Stay ConnectedThe Gilded Gentleman history podcast takes listeners on a cultural and social journey into the mansions, salons, dining rooms, libraries and theatres including the worlds above as well as below stairs of America’s Gilded Age, France’s Belle Epoque and late Victorian and Edwardian England.
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Have you ever wondered how many of the famous Gilded Age families kept cats as pets? The answer may surprise you. Cats were a constant presence in the lives of New Yorkers of the era and often served very specific, even professional roles.
Author and “cat historian” Peggy Gavanjoins the Gilded Gentleman for a delightful exploration of some of the Gilded Age’s most notable felines — from Nicodemus, the scrappy star of New York’s first cat show in 1895, to Buzzer, America’s most photographed cat, and several others.
She also traces the emergence of crucial institutions dedicated to feline welfare, including the ASPCA, other humane societies, and the development of widespread veterinary care to protect our feline friends.
Peggy Gavan is the creator of the website The Hatching Cat of Gotham and also leads historical cat-themed tours of New York City.
This show was edited and produced by Kieran Gannon.
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Founded in Milan in 1913 by the Italian brothers Mario and Martino Prada, the original business focused on producing and selling luxury leather goods to an aristocratic and royal elite.
With the advent of ready-to-wear and the expansion of fashion retail in the 1970s, Prada entered the global market under the direction of the founder's granddaughter, Miuccia Prada. The now iconic black nylon backpack featuring the silver Prada logo became one of the most sought-after fashion accessories as the brand expanded into women's and men's wear lines.
Fashion historian Natalie Nudell joins the Gilded Gentleman table to discuss the evolution of the brand and how the influences of Fashion Week, retail boutique expansion and the launch of sub-brand Miu Miu all contributed to a modern fashion brand projecting style, power, and authority.
Natalie Nudell is the author of "In American Fashion: Ruth Finley's Fashion Calendar."
This show was edited and produced by Kieran Gannon.
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The late 19th century in America saw the emergence of a new social phenomenon —perhaps not entirely new— a class of young men who chose not to follow a traditional path to marriage. They were the bachelors.
The choice was driven by a number of reasons and the social image of many of these men ranged from "rake" to "artiste" and many variations in between. Literature and the media all attempted to characterize the curious, mysterious, yet often dramatic lives of this new social class.
Author and historian R. Tripp Evans joins the Gilded Gentleman to examine Gilded Age bachelor culture, specifically focusing on several of the most famous, notably Ogden Codman, Jr., and Henry Davis Sleeper, who pursued careers in interior design. In doing so, they not only helped to define a new style for a growing modern America but also defined their own personal legacies.
The legacies they left are now historic house museums open to the public, where today's visitors can see their vision and begin to understand their legacies.
R. Tripp Evans is the author of "The Importance of Being Furnished: Four Bachelors at Home".
This episode was edited and produced by Kieran Gannon.
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On the morning of November 7, 1878, it was discovered that the tomb of wealthy Gilded Age merchant A. T. Stewart had been opened and his body taken.
Although this was shocking, the idea of graves being opened and bodies stolen was not new, and in fact, it became a fairly common occurrence during the 19th century and before. Bodies were snatched for a variety of reasons, including ransom, but more often to serve as specimens for the expanding medical profession to use in research and training.
In this episode, cemetery historian and tour guide James Henry takes us on a journey through the 19th century, sharing tales of the most infamous bodysnatchers, Burke and Hare in 1820s Scotland, the attempted body snatching of President Abraham Lincoln, and the lengths 19th-century folk went to to ensure their loved ones' graves were safe from criminals.
Additionally, we'll examine how the practice of body snatching influenced writers such as Mark Twain, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Charles Dickens.
And James shares the mysterious ending of the curious tale of just what happened to the body of A.T. Stewart.
This episode was produced and edited by Kieran Gannon
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Celebrities ranging fromOscar Wilde and Sarah Bernhardtto Mark Twainand Walt Whitman all made their way to the top-floor studio in Manhattan’s Union Square—with its tiny elevator—to have their images immortalized by Napoleon Sarony, America's most famous photographer during the Gilded Age.
Sarony’s genius lay in his ability to stage a photograph using poses, costumes, and makeshift sets, all designed to allow the essence of his subject to emerge. As a result, the portraits he created of so many of the era’s leading figures have become their defining, iconic images.
But who was Napoleon Sarony himself? In this episode, Dr. Erin Pauwels, author and scholar, joins The Gilded Gentleman at the table to discuss the subject of her latest book Napoleon Sarony’s Living Pictures and to delve into Sarony’s eccentricities and genius. The show also explores questions of copyright and branding, revealing how, largely through Sarony’s work, the modern media celebrity image factory was born."
This show was produced and edited by Kieran Gannon.
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In honor of Women's History Month -- a classic episode from the Bowery Boys! Within just a few decades – between the 1880s and the 1920s – so much social change occurred within American life, upending so many cultural norms and advancing so many important social issues, that these years became known as the Progressive Era. And at the forefront of many of these changes were women.
In this show, Greg Young visits two important New York City social landmarks of this era —Henry Street Settlement, founded by Lillian Wald on the Lower East Side, and the Cabrini Shrine, where Mother Frances X. Cabrini continued her work with New York’s Italian American population.
Featuring special guests Tanya Bielski-Braham, Beckett Graham, Julie Golia, Cherie Sprosty and Katie Vogel.
This episode originally ran in 2019 in the Bowery Boys Podcast feed as 'Saving the City: Women of the Progresive Era' .
The exhibition Taking Care of Brooklyn: Stories of Sickness and Health ran from May 31, 2019 to June 05, 2020 at The Brooklyn Historical Society (now The Center for Brooklyn History).
Visit the Bowery Boys website to see images from this show..
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Stanford White is one of the most recognizable figures of the Gilded Age. Known for his flamboyant style and outsized personality, he loomed large over New York society.
His private life captured headlines and fueled persistent gossip, particularly his scandalous relationships with young women—most famously the chorus girl and model Evelyn Nesbit. His sensational 1906 murder at the hands of Evelyn’s husband, Harry K. Thaw, was quickly dubbed “the crime of the century.”
This very special episode, however, turns away from the scandal to focus on White’s work, his artistic eye, and his extraordinary design talent. Stanford White’s great-grandson, architect Samuel White, joins The Gilded Gentleman for an in-depth look at how White’s genius developed and evolved, and how he managed his collaborations with partners Charles McKim and William Mead, as well as with the renowned sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens.
With Sam’s unique perspective, this conversation offers fresh insight into some of White’s most celebrated works and illuminates the creative vision of one of America’s greatest architects.
For more information on Stanford White and his life and murder, listen to the Bowery Boys episode #188 The Murder of Stanford White
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Dr. Carla Peterson, author of “Black Gotham: A Family History of African Americans in Nineteenth Century New York,” has been a pioneer in uncovering and sharing the story of New York’s wealthy Black entrepreneurial elite through the Gilded Age.
Exemplified by the storyline of Peggy Scott and her family in the HBO series “The Gilded Age,” this story adds dimension and richness to a society that was far more diverse than it had ever been portrayed.
As part of our celebration of Black History Month, we offer an ENCORE of Carla’s episode on The Gilded Gentleman.
This episode was edited and produced by Kieran Gannon.
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When Town Topics magazine appeared in the 1880s, Gilded Age New Yorkers enjoyed its coverage of the arts, culture, and social scene of balls, opera, and grand parties. But there was another element in the mix—the often salacious, sensationalized, scandalous coverage of the drama of the gilded set in the publisher’s column “Saunterings.”
Using a network of informants across the city, the publisher, Colonel William D’Alton Mann, frequently printed implied gossip about "The Four Hundred" — unless, of course, he was paid to keep it out of his pages.
Town Topics became a blackmail and extortion scheme for Mann—until a dramatic sting operation involving the husband of future etiquette writer Emily Post exposed it all.
Journalist and author Joe Pompeo joins the Gilded Gentleman table to delve into Town Topics and all of its scandals and true crimes.
This episode was edited and produced by Kieran Gannon.
For other true-crime newspaper-themed shows, listen to the recent Bowery Boys podcasts on the disappearance of Judge Crater and the Subway Vigilante shooting.
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New York Times bestselling author Fiona Davis knows about both history and mystery.
In her eight novels, Davis deftly weaves real-life historical characters and events with fiction to create fascinating tales with lots of intrigue and always a good mystery to solve along the way. And all of them are set in iconic New York City landmarks, in time periods ranging from the Gilded Age to the Jazz Age and beyond
In this show, Fiona joins the Gilded Gentleman to discuss three novels with ties to the Gilded Age,The Address, set in the fabled Dakota apartment building, The Magnolia Palace which takes place in the mansion of Henry Clay Frick(now The Frick Collection), and her most recent, The Stolen Queen set in the great Gilded Age architectural masterpiece, the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Fiona discusses the real history behind her novels as well as the craft of mystery writing to keep her readers reading until the inevitable fascinating conclusions.
This episode was edited and produced by Kieran Gannon.
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