11.6 Boss Tweed Ring and Political Reform

Boss Tweed Ring

Events Leading to the Collapse of Public Support for the Tweed Ring

  • By 1870, William Marcy "Boss" Tweed controlled New York City through Tammany Hall.
  • He manipulated the city charter to place his men in key positions (mayor, controller, commissioners).
  • Contractors submitted inflated invoices, often 15-65% over actual costs.
  • Estimated that 75,000,000 to 200,000,000 was stolen from NYC taxpayers.
  • City debts increased from 36,000,000 in 1868 to almost 136,000,000 in 1870 with minimal improvements.
  • The courthouse cost 13,000,000 but should have cost only 3,000,000.
  • The city was billed 3,000,000 for stationery but received much less.
  • A dissatisfied associate leaked information to The New York Times.
  • The New York Times published the information despite being offered 5,000,000 to suppress it.
  • Thomas Nast's cartoons in Harper's Weekly were especially damaging because Tweed's supporters could understand them even if they were illiterate.
  • Opposition candidates were elected, investigated city finances, and uncovered corruption.
  • In October 1871, Tweed was arraigned on 120 counts of fraud and extortion and held on 8,000,000 bail.
  • Samuel J. Tilden and William H. Wickerham worked to convict Tweed.
  • In 1873, Tweed was found guilty and sentenced to 12 years, later reduced to one year by a higher court.
  • He was rearrested on civil charges, and New York State sued him for 6,000,000.
  • Tweed was held in debtors' prison until he could post 3,000,000 bail.
  • Tweed escaped on 01/03/1875 and fled to Cuba, then bribed his way onto a ship to Spain.
  • Spanish authorities identified him using Nast's cartoons.
  • Tweed was returned to the US and prison in November 1876 and died in jail on 04/12/1878.
  • Tweed became the symbol of city and political corruption.

Context & Perspective

  • Tweed justified his actions by comparing them to Civil War profiteering.
  • He believed the city received services, and improvements were made.
  • His downfall resulted from someone else's greater greed.

Political Reform

  • Bosses and political machines existed in most large cities and the federal government.
  • Andrew Jackson's spoils system (1828) contributed to the problem by rewarding supporters with government jobs, regardless of qualifications.
  • This led to widespread graft and corruption at all levels.
  • Scandals during the Grant administration and the fall of Boss Tweed led to demands for change.

Civil Service Reform

  • Reformers sought to replace patronage with merit-based appointments.
  • They proposed tests of knowledge and skill for government jobs.
  • They suggested making many government positions into career positions, protected from political appointments.

Republican Party Division

  • The Republican Party was divided over civil service reform:
    • Stalwarts opposed changes.
    • Mugwumps wanted reform.
    • Half-Breeds favored reform but wanted to maintain party loyalty.
  • James A. Garfield, an independent, was nominated in 1880.
  • Garfield won the election but favored reformers in patronage appointments, angering Stalwarts.
  • Garfield was assassinated, and Vice President Chester A. Arthur, who had ties to the Stalwarts, became president.
  • Arthur surprisingly supported reform.

Local and State Reforms

  • Reform mayors (e.g., Hazen Pingree of Detroit, Tom Johnson of Cleveland) cleaned up city politics.
  • Governors like Robert M. Lafollette of Wisconsin worked for political reform at the state level.
  • Lafollette's Wisconsin Idea opened government to citizen input.
  • Initiative and referendum gave people a greater voice in lawmaking.
  • The Seventeenth Amendment provided for the direct election of senators.

Rise of Populists and Progressives

  • People were tired of party politics, backroom deals, and corruption.
  • Populist and Progressive parties promised to work for the people and reform government.
  • These parties gained significant support and forced the Republican Party to address reform.

Additional Details

  • Samuel Tilden, who prosecuted Tweed, was the Democratic candidate for president in 1876.
  • President Grant wanted Tweed back to sway voters against Tilden.
  • Charles Guiteau, Garfield's assassin, was a Stalwart who was denied a job by Garfield.