1863: Macheca and the black market

150 years ago today (Aug. 28, 1863), Joseph Macheca of New Orleans was tried and convicted in a Union military occupation court in connection with a scheme to steal and sell barrels of U.S. Army pork and beef.

Daily Picayune

The barrels were traced to the 4th Massachusetts Regiment. They had been loaded aboard the steamship North America, a government transport, at Port Hudson, Louisiana (recently fallen to the Union forces after a 48-day siege). The North American steamed its cargo up the Mississippi River in support of the 4th Massachusetts' advance to Cairo, Louisiana. Remaining barrels were brought to New Orleans, and the captain and a steward sold some to Macheca for resale through the Macheca family produce store in the city.

While other conspirators were sent to prison, young Macheca is merely ordered to pay a $50 fine.

Joseph Macheca previously had enlisted for service in the Confederate Army and returned home to New Orleans in advance of the Union invasion. The Union occupiers generally controlled businesses and provisions in the region. The produce business of Macheca's step-father - a native of Malta and a British citizen - was one exception.

Following his conviction, Macheca left New Orleans for Texas, where he reportedly gathered a small fortune through smuggling.

Read more about Joseph Macheca: Deep Water: Joseph P. Macheca and the Birth of the American Mafia

1890: Ambush at Claiborne and Esplanade

On this date (May 6) in 1890 - In the early morning hours, a wagon carrying members of New Orleans Matranga underworld faction is ambushed at Claiborne and Esplanade Streets. Three men are seriously wounded. Police Chief David Hennessy takes personal charge of the investigation. His involvement will shortly lead to his own assassination.

122 years ago: Eleven men lynched

March 14, 1891
One day after a jury refused to convict the accused assassins of New Orleans Police Chief David Hennessy, an angry mob assembles on Canal Street. Under the direction of political leaders, the mob marches to Orleans Parish Prison, where the Hennessy assassination defendants remain incarcerated. A carefully selected and well armed group enters the prison and murders eleven men, including Joseph P. Macheca. The victims are described as members of the New Orleans Mafia. However, recognized Mafia leader Charles Matranga and his chief lieutenant - both held within the prison - are spared. 

Lincoln movie omissions

Something you won't find in the new Lincoln movie: The significant roles played by Lincoln, the Civil War and Reconstruction in the development of the first American Mafia organization, based in New Orleans.

Read:

Deep Water

Joseph P. Macheca and the Birth of the American Mafia

144 years ago: Innocenti control the streets

144 years ago: Returning home from a meeting of Joseph Macheca's paramilitary Innocenti organization, a prominent member is shot to death by an unknown assailant. The Innocenti direct their anger at African American neighborhoods in New Orleans. They take over the streets around the Treme Market, pushing out police patrols. Federal officials later send two companies of soldiers to the area to restore order.

Innocenti raids begin

On this date in 1868...

Joseph P. Macheca, a native Louisianan engaged in importing and selling Central American produce, began (Oct. 24, 1868) leading a conservative, Democratic Party-aligned paramilitary group on violent anti-Republican marches through New Orleans.

The marches of the "Innocenti" organization were designed to suppress African American voter registration and election turnout for the then-liberal (often branded "radical") Republican Party. Repeated through several days, the marches led to bloody clashes in some of the Crescent City's African-American neighborhoods.

Macheca's role as director of the marches was screened somewhat by the Innocenti selection of Pascalis Labarre, a local official, as president of the organization. When later questioned, Labarre admitted knowing very little about the group's founding and purpose.