CAPONE, Alphonse ("Al") (1899-1947). Typed letter unsigned, to Bill Sells ("Friend Bill"). Philadelphia, PA, 13 December 1929.
1 page, 8vo, on an Eastern State Penitentiary form, creased, a few annotations in pencil and ink verso.
CAPONE WRITES HIS FRIEND SEEKING REAL ESTATE IN WISCONSIN: “LET ME KNOW OF SOMETHING...WITH PLENTY OF WATER, SOMETHING OUT OF THE WAY”
In May 1929, while driving to Chicago from Atlantic City, Capone stopped in Philadelphia where he was arrested in front of a movie theater for carrying a concealed, unlicensed .38 caliber revolver. Wanting to make an example of him, the Philadelphia courts sentenced him to the maximum sentence, one year, of which he served 9 months.
While serving his sentence, Capone writes to his friend in Wisconsin to see if he can help him buy some land: " No doubt you are surprised to hear from me, because the old saying, Out of sight, Out of mind…Say Bill I am writing to you in regards to that big house that was being built on that Island of the property belonging to the Trostel people from Milwaukee...they also own a lot of land aroung [sic] that island. Please let me know if it is for Sale. If not, let me know of something else within two hundred or a thousand acres, with plenty of water, something out of the way."
[With:] A carbon copy typescript of Bill Sell's response, 18 December 1929. 1 page, 4to, a few stains and short tears. Sells responds to Capone's letter: "We certainly were glad as well surprised to hear from you we have often talked about and thought of the good times we hadwhen [sic] you were up here in the woods. time [sic] sure passes by very quickly, just think Al it is five years since I saw you...As regards the Trostel property it is not for sale and could not be bought for any price. But I am enclosing a plat of a tract of land [not present] containing 2010 acres, taking in three lakes entirely...This spot is really at the trails end and the wildest country left in the North, and still it is only eleven miles from Mercer, there is a tote road running to an old set of lumber camps between Oak and Forest lakes, an ideal location good drinking water, good shore lines... I can get this entire tract for you at a price as low as $30.00 per acre which is a real buy."
In the 1920s and '30s, Capone and other members of the mob sought property in Wisconsin, where it was easier to receive bootlegged alcohol from Canada by seaplane, which could then be easily transported by car into Illinois and elsewhere. Al Capone's brother Ralph purchased a home in Wisconsin in the 1930s, and later managed a hotel (The Rex Hotel) and tavern (Billy's Bar) in Mercer, Wisconsin. Al Capone's supposed residence in Couderay, Wisconsin, "The Hideout," was located on some 400 acres with frontage on a 40-acre lake; it was reportedly surrounded by 18-inch stone walls, and included guard towers along the lake where he would receive whisky deliveries from Canada.
CAPONE LETTERS OF ANY KIND ARE EXCEEDINGLY SCARCE: although unsigned, this transmitted letter from prison is nonetheless significant in providing insight into Capone's business operations while incarcerated.
Chicago-area gangsters in the Prohibition era had close ties to Wisconsin – in addition to being an important avenue for bringing bootlegged liquor to Chicago and the Midwest, it was a refuge where they could escape for rest. “They love[d] to vacation in the Wisconsin Northwoods… The hoods of the Depression era enjoyed escaping to and from Wisconsin when the situation demanded… Enjoying gangster holidays of sorts in the Northwoods during the summers from 1925 to 1931 was ‘Scarface’ Al Capone whose refuge, ‘The Hideout,’ is in Couderay, Wis., 50 miles southwest of Manitowish Waters” (Chicago Tribune, “Northwoods’ Gangsters of Old: From Fishing Holes to Bullet Holes,” 2 March 1987).
William and Lowrene Sell, owners of Sell Improvement Company, a realty and insurance company, also owned and operated Sell’s Resort in Manitowish Waters from the 1920s to 1950s, where, in the early 1920s, Al Capone and his associates were regular guests. According to family lore, Capone was adored by those who knew him, and Lowrene would allow him to take over her kitchen to make his famous gravy. The Sells and Capone developed an intimate friendship over the years, as evidenced by correspondence retained by the family. Taking the Sells into his confidence, Capone maintained a correspondence with them over the years, asking for advice on finding bootleggers and real estate in the Northwoods, and even writing his friend two days after the 1925 assassination attempt to let them know he’s alright. The family kept the correspondence and related items for several generations, but offer it for sale now for the first time.
