On October 27, 1871, the infamous Boss Tweed was arrested in New York on corruption charges. For many, the arrest was long overdue as he had a disturbing stronghold on the New York political system for many years. When we think of corrupt public servants and political scandals, the first name that comes to mind for any historian is William Marcy Tweed.

Born in 1823, Tweed came from a humble background on New York’s lowest east side. His community was founded by immigrants and represented a lower class in society. Tweed kept this to himself so as not to ruin his chance at political achievement. He was a carpenter, accountant, fireman and then in 1851 his vocational experience and membership in the democratic party got him elected as an alderman.

After alderman, Tweed held a number of offices and began to grease the palms of those who could help him further his career and fiscal hopes. Work contracts, land purchases, wages and materials were all susceptible to bribery, kickbacks and favors. Tweed’s world was wealth and influence and Tammany Hall was his head quarters.

Tweed found favor among newly arrived immigrant populations who were coming into New York at the rate of hundreds per week. Uneducated in the ways of American politics, immigrants were easy targets for Boss tweed. They often swapped board and employment for votes. A semi transient community was perfect for Tweed and his fellow thieves.

The growing population of New York created a need for large construction projects, municipal improvements and contract workers. It was a fertile ground for manipulative individuals to make a few extra bucks on the side. Boss Tweed was a member of The Society of Saint Tammany a charitable organization that became a filter for money jobs and votes from the immigrant community.

All was going well until an accountant felt slighted by Tweed’s small kickback and decided to tell his story to the papers. He placed incriminating papers in the hands of the New York Times and it was all downhill from there. It didn’t take journalists and legal prosecutors very long to trace the paper trail back to Tweed.

In all, Tweed and his crew used their political offices and professional connections to skim almost 200 million dollars off the top of the New York City municipal budget. After his arrest and initial sentence of 12 years, Boss Tweed served one year, released, sued by the city of New York, sent back to jail, escaped, fled to Cuba, was found and rearrested. He spent the rest of his life in a New York jail cell where he died in 1878. Tweed was nothing if not a character and a great example of how not to run a city.

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