The Unsolved Murder of Frank "Bolo" Dovishaw and Mafia in Erie

Written and researched by Abby Saunders

Transcript:

Hurstories Script

 

ABBY: I’m your host, Abby Saunders, ready to tell you all about Frank “Bolo” Dovishaw, his undercover gambling ring, and his unfortunate demise.

First thing’s first – have you heard of the mafia? I think that a lot of people stereotype the mafia into a general group… criminals. The mafia is more like a family, though! No, literally. Mafias from around the world are most often run by groups of families, kind of like a ‘family business.’ Just like fathers in the farming industry pass down farming traditions to their sons, fathers in the mafia pass down mafia traditions to their sons. Boys are taught skills specific to running the business, and girls are taught how to be inconspicuous and lay low.

Mafia members become like family members. It is not unusual to find men from different families acting brotherly to their business partners. Also, it is not uncommon to kill family members that act up in the Mafia. This idea will pop up later on, so, stay tuned.

Just like in other bureaucratic business, there are leaders and followers. Mafias are typically hierarchal, with a general, boss-like position at the top of the chain, and then a bunch of levels below him.

Mafias, in some way or another, exist all over the world. The most popular mafias originated in Italy… and more specifically… Sicily. One popular mafia that originated in Sicily and then migrated to the United States is the Cosa Nostra group. This group settled in New York, but then spread to surrounding cities along the Eastern coast of the country.

Some major cities in the north east region of the United States where the mafia operates are Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and Cleveland. Interestingly enough, though, the city directly in the middle of all of these 3 cities, Erie Pennsylvania, had no major mafia activity until the 1950s. Even when the mob came to Erie, though, it was slight and almost insignificant compared to the major criminals and con men of the time[1].

Now, since mafias were on the rise in the United States, the federal law enforcement agencies were busy chasing and arresting various leaders from all over the East coast. This happened especially in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. When a mafia leader is taken out, their section, well, family, may or may not fall. It is very difficult to count how many mafia groups there are in the United States for this reason[2].

Our story starts and ends in Erie, with Frank “Bolo” Dovishaw: one of the most recognized organized crime leaders in Erie, Pennsylvania. Now, you might be wondering why the hell I just explained what mafias are for 2 minutes, even though our main character today was not a member. Here is why: Dovishaw acted as if he were a member of the mafia. But in order for you to see this, you must know what he did to deserve the title: an Erie Goodfella.

Picture Erie in the 1950s and 60s. It is a smaller city in the North West corner of Pennsylvania, right next to Lake Erie. There were neighborhoods full of immigrants and past-generation Americans alike, but one neighborhood that stood out was Little Italy. It is located between 12th street and 24th street, with an eastern boundary at Sassafras Street and a western boundary around Cranberry Street. Little Italy is like its own little self-contained town. There were barber shops, stores, churches, schools, and even funeral homes. With all of these good businesses, though, come some pretty illegal ones. There were many criminals in Erie in the 1900s; heck, there still are[3]!

Our story starts in 1960 when Frank Dovishaw worked at Dee Cigar Store. On December 10th, 1960, Dovishaw was arrested for burglarizing the store. According to a newspaper article, around $7,000 worth of checks and cash were stolen. Dovishaw had worked at the cigar store for about a year and a half, and he was the main suspect. Although he tried to implicate a couple other individuals, Dovishaw was inevitably found to be the prime burglar. Multiple thousands of dollars’ worth of stolen goods were hidden and buried in a metal box by Dovishaw in St. Mary’s Cemetery. Dovishaw was only 24 years old when this happened[4].

Now, since organized crime was still at a low in Erie, smaller criminals were able to flourish…and then, sometimes, inevitably fall. For example, in 1954, Erie’s mayor, Thomas Flatley, was arrested for corruption, abuse of power, and illegal gambling. After hearing the allegations, he pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy and for violating his oath of office. Flatley later resigned and faced jail time, along with multiple fines[5].

A lot of the early organized crime in Erie dealt with gambling and sports betting. Frank Dovishaw was the go-to guy for this. He had everyone in the city working for him. “In local shops, factories, and pubs throughout the city, old ladies bet pennies, kids traded nickels, and laborers put down dollars on a chance to walk away with the daily take.”

Dovishaw and his partner Ray Ferritto conducted their business all around Erie county. They tried to stay out of Little Italy out of fear that their close friends and family members would find out. They had so many individuals wrapped around their fingers and doing their betting, from police officers to children. Ferritto ran number rackets all across the United States, not just in Erie. He was arrested and spent time in prison for it, too! He did time 2,000 miles away from Pennsylvania in a state penitentiary in Chino, California.

Ray Ferritto even killed people. There was a “mob war” when the Irish Mob, led by Danny Greene, moved in on a Cleveland mob family. The Cleveland group was run by ‘Jack White’ Licavoli and Angelo ‘Big Ange’ Lonardo.’ Over 40 car bombs were involved in the mob war, but not much success was gained. After some time, the Cleveland mafia asked Ferritto to step in and finish the job against Danny Greene. He finished it.

The numbers racket sports betting went on for multiple years with Frank Dovishaw at the head. Thousands of dollars were made, and many Erie residents either gained or lost money throughout this time period.

One thing to keep in mind about mafias and mafia-like groups is that the members rarely call the police. If something weird happens, the members just handle it themselves.

January 3rd, 1983 started off like any other day. Dovishaw and Ferritto made their usual rounds around the city and took bets. It was a Monday, and the Dallas Cowboys were playing the Minnesota Vikings. Dovishaw always ate meatball subs from Damore’s on Mondays, and that is exactly what he did.

Ray Ferritto dropped off Dovishaw at his home on West 21st street around 6pm. When he was home, Dovishaw would always call his employees to gather information about the day. He would never write anything down or leave any messages. If anything was documented, it could be used as evidence. When Dovishaw was not home to answer the phone, multiple other lines in other houses would ring until someone answered the call.

So, when Dovishaw got home that Monday evening, he was supposed to make some calls. Around 7pm, Ferritto called Dovishaw to catch up on the night. The phone call went to the next person… and the next person… and the next person; Dovishaw did not answer the multiple calls that Ferritto made to him.

Ferritto wondered if he was with one of his “gypsy strippers,” if the police caught him, or if he was just laying low for the night. His curiosity got the best of him because Ferritto ended up driving to Dovishaw’s house to see what was the matter. He knew that the police had been investigating Cosa Nostra for the past few decades, so that was high on the radar for Ferritto.

 Ferritto arrived at Dovishaw’s house on West 21st Street. Since the house was his late mother’s, Dovishaw lived alone. Ferritto searched the whole house and ended up in the basement. There, he saw his friend and colleague dead.

Dovishaw was bound by his mother’s old dresses, his hands were cut off, and he was shot in the head execution style[6].

Here is the newspaper article that was published on January 5th, 1983:

“Frank ‘Bolo’ Dovishaw, reputed head of one of the largest illegal gambling operations in northwestern Pennsylvania, was found shot to death in the basement of his West Side home Tuesday night. Authorities said Dovishaw had been shot once in the head. Police refused comment on the shooting, except to say they were treating it as a homicide. It was believed that Dovishaw’s killer or killers may have fled in his 1979 green Cadillac. As a result, Erie police asked officers in Pennsylvania and nearby states to be on the lookout for the car with Pennsylvania license plate 9U7-469 and hold its occupants for questioning in the death[7]”

ABBY: That is all for this episode of Hurstories! Thank you for tuning in and hope to see you next time.  

 

[1] R Anderson, 1965, From Mafia to Cosa Nostra. American Journal of Sociology, 71(3), 302        310. Accessed on January 16, 2020, available at www.jstor.org/stable/2774452

 

[2] J Jacobs, C Panarella and J Worthington, 1994, Introduction. In Busting the Mob: The United States v. Cosa Nostra (pp. 3-28) (New York: NYU Press) accessed on January 16, 2020, available at www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt9qfvw4.5

 

[3] J Wertz, Erie’s Goodfellas: A Look at the Unholy Murder of Ash Wednesday, accessed on January 16, 2020, available at eriereader.com/article/eries-goodfellas.

 

 

[4] Erie Clerk Says he Took $7,000; Robbery Faked, Jamestown Post Journal, December 10, 1960, accessed on January 16, 2020, available at https://fultonhistory.com/Newspapersv

[5] J Wertz, Erie’s goodfellas.

 

[6] J Wertz, Erie’s Goodfellas.

 

[7] Reputed Crime Boss Killed, Latrobe Bulletin, January 5, 1983, accessed on January 16, 2020, available at https://www.newspapers.com/clip/27584084/latrobe_bulletin/