Chicago's First Crime King

This true crime biography details the remarkable rise of the 19th century mob boss who ran Chicago from the streets to the mayor’s office. Michael Cassius McDonald arrived in Chicago as a teenage gambler and scam artist who quickly hustled his way into running the city through its criminal underworld. Long before the reign of Al Capone, McDonald was Chicago’s original mob boss. He procured presidential pardons, fixed juries, stuffed mayoral ballot boxes, and operated the city's most popular—and