A $250,000 New York Courthouse Ended Up Costing $14 Million
Carpenters billed six figures for rooms with no wood, and Tweed's crew took at least 15 percent of city business.
Peter Santenello · New York City’s Hidden Corruption 🇺🇸A New York courthouse budgeted at about $250,000 in the 1860s ended up costing about $14 million.
The building was the Tweed Courthouse, beside City Hall in Lower Manhattan, named for William M. Tweed, the boss of the Tammany Hall political machine. Benjamin, a First Amendment attorney who says he studied corruption and served as "counsel to two chairmen of the Federal Election Commission," says Tweed's crew took at least 15 percent of city business.
Bills were padded or billed for work that was never done. Carpenters collected more than $100,000, in the money of the time, for work in what Benjamin described as "rooms that had no wood." The $14 million price is equal to an estimated $250 million to $300 million today. By one estimate, Tweed and his small circle pocketed between $1 billion and $5 billion from their control of the city.
Questions people ask
Who was Boss Tweed?
William M. Tweed was the boss of Tammany Hall, the Democratic political machine that controlled New York City in the 1860s and 1870s. He used patronage, contracts, and kickbacks to enrich himself and his allies. He was later indicted on more than 200 counts, convicted, and died in jail.
What is the Tweed Courthouse used for now?
The Tweed Courthouse still stands at 52 Chambers Street in Lower Manhattan. After a major restoration completed in 2001, it became the headquarters of New York City's Department of Education. Its lavish 19th-century interiors are now a designated city landmark.
How was Tweed caught?
Tweed was exposed in part by newspaper investigations and the cartoons of Thomas Nast in Harper's Weekly, which made his face widely recognized. After indictment, he fled to Cuba and then Spain but was identified and returned to New York. He was convicted and died in prison in 1878.