Boss Tweed's New York (New Dimensions in History: Historical Cities) [Paperback]

Seymour J. Mendelbaum (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0929587200 | ISBN-13: 978-0929587202 | Publication Date: July 1, 1990

At the height of his power in New York City, around 1870, William Marcy (Boss) Tweed’s hands were everywhere in city government and party politics. His success in looting the city treasury and using the payoff to achieve his objectives earned him a reputation as the classic example of the corrupt municipal boss. Amidst the turbulent political and social conditions of a metropolis in the making, Boss Tweed was, according to Mr. Mandelbaum, the right man at the right time—“a master communicator” who “united the elements in a divided society.” In effect he replaced the good communications which the author argues are essential to democratic decision-making. Mr. Mandelbaum’s analysis of the historical situation is a cogent case study in the democratization of American society.

Editorial Reviews

Review

A rewarding description of New York City in the days of Tweed. (Annals )

About the Author

Seymour J. Mandelbaum is Professor of City and Regional Planning and History at the University of Pennsylvania. His other books include Community and Communication.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Ivan R Dee (July 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0929587200
• ISBN-13: 978-0929587202
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #728,275 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Terrific Read and a Terrific Resource, December 22, 2003

By 

Rocco Dormarunno (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Boss Tweed's New York (New Dimensions in History: Historical Cities) (Paperback)

Most people's concept of William Meagher "Boss" Tweed, if any, is that of a manipulative mastermind who understood how to best bilk New Yorkers out of tens of millions of dollars, only to be brought down by a resentful member of his "ring" and the brilliant political cartoons of Thomas Nast. Seymour Mandelbaum's study, BOSS TWEED'S NEW YORK, reveals that this is a gross minimalization of the facts.

As the title suggests, it was New York's political and economic machinery of the times that made it easy for anyone to loot the public's coffers. Other politicians before Tweed took advantage of this vulnerability. In fact, many New Yorkers bitterly accepted that graft was a way of life. Mandelbaum goes to great pains to explain, however, that it was the degree to which Tweed took advantage of these weaknesses that set him apart from other thieves. But the more interesting aspect of BOSS TWEED'S NEW YORK is the discussion of Tweed's downfall. There was much more to it than Nast's wonderful cartoons or the informant's testimony. Again, as the title explains, it was New York itself--it's changing immigrant make-up, the proliferation of the press, and the compression of communication between political wards--that accelerated his decline.

The point is that the real subject of this book is New York City during and just after the Civil War years. It is a provocative and surprising account of the metropolis under unprecedented changes and pressures. Changes and pressures that came so quickly that the mighty Tweed could not keep up with them.

And this has been a gross minimalization of Mr. Mandelbaum's thesis. Read it for yourself. You will find it an invaluable addition to your collection of books on political or New York history.

Rocco Dormarunno, author of The Five Points

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A time much like our own, July 27, 2011

By 

Michael Lewyn (Forest Hills, NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Boss Tweed's New York (New Dimensions in History: Historical Cities) (Paperback)

What I liked about this book is that it showed some similarities between New York's past and the American present. Just as Boss Tweed bought off a variety of factions through generous public spending, the politicians of the past decade have bought political support through spending increases and tax cuts. But then a political enemy of Tweed became city auditor, and discovered that the city's secret accounts showed excessive debt and widespread fraud. When these problems were publicized, bankers refused to lend to the city, causing the downfall of Tweed and a debt crisis. Just as the debt crises of recent years has led to worldwide austerity, New York's debt crisis caused a swing in the 1870s towards spending cuts and starved public services.

And like today's political world, New York's political world was anything but stable. Just as Americans have swung rapidly from right to left to right, New Yorkers swung from pro-Tammany to anti-Tammany.

Mandelbaum's analysis of causes is weaker than his description of factual events. He ties the city's problems to absence of communication: for example, the absence of reliable public transit made it hard to get from one side of the city to the other. He tries to argue that this weakness of communication made it hard for politicians to create citywide coalitions or appeal to citywide interests, which made it hard for politicians to govern effectively without buying political support the Tweed way (i.e. by subsidizing all factions). But I didn't find this analysis very persuasive; in our own time, special-interest gridlock has been common despite considerably improved communications.

11 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Most exellent book, October 16, 2000

By 

Zak (Hummelstown, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Boss Tweed's New York (New Dimensions in History: Historical Cities) (Paperback)

This is a most exellent book. I had a report due and it saved me from certain failure. *~Peace~*