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Vincent “Mad Dog” Coll
Mad Dog Coll
This man did a lot in his life. His life may have not been long, but man, he was something. I did know who this man ever was until I Google gangsters. My research on Vincent Coll was interesting. He has made my top 5 list of gangsters. Let’s learn about Vincent ‘Mad Dog’ Coll.
Vincent was born on July 20, 1908, in Gweedore, Ireland. He was born in an Irish-speaking parish. Gweedore was an impoverished region of County Donegal. Gweedore was rich in beauty. It lacked opportunities and employment. The biggest industry in Gweedore in 1908 was emigration. Vincent’s parents emigrated to America when Vincent was less than a year old. Vincent’s parents and their 7 children moved out of Gweedore to New York.
They settled in the Irish enclave of the Bronx. They soon found out that their lives in New York were not much better than the one they left behind in Gweedore. They still lived in dire poverty. This led the dad to leave the family. All this tells me is that dad wasn’t man enough to stick out the hard times with his family, so he decided to take the easy way out and bail. Tragedy was about to strick. Vincent’s mother and 5 of his siblings died before Vincent turned 12 years old.
After his mom died, Vincent and his brother Peter were placed in a number of Catholic orphanages. It was not long before they were found to be…
