Tampa, Florida Italian and Cuban Mafia Gambling and Political Corruption

Tampa, Florida became a hotbed of gambling and mobster activity by the 1930s. In April 1938 nine of its city and Hillsborough County officials were indicted by a local grand jury. In 1949 Florida Governor Fuller Warren closed down gambling joints statewide about a month after he was elected. The Tampa problem was magnified by the prevalence of both Cuban and Italian/Sicilian Mafioso. By the early 1950s Tampa's population was well above 100,000 of whom 20,000 were Cubans. Gambling has a long history in Florida and its relation to criminal figures is almost as long standing. The 1930s era and the Great Depression witnessed the firing of a Works Progress Administration photographer who served indictments on some of the public officials who were tied up in organized crime with hoods. The man lost his job but was reinstated through the influence of a corrupt sheriff who wanted to avoid a statewide scandal.