THE DEVIL LOOKS AFTER HIS OWN
THE CHARLIE WALL STORY
On April 19, 1955, almost every squad car in Hillsborough County lined 1216 E. 17th Avenue in Ybor City. A crowd of men, women, and children stood anxiously in the yard of the only mansion of Ybor City, waiting to hear if the rumors of another gang slaying that had spread throughout the city were true. While gang slayings had become the norm in Tampa, the latest being the 21st in the last 23 years, this one was different. This murder was especially brutal. The victim’s head was caved in with a bat, and his neck was sliced from ear to ear. Most important, though, was the identity of the victim. He was not just any Mafioso or gang member; the victim was one of the most colorful and notorious men in the history of Tampa, the man known as the “White Shadow” Charlie Wall, the tall, Anglo, retired crime lord who ruled Tampa through both love and fear for most of the early part of the 20th century.
Charlie Wall’s name elicits powerfully excited responses from those in Tampa who remember him from their childhood years in Ybor City or whose parents and grandparents told them stories of him. He was the White Shadow, Tampa’s original crime lord, Tampa’s answer to Al Capone, John Gotti, and Lucky Luciano. He was Ybor City’s Godfather. It seems everyone alive during Charlie Wall’s reign as Tampa’s underworld kingpin has a romantic story to tell about the gangster and how he thumbed his nose at the life of luxury he was born into to go into business with the dregs of society, how he gave candy and money to the neighborhood children; how he survived multiple assassination attempts; how he’d stroll down 7th Avenue in his pristine white suit, flipping a coin in the air; leaning on his cane and tipping his hat to every beautiful woman he passed; and, of course, how he ran Tampa’s illegal lottery, bolita.
But, outside of these general tidbits, only some know the whole story of Charlie Wall and the detailed facts behind his life and reign over Tampa, which is a shame, considering that only a few individuals had a more significant influence over Tampa’s history than Charlie Wall. He fixed countless elections in Tampa for over three decades. He financially backed the cigar workers during the famous strikes. He turned Tampa into the Southern version of the Wild West, with whorehouses and gambling parlors on every corner in Ybor City and West Tampa and shootouts in broad daylight. He owned politicians, law enforcement officials, and judges. The romantic stories people remember about Charlie Wall always revolve around how he controlled Tampa’s underworld, which highly underestimates his life. But, he owned more than the underworld. For over three decades, Charlie Wall owned Tampa.
Charlie Wall’s roots can be traced back as early as the mid-1840s to his grandfather, Perry Wall, a pioneer who migrated south during the Second Seminole War. Perry Wall settled in the highlands of Hernando County just north of Brooksville and established a successful career as a probate judge and later as postmaster.
