William M. Tweed

William Magear Tweed (April 3, 1823 – April 12, 1878), commonly known as "Boss" Tweed, was an American politician and head of Tammany Hall, the name given to the Democratic Party political machine that played a major role in New York City politics from the 1790s to the 1860s. He was convicted and eventually imprisoned for stealing millions of dollars from the city through graft.

Political Career

Tweed himself was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1852, the New York City Board of Advisors in 1856, and the New York State Senate in 1867.

Financiers Jay Gould and Big Jim Fisk made Boss Tweed a director of the Erie Railroad, and Tweed in turn arranged favorable legislation for them. Tweed and Gould became the subjects of political cartoons by Thomas Nast in 1869.

In April 1870 Tweed secured the passage of a city charter putting the control of the city into the hands of the mayor (A. Oakey Hall), the comptroller, and the commissioners of parks and public works. He then set about to plunder the city. The total amount of money stolen was never known, but has been estimated from $25 million to $200 million. Over a period of two years and eight months, New York City's debts increased from $36 million in 1868 to more than $130 million by 1870, with little to show for the debt.

Tweed defrauded the city by having contractors present excessive bills for work performed- typically ranging from 15 to 65 percent more than the project actually cost. This extra money was divided among Tweed and his subordinates. The most excessive overcharging came in the form of the famous Tweed Courthouse, which cost the city over $11 million to construct, most of it going to line the pockets of Tweed and his gang. The city was also billed $3,000,000 for city printing and stationery over a two-year period.

While he was known primarily for the vast corrupt empire, Tweed was also responsible for building hospitals and orphanages, widening Broadway along the Upper West Side, and securing the land for the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Tweed's arrest and subsequent flight

The end came when one of the plunderers, dissatisfied with the amount he received, gave The New York Times evidence that conclusively proved that stealing was going on. In a subsequent interview about the fraud, Tweed's only reply was, "What are you going to do about it?" However, accounts in The New York Times and political cartoons drawn by Thomas Nast and published in Harper's Weekly resulted in the election of numerous opposition candidates in 1871. Tweed is attributed with exclaiming, "Stop them damned pictures. I don't care so much what the papers say about me. My constituents can't read, but, damn it, they can see pictures!"

In October 1871, when Tweed was held on $1,000,000 bail, Jay Gould was the chief bondsman. The efforts of political reformers William H. Wickham (1875 New York City mayor) and Samuel J. Tilden (later the 1876 Democratic presidential nominee) resulted in Tweed's trial and conviction in 1873. He was given a 12-year prison sentence, which was reduced by a higher court and he served one year. He was then re-arrested on civil charges, sued by New York State for $6,000,000, and held in debtor's prison until he could post $3,000,000 as bail. On December 4, 1875, Tweed escaped and fled to Cuba.

His presence in Cuba was discovered by the U.S. Government and he was held by the Cuban government. Before the U.S. Government could arrange for his extradition, Tweed bribed his way onto a ship headed to Spain. Before he arrived in Spain, the U.S. Government discovered his eventual destination and made arrangements for his arrest as soon as he reached the Spanish coast. The Spanish government identified him, purportedly recognizing Tweed from one of Nast's cartoons, and extradited him to New York; he was delivered to authorities in New York City on November 23, 1876, where he died in the Ludlow Street Jail, just a few blocks from his childhood home, two years later on April 12, 1878, at the age of 55.

He was buried in Brooklyn's Green-Wood Cemetery.

Succession

Preceded by --	United States House of Representatives from New York, 5th District 1853-1855	Succeeded by --
Preceded by --	New York State Senate, 4th District 1868-1873	Succeeded by --
Preceded by Fernando Wood	Grand Sachem of Tammany Hall, with Isaac V. Fowler 1858-1859	Succeeded by Himself, with Richard B. Connolly
Preceded by Himself, with Isaac V. Fowler	Grand Sachem of Tammany Hall, with Richard B. Connolly 1859-1867	Succeeded by Himself, alone
Preceded by Himself, with Richard B. Connolly	Grand Sachem of Tammany Hall 1867-1871	Succeeded by John Kelly and John Morrisey

Trivia

Boss Tweed was portrayed by Jim Broadbent in the 2002 film Gangs of New York.

It is a common misconception that Boss Tweed's middle name was Marcy. While his middle initial was in fact M, it more likely stood for his mother's maiden name, Magear.

Another common misconception about Boss Tweed is that he was Irish. Although he was born on Cherry Street in Manhattan, he was of Scottish-Irish descent.

References

Boss Tweed, Gotham Gazette, New York, 4 July 2005.-Source.

Sante, Luc (2003). Low Life: Lures and Snares of Old New York. Farrar, Straus, & Giroux.

External links