsylvania mobster Joseph Barbara.

Law enforcement officials had been trying for years to identify the heads of the big Mafia families. They wanted to get a handle on the secret society's power structure and chain of command. The Mafia obliged them by gathering every major don under one roof. There is no existing agenda or itinerary of what was to be discussed at the meeting. Maybe it was the controversial drug-dealing dilemma. Perhaps it was the recent murder of Albert Anastasia and the bungled hit on Frank Costello. None of the gentlemen in attendance deigned to discuss the affair. They probably did not have a chance to discuss much, since it ended rather abruptly.

Trouble Afoot

Joe Barbara did not know that he was under surveillance and had been for some time. He had received visits in the past from Joe Bonanno and others who the cops suspected were criminals. He also booked most of the hotel rooms in the small town of Apalachin. This raised a red flag for the state police.

Dons and assorted bodyguards and wise guys descended upon the sleepy little community. Goombahs in pinstriped suits flooding the area must have looked a little conspicuous in a land of cows and cornfields. The local police sensed something was afoot, and they alerted higher authorities. On November 14, 1957, four law enforcement officers pulled up to the house in two cars. The dons assumed it was a raid and scampered into the woods, $2,000 suits and all. Those who escaped by car were nabbed at roadblocks and became overnight guests of the New York State Police. All of them maintained that they were paying a call on their sick friend Joe Barbara. Barbara himself told the law that it was a convention of salesmen from the Canada Dry soft drink company.

The names of those detained is a Who's Who of hoodlums: Carlo Gam-bino, Paul Castellano, Tommy Lucchese, Joe Profaci, Joe Colombo, Vito Genovese, Frank Costello, Tony Accardo, Santo Trafficante Jr., Carlos Marcello, and Sam Giancana. There were also numerous representatives from lesser families, like James “Black Jim” Colletti from Pueblo and Russell Bufalino from northeast Pennsylvania.

Believe it or not, none of the approximately sixty gangsters were arrested; they were only detained for questioning. So little was known about the shadowy Mafia in 1957 that the cops had no idea that they had in one fell swoop nabbed the most vicious and successful criminal kingpins in the country. The shadow life of the Mafia was over.

Apalachin Agenda

Several sources offer different reasons for why the meeting was called in the first place. Joe Valachi said it was a coming-out party for the new dons, including Carlo Gambino. They were also there to grant clemency to Vito Genovese for his role in the Anastasia murder. The Mad Hatter was so despised and feared that no one was particularly sorry to see him go.

The brother of the late and not especially lamented Anastasia, who went by the name Anastasio, said that the objective of the meeting was to decide which misbehaving mobsters and which intrusive federal agents were to be whacked. Still another theory is that the whole thing was designed to set up and embarrass Vito Genovese, and the police were made aware of the meeting. Genovese was sent to prison on drug charges less than a year later.

Apalachin Aftermath

The Mafia was no longer a badly kept secret or a word that was only uttered in a hushed, fearful whisper. Dons were on the covers of Life and Look magazines. The media was abuzz with all things Mafia, and even J. Edgar Hoover had to admit that it existed.

The FBI under the directorship of Hoover did very little to combat organized crime. Hoover steadfastly denied that there was a structured society of criminals who acted in unison to further their villainous goals. Hoover knew many reputed gangsters and was a big-time horseplayer. There were also the allegations that the mob knew about his cross-dressing predilection and blackmailed the G-man.