Limited presentation of newly acquired artifacts from the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre and Al Capone

Date: February 18, 2023

Time: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Cost: Free for Members or with Museum Admission

The Mob Museum offers visitors a limited opportunity to view newly acquired artifacts from the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre and from mobster Al Capone, before they go on permanent display at a later date. The artifacts available for viewing during this event will include:  

• A Colt Detective Special .38 revolver linked to Frank Gusenberg, one of the seven victims of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre
  • North Side Gang member Frank Gusenberg was shot 14 times during the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre and lived for three hours after the shooting, but when he was questioned on the scene about the perpetrators, the mobster refused to cooperate. The Massacre was later determined to have been orchestrated by Al Capone’s criminal organization and was a result of a power struggle between the two gangs. It is believed that this firearm fell from Gusenberg’s pocket as he attempted to crawl to safety following the Massacre. 
• A letter Al Capone wrote to his son from Alcatraz prison
• A 1924 prohibition-related letter written from Al Capone to a friend in Wisconsin 
• A 1929 letter Al Capone wrote from Eastern State Penitentiary to a friend about buying real estate in the Wisconsin area   

Museum educators will be on hand to provide insights about the gun and letters and to answer questions about these one-of-a-kind artifacts.