Alioto was born in Porticello di S. Flavia, Sicily in 1888 to Giuseppe Alioto and Francesca Orlando. He came in on the ship Liguria through the port at New York on March 20, 1904 at age 15. He would become naturalized citizen in Milwaukee on September 13, 1926 and marry Catherine Alioto (born either July 24, 1891 or November 11, 1892 in Sant Elia, Sicily) at Our Lady of Pompeii Church on July 20, 1913. Together they would have several children, including Angelo Alioto and Antonina — who would marry future crime boss Frank Balistrieri. His son Angelo would later become a member of the Milwaukee LCN family while John's distant cousin, Joseph Alioto, would go on to become a successful Lawyer and Mayor of San Francisco. Alioto once worked for the city as a foreman of garbage collection and als