Political Bosses in Urban America: Corruption Or Contribution? Dennis L
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Bridgewater Review Volume 2 | Issue 1 Article 6 Oct-1983 Political Bosses In Urban America: Corruption or Contribution? Dennis L. Lythgoe Bridgewater State College Recommended Citation Lythgoe, Dennis L. (1983). Political Bosses In Urban America: Corruption or Contribution?. Bridgewater Review, 2(1), 12-16. Available at: http://vc.bridgew.edu/br_rev/vol2/iss1/6 This item is available as part of Virtual Commons, the open-access institutional repository of Bridgewater State University, Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Political Bosses In Urban America Corruption or Contribution? by Dennis L. Lythgoe n the years following the Civil War, York both emerged from saloons. Sullivan Ise bosses were heavy contributors America's cities grew dramatically, not was nicknamed "Dry Dollar" because he W to Catholic parochial schools or I only because of the Industrial Revolu never laid a customer's change down until Jewish charities. Sometimes pastors even tion, but because of the influx of immigrants. he had carefully dried the bar top with his urged their parishioners to vote for machine The result was political chaos, and the part towel. Murphy increased his clientele by politicians. Bosses did favors for small time politician couldn't handle the change. serving a free bowl of soup with a five-cent businessmen, especially storekeepers. From this disorganization, the political boss, beer. George Cox of Cincinnati was the Restaurants, saloons, and delicatessens a distinctive breed, emerged. Even though owner of a saloon called "Dead Man's found the friendship of the boss invaluable in many bosses were involved in graft and Corner," where numerous killings had securing health department approval. Many corruption, they also replaced chaos with taken place. Heavyset Jim Pendergast cities made the licensing of numerous small order. opened a saloon in Kansas City's businesses appear to be a special favor. In Most of the early bosses in the late working-class section called the West return the businessman would display nineteenth century and the early twentieth Bottoms. He provided pungent garlic campaign posters in his window and talk century came from either the corner saloon bologna, cheese, and bread to anyone who politics with his customers. or the volunteer fire department. In either bought a nickel beer. Like the saloon, the setting they were able to sell themselves as fire department provided an opportunity to New York's Boss Tweed had notorious "people's men," who were down to earth make friends playing cards and making alliances with businessmen who would and interested in service to humanity. "Big small talk. From that environment emerged provide kickbacks to the machine in return Tim" Sullivan and Charles Murphy of New Boss Tweed of New York. for contracts, whether for stationery, toilet paper, or construction work. In the early A trademark of everyone of these bosses years of the Tweed regime, the fee was ten City Hall was his concern for the poor and ~o Boston, MA percent, while several years later it had ~o underprivileged. In a period of growing ~ grown to sixty-five percent. Tweed even urban poverty, when the federal 1'o<\. paid exorbitant fees for advertising in "".I' government declined to assume respon % newspapers which in return maintained a ""Q' sibility, politicians from working-class friendly editorial policy. The last year Tweed neighborhoods built their own welfare was in power the city paid advertising bills to programs. The down-and-out knew they newspapers in excess of one million could get help from the boss, who would dollars. give them baskets of food or buckets of coal. The boss would slip a widow money to cover rom San Francisco to the big cities of the cost of a respectable funeral and burial, F the East Coast, all forms of organized or help an immigrant find ajob and a place to crime operated under the friendly eye of the .. live. After the immigrant was settled, the machine. Hazen Pingree in Detroit tolerated boss would help him to become naturalized, prostitution in his city, not because he got a which increased the immigrant's pride and cut, but because he realized its popularity • gave the boss another vote. among the voters. Prostitution was illegal in The bosses also created a system of Cincinnati, but it thrived under Boss Cox. political clubs for middle-class Under the aegis of the machine, prostitutes neighborhoods. The purpose was to were examined once a week and those free provide social services for people who did of disease were given work permits for not need a basket of food but who could not seven days. In New York, the Tammany afford to belong to the elite country clubs. Machine instructed police to wink at .....The political machine rented large halls for violators as long as they paid the police and banquets and parties and dances. They the organization a percentage of the take. sponsored picnics and barbeques, baseball Chicago was a notoriously wide-open city. _. leagues, and weekly bridge parties for Brothels prospered with boss-controlled women. In turn, people were expected to police getting a percentage. poll voters and pass out sample ballots at In the twentieth century, Chicago election time. In later years, people on the remained much the same under Richard J. receiving end of social services were Daley, whose moral code was "Thou shalt expected to drive people to the polls. not steal, but thou shalt not blow the whistle on anybody who does." The Cook County Democratic Committee included a man named John D'Arco who was known as the crime syndicate's man on the committee. It was public knowledge that Chicago's Mafia chieftian Sam Giancana actually owned the First Ward through his representative D'Arco. As long as the Mafia didn't challenge him and remained satisfied with its work for the machine because of this building parks and squares throughout New limited share of city government. Daley system. The ward heeler or precinct captain York City. These improvements were could live with it u the same way he lived got out the vote because people felt they evenly distributed among neighborhoods of with the "rascals in Springfield," meaning should pay him back for a past favor. all social classes. Jim Pendergast put his leaders of state government. Likewise, he worked for the boss and the machine behind bond issues for parks and local organization because he was in their boulevards for Kansas City, and Boss Bosses came from every imaginable debt. In many instances, thousands of Crump helped Memphis achieve one of the ethnic background. James Pendergast in people who delivered the vote were also on most attractive park and boulevard systems Kansas City, Frank Hague in Jersey City, the city payroll. In Kansas City, during Jim in the country. James Michael Curley in Boston, and Pendergast's prime in 1900, he had almost Perhaps surprisingly, the bosses also did Charles Murphy in New York were Irish five hundred jobs on the city payroll to give more than other white groups to achieve Americans. San Francisco's Abraham Reuf to loyal supporters. racial equality. Curley, who was Mayor of was a German Jew, Chicago's Anton Boston on and off for thirty-six years, ran as Cermak was born in Bohemia, and Boss ichard Daley always bristled when well in the Lithuanian neighborhood of Tweed was from a long line of native Amer South Boston and the Italian section of East icans. Their education was diverse as well. reporters used the term "machine" R Boston as he did in the working-class Irish Ed Butler of St. Louis, Richard Crocker of because he preferred "organization." But it wards. In his last term in City Hall, he New York, "Big Tim" Sullivan, and George was no secret that Daley's dual role as conferred minor patronage on the growing Cox of Cincinnati never finished grammar mayor and chairman of the Cook County black community and joined the NAACP. school. On the other hand, Doc Ames of Democratic Committee gave him final say Minneapolis received an M.D. before he was over the award of some 35,000 patronage Pendergast distributed patronage to twenty-one, andAbe Reuf held a law degree. positions. At least weekly he would meet blacks in his organization, and Boss Cox with his patronage director to peruse job paved the way for black enfranchisement by Some bosses let their success go to their applications right down to ditch digger. It suppressing violence against blacks at the heads. Frank Hague had a home in New was assumed that when the mayor gave his polls. Edward Crump actually gave blacks Jersey and one in Florida. Tom Pendergast approval, the person who got the job would the vote in Memphis. In St. Louis, Jordan owned an elegant mansion in Kansas City be considered a member of the machine and Chambers, a black ward boss, got his start and traveled first Harper's Weekly, AUGUST 19, 1871 in politics by class to Europe.. working in Boss Duke Vare of Butler's machine. Philadelphia own ichard Daley ed a home that Rwas terrible cost a half-million with human re dollars. Richard lationships and Crocker main purposely fenced tained a castle in out blacks in his Ireland, a house in Chicago machine, Palm Beach, and but essential an apartment in services under his one of New York's tenure were sup most exclusive erb. Daley was residential dis acclaimed for tricts. Tweed lived providing an in in a Fifth Avenue genious transpor showplace, kept tation system his horses in comprised of a silver-trimmed expressways fan mahogany stable ning out from the and sported an central core with expensive yacht.