The Boss's “Brains”: Political Capital, Democratic Commerce and the New York Tweed Ring, 1868–1871

Departing from P ierre B ourdieu's contention that capital takes on many forms beyond the economic, including a political form, this article examines how commodification patterned nineteenth century A merican politics. A case study of the T weed R ing, which briefly governed G ilded A ge N ew Y ork, is reevaluated as a speculative political bubble that produced empirically identifiable political profits. From an election sweep in 1868 to a bank...