Mike Merlo
Politician
1880 – 1924
Who was Mike Merlo?
Michele "Mike" Merlo was a Chicago political figure and "fixer" associated in his later years with the Torrio-Capone organization. As head of the Unione Siciliana fraternal group, Merlo wielded considerable influence both in Chicago's Democratic Party politics and also within Chicago's criminal underworld during the early years of Prohibition. Although Merlo was able to maintain peace among the city's numerous bootlegging gangs, his death marked the beginning of Chicago's bootleg wars that plagued the city for the rest of the decade.
Born Michele Merlo to Calogero and Maria Merlo in Sambuca Zabut, Sicily, at the age of nine Merlo immigrated with his family from Palermo to New Orleans and, then, in 1900, to Chicago. In 1902, Merlo's father died of a stroke, at the age of 52, leaving the 22-year-old Merlo and his sick mother to fend for themselves. Merlo later became involved in the Chicago chapter of Unione Siciliana, a national organization dedicated to assisting Sicilian immigrants in America. Although Merlo later transformed the Unione into a front for organized crime, he reportedly did have a genuine concern for the welfare of the Sicilian residents of Chicago's Little Italy.
We need you!
Help us build the largest biographies collection on the web!
- Born
- Jan 4, 1880
Sicily - Nationality
- United States of America
- Died
- Nov 8, 1924
Chicago
Submitted
on July 23, 2013
Citation
Use the citation below to add to a bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Mike Merlo." Biographies.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 9 Jun 2024. <https://www.biographies.net/people/en/mike_merlo>.
Discuss this Mike Merlo biography with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In