Coin Bank

1873

In the late 1860s and early 1870s, a faction of the Democratic party know as Tammany Hall dominated New York City politics. The notoriously corrupt machine was led by Boss William Tweed, who ultimately ended up in prison for stealing millions of dollars from city contracts. Part of the scam involved the creation of Tammany Banks to embezzle funds, which caused a run on the banks in 1871, as Tweed’s empire came crashing down. This object satirizes the seemingly unending corruption of political machines like Tammany Hall.