The Classic Cast Iron Mechanical “Tammany Bank”. Stevens Co, Pat Sept 23, 1873. Authentic with Lots of Original Paint from Private Collection. Approx: 6″ H x 4.5″ D x 3.5 W, 1.75 lbs. The popular “Tammany” cast iron bank has been a gem for collectors for over 140 years. Originally issued in 1873, by the famous J. Stevens Company of Cromwell, Conn. This one has some wear as shown in pictures but does maintain a good bit of original paint. His head nods so as to thank you. This bank nods with or without coin inserted if the bank is moved, much like a bobble head. The patent date is stamped on the back December 23, 1873 and “Tammany Bank” on each side of chair at bottom. The coin slot on bottom of bank is screw held and will open and close, but we did not try to adjust screw, clean or other. His arm operates as designed by dropping a penny into bank, but the head nodding seems independent of coin if bank is moved or if you touch his head. The subject matter of this bank is interesting as it was based on the Tammany Hall political corruption scandal in New York in the 1840’s-1870’s. Tammany Hall was the political machine of the Democratic Party in New York which began before 1800 and played a major role in New York politics and life for nearly 200 years, particularly by the 1800’s and beyond. By controlling political offices, city boards, government contracts and more, the machine became associated with corruption on a massive scale. The most notorious of the offenders exposed was “Boss Tweed” William M. Along with being “The Machine Boss”, he was said to have been the third largest landowner in New York, was the director of the Erie Railroad, the Tenth National Bank, the New York Printing Company, owner of the Metropolitan Hotel, a major owner of stock in gas and iron companies, sitting on many boards of major institutions and was elected to several political offices including the US House Of Representatives, Board of New York County Board of Supervisors and the New York State Senate. This allowed Tweed massive access to control thousands of patronage positions, further securing control of voters and power within New York and outward. Kind of like the swamp we see in many cities today. Apparently, a lot of people understood the message and this bank was popular among the masses as they produced a large volume of them for the time. The durability and quality of the bank attests to its maker J. Stevens Co and perhaps the quality of most makers of the time. Stevens made many of the mechanical banks that are on top of collector’s favorite lists today which you can easily research online. They opened in 1843 primarily as general metal hardware producers but moved into making toys by the 1860’s as a primary pursuit. One article referred to the Stevens Company as “Like having Santa’s workshop in your town”. Great historical read if you are interested. Please use your own judgement in assessing condition and not our opinion. Let us know if you have questions. We also have a J. Stevens Frog on Stand cast iron bank for sale as well. We love to bundle if you have an interest. We do this often. Please follow our store if you love rare antiques, primitives and collectibles of many types. We scour the land for the rarest and neatest of items for our Buyers who love them. We offer everything from rusty industrial to fine art by renowned US and foreign artists. We have Americana, Antique advertising, Salesmen samples, Oil Paintings & sculptures by noted artists, Farm Primitives, Antique lighting fixtures and Aladdin lamps, militaria, Classic Comics, Sports Memorabilia and much, much more. It is our honor to offer these treasures to you. We offer premium quality items and provide lots of pictures (we count on our detailed photos to assist with describing the treasure) to assist you. Our packing is top notch (often taking 30 minutes to over an hour on delicate items). We exhaust ourselves to get your new treasure safely home. Rest assured that what you will receive is EXACTLY what is shown and detailed in this listing. The item “Auth Classic Cast Iron J. & E. Stevens Co Tammany Mechanical Bank Dec 23 1873″ is in sale since Tuesday, June 16, 2020. This item is in the category “Collectibles\Banks, Registers & Vending\Mechanical Banks”. The seller is “new_life_antiques” and is located in Indianapolis, Indiana. This item can be shipped to United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Denmark, Romania, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Czech republic, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Estonia, Australia, Greece, Portugal, Cyprus, Slovenia, Japan, China, Sweden, South Korea, Belgium, France, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Bahamas, Mexico, New Zealand, Switzerland, Norway, Croatia, Chile, Colombia, Costa rica, Panama, Trinidad and tobago, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Antigua and barbuda, Aruba, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Saint kitts and nevis, Saint lucia, Montserrat, Turks and caicos islands, Barbados, Bangladesh, Bermuda, Bolivia, French guiana, Guernsey, Gibraltar, Guadeloupe, Iceland, Jersey, Liechtenstein, Sri lanka, Luxembourg, Monaco, Martinique, Maldives, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Paraguay, Uruguay, Ukraine, Cayman islands.

• Maker: J. & E. Stevens Co
• Material: Cast Iron
• Style: Americana
• Featured Refinements: Cast Iron Mechanical Bank
• Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
• Brand: J. & E. Stevens Company
• Original/Reproduction: Original
• Date of Creation: 1800-1899
• Listed By: Dealer or Reseller
• Date of Manufacture: 1873
• Region of Origin: US-Northeast
• Color: Multi-Color