This is the first installment of the Graveside Stroll. I kinda got the idea from a friend of mine Mark Masek who does something similar on his website which you can visit by clicking HERE . Mark calls it “The Grave Spotlight” and features a celebrity grave site about once a week or month. While I wont be featuring celebrity grave sites unless they’re buried in Michigan or where I happen to visit and photograph the graves my self. Most of the people I’ll feature will be people who are a notable in some way. Also with the new name change “The Graveside Stroll” I might consider doing this once a week.
Anyway without further adieu here is the first installment. The first installment is on one of the most infamous and powerful gangsters of all time none other than Al Capone. Keep in mind that the photos features in the grave site spotlight are from my own personal collection.
To begin Al Capone was born in Brooklyn New York in 1899 and died in Florida in 1947. Rising through the ranks of the criminal underworld in New York with the help of mentor Johnny Torrio he eventually moved to Chicago to escape a criminal charge brought up against him. While in Chicago he again rose through the ranks of the criminal empire. Competing against a multitude of gangs (Irish & Italian) to become the supreme leader of Chicago rackets. The height of his career took off after the infamous St. Valentines Day Massacre on February 14th of 1929.
After things started getting bad from the other gangs. And the impending doom from the IRS. Capone took things slow and eventually went to trial on Tax Evasion. He lost the case and ended up in Alcatraz. Due to health reasons and the onslaught of the STD syphilis. Discharged from prison in the 40s and lived out his years in Florida living in his mansion near Miami, Florida. The syphilis finally took its toll and Capone died from the complications brought on from the horrid disease. He is buried in the Chicago suburb of Hillside. In Mt. Carmel cemetery. 
Lastly, if your interested in reading more about Al Capone, his life, and his empire. There are two Capone biographies which are must haves for your library. The first is “Capone: The Life & World of Al Capone” by John Kobler. The second book is “Mr. Capone: The Real & Complete Story of Al Capone” by Robert Schoenberg. I highly recommend both books. The second book is my personal favorite out of the two but these books tell Capone’s story well and have plenty of photos.
Notice: These photos are available for use on your blog or grave hunting website. All I ask in kindness return that this blog and my self Joshua Perry get the credit for the photo work. Because I put in a lot of hard work hunting these grave sites when I find the time.
Nice write up, Josh. Mark inspires us all. I don’t think it’s a good idea to steal his title though, that’s plagiarism, a huge writing no-no. You might want to seriously consider coming up with your own unique series title/slant on the concept.
Thanks Lisa, I have talked to Mark. So I’m going to come up with a different title for the grave site spotlights. I have a few things in mind that I’m thinking of changing it too.
Hey Lisa, I just took care of the title change for the grave site features. I’ve named it “The Grave Tour” I wasn’t looking to cause any problems nor did I want to to begin with as I highly respect the crew in California. So I made things right and changed the title.