The Tweed Ring was the political machine of William M. (“Boss”) Tweed. It ran Tammany Hall from 1858 to 1871 and dominated New York City politics. New York City Mayor A. Oakley Hall was a member of the Tweed Ring. The Tweed Ring engaged in major-league crime and corruption.

Being engaged in major crimes didn’t deter Mayor Hall from urging prosecution of petty offenses. Mayor Hall arranged in 1869 for William H. Mumler to be charged for selling a dozen “spirit photographs” for $10. The three specific charges against Mumler were obtaining $10 under false pretenses, obtaining $10 by cheating, and larceny by trick and device. A hearing before Joseph Dowling, Police Justice of the Tombs, was held to determine whether there was probable cause to continue imprisoning Mumler in the Tombs and to forward his case to a Grand Jury.^

The case attracted enormous public attention. It engaged leading public figures, including John Edmonds. Justice Dowling eventually dismissed the charges against Mumler.

The Tweed Ring eventually was criminally prosecuted. Mayor Hall was indicted for fraud and corruption three times from 1871 to 1873, but not convicted.^ In 1872, leading New York judges George G. Bernard, Albert Cardozo, and John McCunn were impeached for corruption. About 1874, Justice Dowling failed to secure re-appointment to the Police Board amidst charges of corruption.^ The Tweed Ring defrauded New York City of about $45 million from 1868 to 1871.

The Mumler case generated far more attention than the nature and extent of its fraud warranted. Perhaps Mayor Hall intended the case to serve as a distraction from more publicly important frauds.