Dominic Tarro
Dominic Tarro was born January 26th 1892 in Ironwood Michigan. In 1905
the Tarro Family moved to Gillespie, IL. Some time there after they
relocated to the near by town of Benld. The town of Benld was built on
the backs of the under paid and over worked coal miners of Illinois. The
miners, who worked for the coal companies were of Italian or Eastern
European origin. They formed their town around the coal company housing
near the mines. Typical of the time period the town had several small
grocery stores and more taverns than churches. History has shown that
where ever a large group of men gather to work the vices of the world
are soon to follow. Liquor, gambling and prostitution are always at the
top of that list and Benld specialized in all three.

It was the adult entertainment center for the area. A hot craps game or
high stakes card came game could be found in the back rooms of just about
every tavern. While the ladies of the night worked on another floor in
the building. Just prior to or shortly after the beginning of World War I
(1914 to 1919) Dominic and his brother Ben opened Tarro Brother’s
Grocery. During the war he served in the 267th Aero squadron out of
Pope airforce base, while Ben ran the store. Upon his return he continued
in the family business and also opened a small roller skating rink
downtown.

In a town where there is illegal activity and easy money you are sure to
have organized crime. Benld was fortunate or should I say unfortunate to
have one of the best know gangster of the 1920’s running the rackets
there. Al Capone and his gang ruled the town with an iron fist. On
January 16th 1919 the United States ratified the 18th Amendment to the
Constitution and the Volstead Act. The following year prohibition became
the law of the land. This began the fall of the large breweries such as
the William J. Lemp and Co., of  Saint Louis and other liquor manufacturers
of the era.

This was also the birth of the bootleg liquor business. Dominic had formed
a relationship with the gangsters in town and he soon became the head of
the bootleg liquor racket in Macoupin County. He would purchase yeast
and sugar for distilling through the Tarro Brothers name. He would then
distribute these supplies to the illegal liquor stills in Macoupin and
Montgomery Counties. One of the largest stills in the county was just
east of town and was called the Number 5 Mine. The remoteness of the
location and the gang’s grip on the area made it perfect for just such an
operation. Business was very profitable through out the decade.

The roller rink operated by Dominic burnt down at the beginning of 1924.
So he and Ben decided to replace the roller rink with a new building. This
building became the Coliseum Ballroom. . In its day, the Coliseum had the
biggestdance floor (10,000 square feet) between Chicago and St. Louis.
They hosted roller skating three or four days during the week and on the
weekend featured the orchestras of Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington, Kay
Kyser, Count Basie and most of the other big-name big bands along with
the mega-stars of popular music from the 1920s and beyond. It was
situated along old Route 66 (now Illinois Route 4) on the western edge
of Benld and was said to have attracted crowds that sometimes topped
2,000, from all over central Illinois and metropolitan St. Louis.

An ill wind began to blow for Tarro when on 10/11/29 he was indicted
by the Federal Courts in Springfield, IL. He posted $15,000 in bond and
was released on the original indictment. James Eaton Deputy Prohibition
Administrator out of Springfield and U.S. District Attorney Walter M.
Provine had put together further indictments against him, fifty plus
defendants and two national corporations. The indictments alleged that
he was the distributor of illegal liquor making supplies for the Macoupin
and Montgomery County bootleggers. He would purchased Corn syrup
specifically designed for distilling from the Corn Products Refining
Company and Yeast from the Fleishmann Yeast Company. The rumor began
to circulate that he had become a witness for the state and had turned
his books over as evidence. On January 29th 1930 Tarro was arrested
again on federal indictments. The same day he was released on an
aggregated bond of $30,500 and he began to drive home.

On January 30th 1930 Tarro’s partially burned and bullet ridden vehicle
was found along a road near Mason City, IL. He had disappeared and could
not be found. February 10th 1930 was the arraignment date for Tarro
and he did not arrive for his court appearance. U.S. District Attorney
Walter Provine contended that he was still alive and may be
in hiding. Attorney Provine based this on the case of Albert Blewett a
bootlegger whose body was found in the Sangamon River near
Petersburg, IL and was later arrested in Wisconsin alive and well.

On May 2nd 1930 Robert Fox and Benny Spence were rowing in the
Sangamon River. Fox and Spence came upon a floating body. Authorities
were notified and the body was recovered. It was the body of a man in a
state of heavy decomposition. The body had wire bound around the  hands
and feet. Another wire was wrapped around the neck of the man pulling
his head to his knees. The body did not have a lot of clothing left on it.
This body was not too far from the area that Tarro’s bullet ridden
vehicle had been found in January. Family members Mike Fazio and Ben Tarro
were contacted in an attempt to identify the body. The family members
identified Tarro by cuff links, some of the clothing left on the body, other
marks on the body and a bulge on one of his knees. District Attorney
Provine still did not believe that this was the body of Tarro.

The body of Dominic Tarro was laid to rest on May, 6th 1930 in Mayfield
Cemetery in Carlinville, IL. On May 14th 1930 a coroner’s inquest was
held and the coroner’s jury decided that the body found on May 2nd 1930
was that of Tarro. District Attorney Provine still did not accept that this
was the Body of Tarro and he continued his denial for sometime. Provine
held the bond for months and the IRS investigated the value of the estate
left behind by Tarro.

Beyond the gangs, the booze and the feds, Dominic Tarro’s legacy lives on
in the sleepy town of Benld to this day. The Coliseum still stands and
from what I hear Dominic and even his daughter Joyce may still be around
the Coliseum in another form.

Article By: Daniel C. Mathis 03/15/2008