Tammany’s Ticket Tango: A Glimpse into Kings County’s Corrupt Underbelly

In the sweltering summer of 1917, the wheels of the municipal election were set in motion in Kings County. The Tammany machine, led by the infamous Mitchel, had just finalized its ticket. However, this wasn’t without controversy. The independent Democrats of Brooklyn protested the lack of representation on the Fusion ticket, but their cries fell on deaf ears. The Fusion Committee, meeting at 241 Madison Avenue, anointed William J. Kelly, a Democrat, for the Supreme Court, alongside Lewis L. Fawcett, a Republican, for County Judge, and Lander Faber, a Republican, for the Supreme Court. The question on everyone’s lips was: what secrets lay behind this carefully crafted ticket?