The Gambino family traces its origins to Palermo, Sicily. Salvatore D'Aquila was the first recognized boss, leading a large Palermitani faction in New York City.
As members emigrated, they established a strong presence across upper and lower Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the Bronx. These areas supported a large contingent of Palermo-oriented mafiosi.
The faction came into conflict with an accomplished mafioso from lower Manhattan named Giuseppe "Joe the Boss" Masseria. D'Aquila and his followers sided with Maranzano, his Castellammarese troops, and allied sympathizers.
By 1931, Vincent Mangano came to power. He would rule until his disappearance and murder in 1951.
Albert Anastasia, a Calabrian and Mangano's underboss, then rose to power. He ruled with an iron fist until his infamous execution in a barber's chair in 1957.
At that point, Carlo Gambino came to power. The family enjoyed a long period of stability and prosperity for the next 18 years, until Gambino's death in 1976.
Paul Castellano, Carlo's cousin and brother-in-law, was chosen to lead the family. It prospered under Castellano for another decade, until John Gotti shot his way to power with Castellano's infamous gangland hit.
The Gambino family had an estimated formal membership of over 250 men and several thousand associates. Through the decades it was led by capable figures such as Francesco Scalise, Angelo De La Croce, Ettore "Terry" Zappy, Joseph Gallo, James "Jimmy Brown" Failla, and the notorious Carmine "The Doctor" Lombardosi.
The family has held a very dominant position in the New York and New Jersey underworld. It also maintains many outposts in Connecticut, Baltimore, South Florida, California, and Sicily.
Its operations have included extensive street rackets and gambling, shylocking, extortion, business infiltration, labor union racketeering, international heroin smuggling and nationwide distribution, and even political influence. This brigata has always ranked among the two largest and most pervasive in the American marketplace.