Saving Sin City: William Travers Jerome, Stanford White, and the Original Crime of the Century

by Mary Cummings

An operatic story of jealousy, obsession, vast fortunes, and moral crusaders set against the glittering backdrop of Gilded Age New York City.

When Stanford White, one of the most famous architects of the era—whose mark on New York City is second to none—was murdered by Harry K. Thaw in 1906, his death becomes known as “The Crime of the Century.”

But there were other players in this love triangle gone wrong that would play a part in the incredible story of White’s murderer. Chief among them was the ambitious district attorney William Travers Jerome, who had the opportunity to make—or break—his career with his prosecution of Thaw. Award-winning journalist Mary Cummings reveals a new angle to this incredible crime through Jerome’s story—a story that is ripe for our post-“Serial” era.

Thaw was the debauched and deranged heir to a Pittsburgh fortune who had a sadistic streak. White was an artistic genius and one of the world’s premier architects who would become obsessed with a teenaged chorus girl, Evelyn Nesbit. White preyed on Nesbit, who, in a surprising twist, also became a fixation for Thaw. Nesbit and Thaw would later marry, but Thaw’s lingering jealousy and anger toward White over his past history with Nesbit would explosively culminate in White’s shocking murder—and the even more shocking trial of Thaw for a murder that was committed in front of dozens of eye witnesses.

The promising young D.A. would find his faith in himself and the law severely tested as he battled colorful crooks, licentious grandees, and corrupt politicians. Cummings brilliant reveals the social issues simmering below the surface of New York that Jerome had to face. Filled with mesmerizing drama, rich period details, and fascinating characters, Saving Sin City sheds fresh light on crimes whose impact still echoes throughout the twenty-first century.

Genres: True Crime, History, Nonfiction, Crime, New York, American History, 20th Century

336 pages, Hardcover

Published May 1, 2018

Reviews

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The tragedy was not that Stanford White died but that I lived.” Evelyn Nesbit

This meticulously researched book is not only about New York City during the corrupt gilded age; a famous murder trial involving two wealthy depraved men; a vulnerable young woman who was a true victim but it is the history of how money can ensure your freedom despite your crime and just how vulnerable women were and still are in this world. I enjoyed the angle the author used to tell this incredible story and learned about one of the brave activists of justice, William Travers Jerome.
Wealthy American architect Stanford White was a member of the prestigious society in New York City when he was murdered in 1906. Mr. White and his prestigious firm had created a style of architecture called “American Renaissance” and its presence is felt all over the city to this day. Unfortunately he had a nasty habit of get young girls drunk and then sexually assaulting them when they passed out. It cost him his life.


His murder trial was big headline news in the city, Henry Kendall Thaw, the man who killed him was also the son of a railroad and coal tycoon. Mr Thaw felt that Stanford White “ruined” his wife, the model Evelyn Nesbit and indeed his actions caused Evelyn to suffer immensely. Both Stanford White and Henry Kendall Thaw were not likeable in the slightest in the book and Evelyn was the only one of the three who received any sympathy from the author. American politician and district attorney William Travers Jerome who wanted to prosecute Thaw for the murder despite the Thaw family's vast wealth. Maybe the most interesting story of the book is how Mr. Jerome destroyed his promising political career going after the millionaire Thaw.


It is also the tale of a beautiful and very young girl named Evelyn Nesbit who had been lost ever since her father died with no parental protection and without any financial security. Her mother was a weak, and shallow woman who did not seem to be able to cope with life very successfully. Her daughter was a beautiful young girl and soon she caught the eye of artists and photographers who wanted her to model for them. Evelyn was vulnerable and naive but she desperately needed the money to support her family since her mother seemed hapless.. After a series of moves from city to city, the family settled in New York City where her mother was hoping to find work as an seamstress. Evelyn became a famous sought after model and chorus girl when she was introduced to the married Sanford White who had a horrible reputation for degrading young women. Stanford managed to start grooming the young Evelyn and especially her greedy mother by moving them into a richly decorated suite at a beautiful hotel. He also paid for Evelyn's youngest brother to go to boarding school. Shortly after this, he sent the mother away on a paid vacation and plied Evelyn with champagne when they were alone. He then raped her as she laid passed out. The charming and manipulative Stanford convinced the naive young girl to keep seeing him and she did despite the fact that he was thirty years older than her. Did she eventually understand what he had done to her? Later he discarded her as he moved on to his next young conquest.


Poor Evelyn ended up marrying another wealthy older man, Henry Thaw, who was depraved, mentally ill and violently abused her. She married him for financial security because her mother told her to try and give the family some financial security. Later she told her new husband what happened to her in her youth and he became completely obsessed with Sanford White whom he already despised. The murder happens and once again Evelyn is in the spotlight during the trial. I kept trying to imagine what her life would have been like if she had not had the misfortune to run across these two morally disgraceful and entitled men.


As far as Wiiliam Travers Jerome, he never did get the justice that he wanted from the White murder trial because the Thaw family and their deep pockets managed to corrupt and buy the legal system as well as the the press. Thaw was found to be not guilty for reasons of insanity and spent very little time in jail. A sad but true story, Thaw even managed to leave Evelyn and their only son, a pitiful inheritance when he died. He used his wealth to corrupt and destroy lives. A timely reminder considering what is in the news this year. Four stars.

[David Eppenstein · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am giving this book my 3 star good book, worth the price of purchase, and the time to read it rating. It is about a slice, a very narrow slice, of the history of New York City during its Gilded Age around the turn of the 20th century. If any of you recall seeing the old movie "The Girl on the Red Velvet Swing" starring Ray Milland and the very young Joan Collins then you are somewhat familiar with the event that is the focus of this book. That event was the murder of the very prominent NYC architect Stanford White of the firm of McKim, Mead, and White. As a former practicing architect and architectural history nerd it was White that was the reason this book caught my attention. As a student I found White's work to be more than a little unusual considering the period in which it was created but that's not a matter for discussion now. What is of interest is White's murder at the hands of the wealthy Pittsburgh psycho Harry K. Thaw over the attentions of Thaw's wife the former show girl Evelyn Nesbit.

The author gives us a fairly interesting and very descriptive picture of life in NYC for the wealthy elite of that city at that time. This in and of itself is worth the price of the book and is more than a little entertaining but the author goes on to trace the paths of several people whose lives slowly converge. A key player in this drama is the prosecutor that ultimately tries the Thaw murder case. His name was William Travers Jerome and that name has been lost to history even though he was a contemporary and rival of Teddy Roosevelt and Charles Evans Hughes whose names have not been lost on us. Jerome's career and fate are one of the things that make this narrow history richer than it might otherwise have been. Jerome was a "goo goo" in the language of the era, a do-good reformer. Unfortunately, he had his flaws and they got him attention in good ways and in not so good ways. He made valuable friends and dangerous enemies and his career seemed always in peril because of these faults. This is a history that illustrates the problems with winning and with losing and with surviving the struggle.

One of the things I found most intriguing and it would have been funny if it weren't so serious was the trial of Harry Thaw. As a retired criminal defense attorney I was astounded at what was allowed to occur in this trial. All I can say is that this trial had to be a product of its time because such a proceeding could never occur in any courtroom in this country today. And the role or regard given to women at that time is certainly not to be found in courts today. The treatment accorded wealthy prisoners awaiting trial would have citizens today turning purple with rage today. Nevertheless, it was interesting and I admit to having a good chuckle over what I was reading . Like I said this is a good book and worth the time if the story or period is of interest to you but it is a story from which there are lessons to be considered.

[J.R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Harry Thaw shot renowned architect Stanford White in 1906 before a packed audience in the Roof Garden Theater in the Madison Square Garden building he set the stage for what the press termed the "crime of the century."
We've seen our share of more such notorious crimes since, but this one had elements to retain its place in history--celebrity characters, sex, money, obsession and jealousy.
White, one of the most famous American architects of the Gilded Age, had seduced the teenaged showgirl Evelyn Nesbit whose beauty fascinated numerous other men besides Thaw, the debauched heir to a Pittsburgh fortune. Though Nesbit broke off her relations with White and married Thaw, the latter's unrelenting jealousy and fantasies drove him to commit murder.
I was already familiar with this story, having read other accounts and seen a film it inspired. But writer/historian Cummings adds another element--the story of William Travers Jerome, the ambitious district attorney who tried the case and ruined his political career in the process.
This is a must read for the fan of true crime, and also will be of interest to those intrigued by politics, bizarre love triangles, the Gilded Age and history in general.

[Ilene Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Saving Sin City”. If you like reading about ‘The Gilded Age’ and historical fiction this is the book for you. On June 25th 1906, in Madison Square Garden, while hundreds watched in horror, the great architect Stanford White was shot dead by unbalanced and obsessed Harry Thaw in retaliation for taking the virginity of his wife Evelyn Nesbit. And then we have the ambitious district attorney William Travers Jerome, having a brilliant career bringing down corruption during the early days in New York, prosecuting the case. Will big money save Thaw?

[Sugarpuss O'Shea · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about more than just the 2 men in the subtitle--MUCH more. There are several secondary cases, a plethora of people, numerous scandals, and a chronicle of yellow journalism & the men who ran those papers. Whew. That's quite a bit of information to juggle. The book is set up by years, which is why the narrative feels all over the place. This is an interesting story about turn of the century NY. I just wish this information would've been organized a little better.

[Marilyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book reads well. It's interesting if you like scandal and society murder in gilded age New York, and it's not long and involved.

I had known of the murder of Stanford White by Harry K. Thaw through a sentence in one of the "Titanic" books I read. "Sportsman James Clinch Smith, who witnessed the murder of Stanford White by millionaire scion Harry Thaw of Pittsburgh, died in the sinking" Something like that. A name like "Clinch" stands out. I wanted to know how he got it. (It was his mother's maiden surname. Stanford White was married to Smith's sister Bessie. Smith had also been talking with Harry Thaw in Madison Square Garden's rooftop restaurant a half-hour or so before Thaw shot White.)

Thaw had an obsession with his wife, showgirl Evelyn Nesbitt. She was beautiful, young, virginal looking and White's former mistress. Evelyn told Harry that White drugged and raped her. That really fed another Thaw obsession. He hated Stanford White. Perhaps he hated the White because White had Evelyn first, and because Evelyn seemed still misty-eyed about "Stanny". Stanny had bankrolled her mother's housekeeping and her brother's education as well as her own career. Perhaps it was because White was a handsome older man and a renowned architect. He had accomplished things, while Harry was kicked out of college for "perverse acts" (sodomy and whipping) Harry looked like a goggle-eyed fish, and I doubt that any girl took him seriously or would have taken him at all if he was not rich.

William Travers Jerome is also "interesting". He was a "goo-goo" (a "good-government" reformer) but he was not a pious prude like some of the wannabe stampers out of New York City's corruption. His mother was very religious and confining; but his father was sportsman investor Lawrence Jerome, brother of Leonard Jerome and uncle of Jennie Jerome Spencer Churchill (Winston S. Churchill's mother). The Jerome brothers made and lost fortunes and enjoyed the good life and not so good ladies. Two of Travers Jerome's elder brothers were dissipated wastrels. He was of smarter and sterner stuff. The book says that Teddy Roosevelt hated Jerome and Jerome hated Roosevelt. I don't know why. They were much alike. Anyway, like TR, Jerome couldn't save Sin City, and he got it in the neck from the newspapers for his failure.

Three books that I recommend if your intend to read this one: Satan's Circus: Murder, Vice, Police Corruption And New York's Trial Of The Century by Mike Dash and American Eve: Evelyn Nesbit, Stanford White, the Birth of the "It" Girl and the Crime of the Century Island of Vice: Theodore Roosevelt's Doomed Quest to Clean up Sin-loving New York

[Dale · Rating 2 out of 5]

According to the cover, “William Travers Jerome, Stanford White, and the Original Crime of the Century.”

Sadly very boring…

So many crimes over the years are called “The Crime of the Century.” Famous architect Stanford White is murdered by Henry K Thaw in 19o6. This means the crime quickly lost its status to the Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping.

The facts of the case are fairly straightforward: A noted beauty of the era was a young woman named Evelyn Nesbit. Evelyn made her living posing for artists. She may have been one of the earliest women to appear in printed advertisements, singing the praises of toothpaste, face creams, and other commercial goods. She was also one of Charles Dana Gibson’s famous Gibson Girls.

Beauty attracts admirers, and one of Evelyn’s was architect Stanford White. White was forty-seven and Evelyn only sixteen when they became “acquainted.” In his apartment on West 24th Street, White had gorgeous room of mirrors and curious objects. And he invited Evelyn and her friend Edna Goodrich to visit him. He was really after Evelyn alone, and installed a “red velvet swing” which she loved to use.

It seems he plied the girl with drugged champagne and raped her. He claimed he was introducing her to a world where “everybody does it,” anxious to keep her quiet about his actions.

Evelyn became involved with multimillionaire Henry Kendall Thaw, who persuaded her to marry him. To Thaw she confessed what White had done. Thaw, who was at best eccentric and at worst emotionally disturbed, seethed because White had “defiled his wife.”

On June 25, 1906 at a show in White designed Madison Square Garden, Thaw brutally gunned White down. He made no more to hide anything, he rather exulted over the murder telling the packed house White deserved it for what he had done to Evelyn.

In the “Trial of the Century,” Thaw was eventually found not guilty by reason of insanity and confined to the Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane in Beacon, New York. As usual, money talked and Thaw lead a privileged life in the hospital. He fought to be declared sane and succeeded after seven years and was released. He fled to Canada and was returned via extradition. It was over, however; and he walked free.

To sum up how bad this book was, in my opinion the story was every bit as exciting as the review I just wrote. I love true crime stories, but in this case I would have had as great a time reading the Wikipedia article. One star is all I can muster up…

Quoth the Raven…

[Susan Bissell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an extremely well written and very well researched book of a trial that took place in 1906 in New York City during the Gilded Age. The only problem I am having, as I read this book, is the author used a lot big vocabulary words. I had to keep highlighting the words on my Kindle to get the meaning of the word to know what I was reading about in the story. I don't think this book is for the average reader unless you have an expansive vocabulary. The book hits on all the points of what a good book a best seller. You have a story of jealousy, obsession, money, and murder, plus great characters. What could be a better place than New York City in the 1900's during the Gilded Age? You have here a very young and beautiful actress (16 years old) Evelyn Nesbit in the middle of it all causing a big stir where all the men were wild about her all wanting to be her lover. She could have her pick and even choose whom she could use for whatever reasons she to fulfill her wants and needs to her heart's content. Stanford White, a famous New York architect, is obsessed with her was murdered by Harry K Thaw in 1906. The trial becomes known as "The Crime of the Century". (This sure does remind me of the O. J. Simpson trial) When you have the rich and famous accused of committing a murder of another famous person and everyone involved with the trail will get a chance to make a name for themselves, especially the district attorney Williams Travers Jerome, this trial could make or break his career with his prosecution of Thaw. As you will learn, Thaw was a deranged heir to a Pittsburgh fortune who had a sadistic streak. Thaw has a fixation for Nesbit, just as Stanford White does. Thaw and Nesbit eventually marry, but Thaw can't get over his jealousy and hatred of Stanford White from their past history that would end up with him murdering Standford White, a murder that is committed in front of several people. Will the ambitious D.A. William Travers Jerome get Thaw off and if he does how did he manage to do it? That makes reading this story as interesting and riveting as any trial of the rich and famous that makes headlines today.

[Jill Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I LOVE non-fiction that reads like fiction. Let’s be honest, truth often IS stranger than anything an author could come up with, largely because authors realize that there’s a limit to what people will believe. Unfortunately for life, and fortunately for readers, reality holds with no such constraints…

Saving Sin City is about the original “Trial of the Century” – the murder of society architect and man-about-town Stanford White by the husband of his previous (underage) mistress, Evelyn Nesbit, one of the most famous actress/models of her time. Mary Cummings – writer, historian, and award-winning journalist – tells the story of the murder of White in a voice that is equally entertaining and informative. Harry K. Thaw, the unbalanced heir to a Pittsburgh fortune, killed White in retaliation for taking the virginity of his wife, showgirl Evelyn Nesbit when she was just a teenager. There’s drama enough there until you add in the other vital part of this sordid crime – the ambitious District Attorney William Travers Jerome, a colorful hero/anti-hero in his own right, who had the opportunity to make — or break — his career with his prosecution of Thaw.

Gilded Age New York City is such a lush, decadent, utterly over-the-top setting. It’s a world rampant with corruption, overflowing with money and potential (at least for some), and ripe for change. It’s a time period when population was shifting – from Europe to New York in the form of immigration, but also from countryside to cities due to the trifecta of manufacturing overtaking local production, electricity and public utilities offering untold potential for improvements in standard of living, and mass transportation in the form of trams, trains, and subways allowing mobility between locations – and social classes. The cast of characters is just as florid and varied as the location and time period. Each person involved in the story is full of quirks, foibles, failings, and secrets, offering a glimpse into a world gone by that is offered in glorious Technicolor.

With equal attention to the political, social, economic, socio-economic, and legal aspects of this remarkable time, Cummings pulls together a deliciously dishy, taut tale guaranteed to grab – and hold – your attention from the opening salvo through the final notes.

My review copy was generously provided by the good folks at Author Marketing Experts, Inc.

[Vette M, · Rating 5 out of 5]

I became interested in this book after reading about the Thaw-White case in The Girl on the Velvet Swing. The latter was an in depth look at the case focusing on Evelyn and Harry's relationship, but this book gives the reader a broader view of the time period and various people involved in the case. It was more informative and Cummings writing is engaging. The book rushes to sum up what happens after Thaw's trials, but it was still a good read.

[Susan Amper · Rating 4 out of 5]

SAVING SIN CITY by Mary Cummings is the story of Evelyn Nesbit, the original Gibson Girl, and Stanford White, perhaps the most famous architect of his time, and a child molester.

He preys on Evelyn Nesbit, but she ends up marrying the sociopathic millionaire Harry Thaw. Thaw eventually kills White in spectacular fashion, and The Crime of the Century is all the city can talk about.

Cummings brings fresh insight and some new information into this story of Gilded Age rot. A thrilling read.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting book, the third book I have read on the Stanford White murder trial. While this book focuses more on William Travers Jerome and the trial, it still tends to spend more time on backstory to trial and does not provide new material. The same topic is covered much much better in American Eve by Paula Uruburu

[Donovan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent examination of early NYC politics and excesses and how they most always will intersect. I was able to visualize the events and felt the emotions of this city and its varied classes. Excellent view of journalism and how it could be politicized based on the whims of its owners.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liked this immensely

I had read another book about this topic but this one was far superior. I skipped a few pages when the topic didn’t interest me but overall it was a good true crime book

[Dennis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saving Sin City covers from 1898-1908, New York City, and DA Jarome Tavers attempt to rein in the corrupt shenanigans of the wealthy guilded-age no-gooders. A true story, vividly highlighting the extreme depravity that the uber rich were able to engage in. A real eye opener!

[Marianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Well researched, readable nonfiction.

[Amethyst Travis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it❤

[Brian Keane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, but a bit drawn out and repetitive. Interesting for the political climate at the time and dishonest millionaires.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I adore the way this book is organized. The parallel narratives that slowly move closer before converging on June 25, 2906 were very well done and provided all the background information needed for the reader to understand the events of the trials. I learned so much about Jerome and found a new appreciation for him aside from how he was portrayed in the press. Before reading this book, I had a rather cynical view of him for his "bullying" tactics, especially when Nesbit was on the witness stand. But now I think he was probably one of the only voices of reason in that courtroom.

This book really changed by perspective. My only qualms about it would be stylistic ones based solely on personal preference and taste. Content-wise, this is a very strong book!