June 25th, 1906. “It” girl, Evelyn Nesbit and her wealthy husband, Harry Kendall Thaw, were attending the performance of a new show, Mam’zelle Champagne, premiering on the rooftop theatre of Madison Square Garden. The building was designed by famed architect, Stanford White. Seemingly, and without provocation, Harry Thaw strolled over to where Stanford White was sitting and shot him in the head three times. The unsuspecting man rolled to the ground-stone cold dead.
There are a feast of juicy details on the Nesbit matter.
Prior to the performance, Evelyn and Harry were dining at the Café Martin on the night of the murder. The restaurant was on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 26th Street, a short walk to Madison Square Garden located at 26th and Madison Avenue.
Opened in 1899, the Café Martin was the place to be for haute cuisine. It was one of the original lobster palaces and featured Champagne, from France, and lots of it. It was also a place where men liked to dine with their mistresses. It was also the place frequented by the architect, Stanford White.
Evelyn Nesbit knew Stanford White. The young woman was graced with great beauty. Her father had died when she was ten years old leaving the family to struggle financially. Evelyn gained work as a model, then acting, and became a show girl in the Florodora company. Another girl in the show introduced Evelyn to Stanford White who had a penchant for young girls.
Stanford White showered gifts on Evelyn and her family. He took the family under his wing setting them up in an apartment as their benefactor. Once the trust was gained, he took Evelyn to his luxurious, secluded apartment complete with special lighting, mirrored ceilings, and a red velvet swing. The swing was a game for Stanford and the girls he seduced, and he pushed Evelyn up to the ceiling to her delight. All was fine until one night he plied her with Champagne until she passed out. When she woke up, she was a virgin no more.
The affair went on for 6 months until Stanford White was onto his next conquest. In stepped Harry Thaw. The wealthy Pittsburgh baron had his eye on Evelyn, too. He had a reputation as an unstable individual and Thaw was barred from many of the prestigious New York clubs where Stanford White held membership. White warned Evelyn to stay away from Thaw, but feeling she had little options as a defiled woman, she succumbed to Harry Thaw’s many proposals and married him in 1905.
On June 25th, 1906, when Evelyn and Harry were dining at the Café Martin – who did they run into? Stanford White! The meeting agitated the jealous and unstable Harry Thaw. It was later that evening, when all parties were at the show on the Madison Square Garden rooftop, that the crime of passion occurred. Harry Thaw shot Stanford White in the very building the famed architect had built!
As it turned out, Stanford White met his demise and Harry Thaw was sentenced to several years in an insane asylum following what was known as “The Trial of the Century.” Evelyn, the woman of great beauty, had the misfortune of falling under the influence of two lousy men. She lived on modest means until she was 82 years old.
Raise a glass to Evelyn Nesbit with the Red Velvet Swing cocktail. The libation is specially created in remembrance of Harry’s time spent in the Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane, Beacon, NY. Evelyn visited her husband at the hospital, but they ultimately divorced in 1915.
RECIPE: In a chilled champagne glass place 1 oz. of Cherry Heering liqueur, 1/2 oz. orange flavored liqueur, 1/2 oz. grenadine syrup, top with dry Champagne, add a twist of orange for garnish.