Doomed by Cartoon: How Cartoonist Thomas Nast and the New York Times Brought Down Boss Tweed and His Ring of Thieves

by John Adler, Draper Hill

The legendary Boss Tweed effectively controlled New York City from after the Civil War until his downfall in November 1871. A huge man, he and his Ring of Thieves appeared to be invincible as they stole an estimated $2 billion in today's dollars. In addition to the New York city and state governments, the Tweed Ring controlled the press except for Harper's Weekly. Short and slight Thomas Nast was the most dominant American political cartoonist of all time; using his pen as his sling in Harper's Weekly, he attacked Tweed almost single-handily before The New-York Times joined the battle in 1870. Where "Doomed by Cartoon" differs from previous books about Boss Tweed is its focus on looking at circumstances and events as Thomas Nast visualized them in his 160-plus cartoons, almost like a serialized but intermittent comic book covering 1866 through 1978. It has been organized to tell the Nast vs. Tweed story so that readers with an interest in politics history and/or cartoons will enjoy.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Journalism, Art

312 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2008

Reviews

[Douglas Fugate · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun history book. Fun, because the cartoons and drawings are entertaining and history because this is the story of how the "Boss" of New York was outed and then ousted.
Most American history books, do little more than mention William "Boss" Tweed if they mention him at all. This work explains how the Tammany Hall gang was organized and how this organization drained the people of New York. The best part of the book is Mr. Adler’s explanation of each cartoon and how Mr. Nast repeatedly attacked Mr. Tweed and his associates.
Mr. Adler has done a remarkable job of research into Thomas Nast, William Tweed and Tweed's associates, as well as a few of Mr. Nast's other political targets.

I recommend this to any and all interested in American History.

[Steve Sanders · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a cartoonist myself I have thoroughly enjoyed the cartoons of Nast, however, this is also an excellent (and detailed) history of the politics of New York in the late 19th century, which was unexpected. Overall a good read.

[Jim Ward · Rating 5 out of 5]

Corrupt Politicians

Interesting history of political corruption in mid 1800’sNew York City. A legacy that has gone on since the beginning of time and continues today.