Presenting sociological as well as historical perspectives, this book supplies readers with a fascinating, unprecedented look at the most successful organized-crime family they've probably never heard of.

• Sets forth the history of the San Francisco branch of the Italian Mafia for the first time in print

• Explains the specific societal and historical factors that gave rise to Italian organized crime

• Provides a unique window into the crime family's history via a compendium of primary document resources that include newspapers such as the San Francisco Chronicle and The San Francisco Examiner as well as the Italian Central Archives