Whiskey Ring scandal
E697868
The Whiskey Ring scandal was a major 1870s U.S. political corruption scheme involving distillers and government officials who conspired to defraud the federal government of liquor tax revenues during President Ulysses S. Grant’s administration.
Statements (53)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf | political scandal ⓘ |
| amountRecovered | over $3,000,000 in unpaid taxes and fines ⓘ |
| appliesToTaxon |
Internal Revenue Service officials
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
distillers ⓘ federal revenue officials ⓘ political operatives of the Republican Party ⓘ whiskey distributors ⓘ |
| cause |
high federal excise taxes on distilled spirits after the Civil War
ⓘ
opportunity for collusion between distillers and revenue officials ⓘ |
| charge |
bribery
ⓘ
conspiracy to defraud the United States ⓘ tax evasion ⓘ |
| country |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| endTime | 1875 ⓘ |
| hasEffect |
damage to the reputation of Ulysses S. Grant’s administration
ⓘ
defrauding the federal government of liquor tax revenues ⓘ increased calls for civil service reform ⓘ loss of millions of dollars in federal excise taxes ⓘ public outcry over government corruption ⓘ |
| historicalPeriod | Reconstruction era NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| investigatedBy |
Benjamin H. Bristow, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
special Treasury Department investigators ⓘ |
| location |
Chicago
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Cincinnati NERFINISHED ⓘ Milwaukee NERFINISHED ⓘ New Orleans NERFINISHED ⓘ Peoria NERFINISHED ⓘ St. Louis NERFINISHED ⓘ other Midwestern and Western U.S. cities ⓘ |
| mainTopic | tax fraud ⓘ |
| mannerOf |
bribing revenue agents to overlook tax liabilities
ⓘ
issuing fraudulent tax stamps ⓘ underreporting whiskey production ⓘ |
| notableOutcome |
Grant provided personal testimony supporting Orville E. Babcock
ⓘ
Orville E. Babcock was indicted but acquitted ⓘ several high-ranking officials resigned or were removed ⓘ |
| numberOfArrests | over 200 ⓘ |
| numberOfConvictions | over 100 ⓘ |
| numberOfIndictments | over 230 ⓘ |
| participant |
Republican Party political figures
ⓘ
Treasury Department officials NERFINISHED ⓘ federal revenue agents ⓘ whiskey distillers ⓘ |
| partOf | corruption controversies of the Grant administration ⓘ |
| pointInTime | Grant administration NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| significantEvent | exposure in 1875 ⓘ |
| significantPerson |
Benjamin H. Bristow
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Grant’s private secretary ⓘ John McDonald NERFINISHED ⓘ Orville E. Babcock NERFINISHED ⓘ Ulysses S. Grant NERFINISHED ⓘ William W. Belknap NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| startTime | 1871 ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.