Cinderella’s Castle on Military Street

When I was a little girl growing up my grandmother used to take me and my sister with her on her weekly shopping trip to downtown Port Huron.  As we made the drive down Military Street, we would admire the beautiful houses.  My favorite home was located at 1719 Military Street.  My sister and I called it “Cinderella’s Castle.”  I would always ask my grandmother to slow down as we approached so I could get a good look at it.  Excitement and joy would pulse through my veins as we passed.  My imagination filled with fairy tale like images of a beautiful girl living within the walls of that place.  Little did I know such a girl had lived there in the early 1900s.  Her name was Mary Harrington Thomson Thaw.

J. W. Thomson, Jr. and Ida Harrington

Mary’s parents were John W. Thomson, Jr. and Ida Harrington.  John and Ida were children of early pioneers of Port Huron.  John and his father worked as ticket agents in the steamship industry down at the old McMorran Dock at the foot of Butler Street in the early 1880s.  They also managed a ship salvage business under the name John W. Thomson & Son.[2] By the 1890s, John worked in the coal business.[3]

Author and local resident Helen Endlich recalls “Mr. Thomson was in the coal business.  I can remember him as he walked down Sarnia Street to his business near the river.  He looked more like a banker with his high silk hat and swallow-tailed coat.  He always passed the time of day with Mother if she were outside.”[4]

Ida Harrington was the daughter of famed pioneer D.B. Harrington.  The young couple married in 1875, and they lived with her family at the old Harrington homestead.[6]  They had two children, Mary and her brother Julian.   Mary was born in 1881.[7]  Ida’s father died in July of 1878, and she was one of the heirs of his estate.[8]  Her mother, Sarah, died in December of 1881.[9]  In September of 1891, Ida and John were still living at the Harrington homestead when it was damaged by fire.

“At 1 o’clock this morning the Harrington homestead, occupied by John W. Thomson and family as a residence was discovered on fire.  The family were at the beach at the time.  The fire had gained considerable headway before the arrival of the fire department but by hard work the flames were confined to the interior of the house.  The fire started in the basement and came up the stairway and spread to all parts of the house.  Mr. Thomson’s family were making preparations to spend the Fall and Winter in the South and had packed many of their household goods, which were mostly destroyed.  A piano was partially burned.  The interior of the house is a complete wreck.  It is thought that the house was set fire and that kerosene oil was used to help spread the flames.  This is the third time the house has been on fire during the past year.”[10]

Plans for the Harrington Hotel

Also in 1891, Ida’s brothers, Charles F. Harrington and Edmund B. Harrington, were trying to generate public support for the building of a new hotel on the Harrington homestead block.  They proposed to pay for the construction of the hotel by selling off lots of land in the Tunnel Depot Sub-Division the Harrington children owned in a trust held by their father’s estate.  They held public auctions for the sale of lots.  They advertised this event for months and held the sale on May 26, 1891.[11]

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The day before the sale several local businessmen gave their opinion regarding the sale of the lots.

“Mayor McIlwain: ‘I have every assurance that if this sale is successful within one year we will have one of the finest equipped hotels in the state, located on the Harrington Homestead.’”

“General Hartsuff: ‘I don’t think the Harringtons will have any trouble in getting money enough out of the sale for the hotel project.’”

“William Canham: ‘I think it is a good scheme and I hope it will succeed.  We need the hotel bad enough everyone knows.’”

“Stephen Moore: ‘I haven’t given the matter much thought and don’t know as I fully understand the scheme.  If I understand the matter right the Messrs. Harrington expect to sell all the lots advertised as a stipulation for a guarantee for the erection of a hotel.  If this is right, I have some doubts of the success of the scheme, as it may prove difficult to sell all the property.’”[13]

Difficult it must have been.  For in September of 1891, a few days after the fire on the Harrington Homestead property, a meeting was called for Charles Harrington to discuss the sale of the sub-division property with the public and called for a united action to sell the lots.[14]  In March of 1892, a committee was created by the city to solicit subscriptions for the purchase of the Harrington tunnel plat in order to generate the revenue to build the hotel.[15]

The Harrington homestead was torn down in April of 1892, and in September of that same year the Harrington children, Ida A. Thomson, Eva S.H. Bagg, E.B. and Charles F. Harrington, Kate V. Calder and Frank A. Rice, the widow of Mary E. Harrington, all joined together and created the Harrington Hotel Company with the purpose of building a hotel.  Ida, Eva, Frank, E.B. and Charles were all named directors, and each of them owned 168 and 2/3 shares of the $100,000 capital stock.[16]

The Building of 1719 Military Street and the Harrington Hotel

In 1892, Ida and John built their house at 1719 Military[18].  A want ad for a Cook signifies the family was living at the residence by May of 1893.[19]  In January of 1894, the Harrington children decided to finally begin to divide the estate of their father, which had been held in trust with E.B. and Charles F. Harrington acting as Trustees.  They petitioned the court to accept their agreement allocating to each of them individually their “respective interests and rights” to the estate property.  The total of the receipts of the estate accounted for from July 26, 1878, to October 1, 1893, was reported as $410,978.89 at the time. [20]

Sadly, Ida Harrington died in her new residence on October 19, 1894, of consumption.[21]  On Ida’s passing, her estate was relinquished to her husband, John.  He took her place on the Board of Directors for the Harrington Hotel Company.[22]  Her presence was undoubtedly missed by her family.  For a mother’s love is never forgotten and always cherished.  Three very special events in the years to come would take place in her family’s lives without Ida.[23]  The first, the Harrington Hotel opening, the second, the marriage of her daughter, Mary, and the third, the Trial of the Century.

After years of planning and patience, the Harrington siblings finally realized their dream of building a hotel south of the Black River.  The Harrington Hotel opened its doors for business on July 2, 1896.  A great banquet was held there in the evening on Friday, July 3, 1896.[24]

It was attended by the most prominent men in the city and surrounding county, most of them sons of St. Clair County’s earliest pioneers.  Some of the attendees included John W. Thomson, C.F. Harrington, Justin R. Whiting, Charles D. Beard, Guy Kimball, B.C. Farrand, Jr., D.L. Ballentine, J.M. White, J.H. White, W.G. Jenks, S.G. Jenks, W.L. Jenks, F.A. Boyce, Samuel Boyce, J.A. Davidson, Frank Jenks, E.G. Spaulding, Fred A. Fish, A.R. Avery, George Yokom, L.A. Sherman, A.D. Bennett, F.L. Wells, J.P. Minnie, J.W. Goulding, John Mills, David McMorran, Henry McMorran, Stephen Moore, Fred D. Sanborn, William Canham, H.W. Stevens, S.W. Vance and N.S. Boynton.[27]

In his speech at the banquet, Charles F. Harrington recalled Port Huron in its earliest days.

“Port Huron is sometimes said to be slow.  These questions have come up here continually for years.  Our growth, although slow, has been substantial.  We have gone along from year to year growing steadily.  The pioneers who laid out the city expected it to grow fast, but the government dredged the canals below us and the City of Buffalo was built.  Port Huron has remained small but has had a healthy growth.  I can remember Port Huron as a village and a lumber town.  In 1870 the lumber business gave out and the mills were moved away.  For a time the town was almost without any visible means of support.  In 1869 or 1870 the railroads commenced to come.  A number of Port Huron people started the Port Huron and Northwestern Railway, over 200 miles of road in all.  This opened up the Thumb and business began to come to Port Huron.  Port Huron has built dry docks and elevators and has developed great marine interest.  When I look over the water works, street railway, pavements, sewer systems, etc. I feel proud of Port Huron.  We have broken away from the village and are now a city of considerable importance.”[28]

The Wedding of All Weddings

Mary Harrington Thomson was a young woman of 22 when she met Josiah Copley Thaw of Pittsburgh, PA while on vacation in Florida in the Spring of 1903.  She had been travelling with her uncle, Captain Frank Rice of St. Louis.  The couple struck up a friendship that blossomed into a romance when Josiah visited Rice’s summer home in St. Clair that summer. [30]  Josiah was the son of William Thaw, Sr., a wealthy man of prominence from Pittsburgh, PA and his second wife, Mary Sibbet Copley.  William Thaw earned his wealth and notoriety as a large investor in the Pennsylvania Railroad Company.[31]  On his death in 1889, his estate was estimated at 12 million dollars.  He has been cited as one of the top 100 wealthiest Americans of all time.[32]  Today, his estate would be valued at over 3 billion dollars.[33]  Mary Sibbet Copley was wealthy in her own right outside of her marriage, to the value of about $10,000,000 in 1903.[34]

In August of 1903, the couple announced their engagement in Port Huron and Pittsburgh.  The Pittsburgh Daily Post reported:

“Announcement was received yesterday from Port Huron, Michigan, of the engagement of Miss Mary Harrington Thomson, daughter of John Thomson, of that city to Josiah Copley Thaw, brother of the Countess of Yarmouth, formally Miss Alice Thaw, of Pittsburgh.  Mr. Thaw has his office in the Arrott Building, the headquarters of the Hecia Coke Company of which his brother, Benjamin Thaw, is President.  Another brother is Harry Kendall Thaw.  Mr. Thaw’s fiancé is described as a handsome brunette, petite of stature, and a social favorite.  She has travelled extensively, and it is said that Mr. Thaw met her some time ago.  Miss Thomson is at Oakland this summer where Mr. Thaw has also been a guest.  It is said the Earl and Countess of Yarmouth may attend the wedding.”[37]

The couple set their wedding date for Wednesday, November 18, 1903.  The nuptials to take place at Grace Episcopal Church with a wedding reception to follow at the bride’s home on Military Street.[39]

Three days before the wedding ceremony, Josiah hired an upholsterer to work on covering all the seats of the city’s hacks in white cloth.  He arranged to have the inside of the hack for him and his bride to be completely lined from top to bottom in white.  The Harrington Hotel housed all of the groom’s family and friends.  They arrived by special railway car in Port Huron Tuesday evening.  The Thaw family had hired a number of private detectives from Detroit to provide them security while visiting the city.  The detective met them at the train station upon their arrival.  It was said in the local paper, the “Pittsburgh guests represented $50,000,000.”[40]

While Josiah’s sister, Alice, was well known in society circles in New York and Pittsburgh, being the wife of the Duke of Yarmouth, his other sister, Margaret Copley Thaw, was also well known.  At the time of Josiah’s marriage to Mary, she was married to Andrew Carnegie’s nephew, George Lauder Carnegie, Jr.[41]

The Pittsburgh guests included Josiah’s mother, Mary Sibbet Thaw, his sister Margaret and her husband George Lauder Carnegie, Jr., and Harry Kendall Thaw.  Mrs. Charles F. Harrington, Mary’s aunt, hosted the Pittsburgh party at an informal reception at the Harrington Hotel Tuesday evening.  On the morning of the wedding, Josiah and his mother, Mary, walked from the Harrington to Grace Episcopal Church about 10:00 a.m. to make sure all the wedding ceremony preparations were in proper order.[45]

The wedding was a major event in the city, and it was reported the detectives hired by the Thaw family along with a couple of local policemen had to hold off several hundred people who lined the sidewalks approaching the entrance of the church to make sure they did not enter the church or block the canopied walk to the church for the bridal party.[46]

The wedding ceremony took place at 11:30 a.m.  Miss Mary Harrington, a cousin of the bride served as her maid of honor.  Harry Kendall Thaw served as the best man.  The ushers for the bride’s side of the family were her brother, Julian Thomson, and her cousin, Edmund Harrington.  The Pittsburgh ushers were H.H. Robinson, Denniston Lyon, H.G. McCandiase and William Patton.  Rev. John Munday married the couple surrounded by pink and white chrysanthemums.[47]

After the wedding took place, the wedding party and their family and friends celebrated at the bride’s home on 1719 Military Street.  Cake and ices were served.  A hidden orchestra played music from the upper floor of the home.  The happy couple received a chest of beautiful small silver from the groom’s mother, a beaten silver tea set from Mr. and Mrs. George Carnegie, and a gold card case from Mrs. Thompson.  The groom gave his bride a magnificent diamond pendant.  The couple lasted into the evening and then departed by private train on their honeymoon.  They were to stop at Lyndhurst, the Thaw mansion in Pittsburgh, before departing for a two-month trip around the country.[48]

The groom’s family and friends departed the Harrington and returned to Pittsburgh the next day.  Helen Endlich in her book, A Story of Port Huron, commented on Josiah’s brother during the wedding stay, “Josiah’s brother Harry, was best man at the wedding.  While at the Harrington Hotel Harry wrecked the bar to the extent of $3,000.00 in damages.  The police took care of everything, at the home, the hotel, the church.  Detective Pat O’Neill came from Detroit.  He was attired in his Prince Albert coat and silk tile (hat) and was mistaken by many of the guests to be one of the high dignitaries of the function.  Port Huronites were just not used to all this.”[49]

A Blissful Life Leads to The Trial of the Century

Josiah and Mary maintained homes in New York, Pittsburgh, and Southampton, L.I.  After their marriage, they lived a life of travel and leisure spent between their homes and those of their friends and family.[51] 

By late 1904, trouble started brewing for Harry, Josiah’s brother.  Harry had met a beautiful actress in New York City in 1903 named Evelyn Nesbit, whom he was said to be crazy over.  He pursued her relentlessly.[52] 

In 1904, he invited her to go to Europe with him.  By October rumors began circulating he had married the young girl.  He had registered himself at the Carlton Hotel in London as H.K. Thaw and Wife.[53] 

Back home in Pittsburgh, his mother was upset and shaken by the news reports and she ordered Harry home.  Evelyn’s mother, Mrs. Charles J. Holman, was said to faint when asked about the rumors of marriage.  It was reported by November, Thaw was heading home to his mother at Lyndhurst but that Evelyn was not welcome.  The family told reporters it had paid investigators to investigate the alleged marriage.[54]

When Harry went home he learned his mother would not accept Evelyn as a daughter-in-law, and rumors circulated Evelyn had been offered $250,000 to give Harry up.  To save face, he stayed at home, and Evelyn went to live in a boarding house in New York.  The Harry matter quieted down.  A year later in April 1904, Harry married Evelyn.[56]

A year after Harry’s wedding to Evelyn Nesbit, Josiah and Mary Thaw had a baby girl, Margaret Copley Thaw, in Pittsburgh on May 7, 1905[57]  A year after their daughter was born, another Harry scandal shook the Thaw family.  On a beautiful summer night in New York City, June 25, 1906, Harry Thaw shot and killed famed architect Stanford White on the roof garden of Madison Square during a musical performance.[58]

It was said he walked right up to White’s table, pulled a gun and fired three times, instantly killing White.  Thaw was arrested that evening and in his statement to the police he said,

“We were all at a party in Martin’s.  You can find out the names of the others there, but I was sitting some distance from my wife.  Suddenly I saw her grow pale and begin to shiver.  I made a motion to inquire what was the matter and she called a waiter and wrote a note which she sent around the table to me.  The note said, ‘The dirty blackguard is here.’  Then I turned and saw the fat scoundrel sitting there, big and healthy, and then I saw her and how she was.”  He repeated this same story to a reporter and stated, “That poor, delicate little thing, all nervous and shaking like a reed.”[59]

People in New York were not shocked by Stanford’s death.  White was known to be a great mind and a man of wild indulgence.  White had designed the Hall of Fame at New York University, the Washington Arch, Madison Square Garden, the Century, and the William C. Whitney residence in New York to name a few.  He also designed homes in Southampton, L.I.  Within days of his death, rumors began circulating about his sexual appetite, escapades, and actions against young women.  He was accused of hosting and participating in parties for men who participated in acts that sexually victimized the young women who attended.[62]

Harry was tried twice for the murder.  The first trial began on January 23, 1907.   His mother and sister, Alice, were vocal advocates for his innocence.  On the witness stand, Evelyn revealed that she had been drugged and raped by Stanford White in 1901 after posing for pictures for Rudolf Eickemeyer in his studio on Twenty-Second Street.  She was criticized for continuing to see Stanford White after the rape.  She explained that her mother, Florence Nesbit, was the reason she saw White.  She stated White had sent her and her mother money to help them along.  She stated that her mother thought she was ungrateful for not writing or seeing Stanford more. 

When examined as to why she did not tell her mother about the rape, she said, “Because I couldn’t….I would rather have died than tell her.  I could not tell her.”[64] 

The trial ended on April 12, 1907, with a hung jury.  Harry would receive a second trial.[65]

The second trial began on January 6, 1908.  Harry’s defense team focused on his irrational behavior since childhood in the hope he would be found insane and mentally incompetent.  Evelyn testified again.  His mother Mary testified as well.  Her self-confidence during the second trial had deflated.  Instead, she came across as anxious, self-defeated, frail and vulnerable.  It was noticeable by the second trial Harry’s family appeared overwhelmed, and the situation had begun to take a toll on them.  He was found not guilty on the ground of insanity on February 1, 1908.  He was committed to the Matteawan State Hospital until August 17, 1913.[69]

Back to Normal Life

In time, the Thaw family returned to normal life.  It is remarkable that such a dynamic family will forever be marked by the tragic actions of Harry Thaw and Stanford White.  In researching this story, Harry and his murder trial are always mentioned in connection with any of the family members.  It is like a dark stain that just cannot be lifted.

Mary’s father, John W. Thomson, sold the castle house on Military Street in 1919 and moved into the Harrington Hotel.[72]  He passed away in November of 1928.[72]  He left $5000 in his Will to Grace Episcopal Church in the memory of his wife, Ida Harrington Thomson.  The remainder of his estate, including the property he inherited from Ida, passed to his children, Mary Thaw and Julian Thomson[74]

Mary and Josiah, the once young couple who were married in Port Huron in 1903, lived out their lives together. Mary passed on in 1947 at the age of 65 and Josiah passed away in 1944 at the age of 69.  They are both buried in Southampton Cemetery in Southampton, NY.[76]

Josiah and Mary’s daughter, Margaret, would marry twice in her lifetime.  Both of her marriages would end in divorce.  Her first marriage was to Augustus Newbold Morris, Jr.  Augustus’ father was a cousin of author Edith Wharton.  His family built Brookhurst in Lenox, Massachusetts.[78]

Margaret was a natural beauty like her mother.  Her love of homes and appreciation for them may have been the reason for her second marriage to Harry Seckel.  Harry and Margaret moved to Honolulu in 1950.  Harry was a modern architect who would become famous for designing the Woodlawn Terrace Subdivision of homes in Honolulu, Hawaii.  Harry and Margaret purchased the site of the subdivision, a total of 19 undeveloped acres in 1952 in partnership together.  From there, their Project Hawaii was born.  He and Margaret lived at 220 Ka’alawai Place in 1955.  This was the first home he built in Honolulu before designing the homes in the subdivision.  Margaret and Harry would divorce.  But her project with him in Hawaii proves she had the good old Port Huron “Harrington and Thomson” lust for land and structures running through her veins.[80]

Ironically, Harry Seckel would write a paper on Frank Lloyd Wright in 1938 in which he spoke an architectural truth,

“Few architects ever become well known to the general public and those who do seldom owe their renown entirely to architecture.  Of the Americans the most famous by far, are Thomas Jefferson and Stanford White.  Jefferson was President of the United States and White was shot by Harry Thaw.  These are marks of distinction from which spreads their architectural fame.  The most widely known architect in America today is Frank Lloyd Wright, and his reputation is not altogether due to his buildings.  But there is a difference, and an important one, between Wright and his two famous predecessors.  Thomas Jefferson and Stanford White are popularly known as architects because of circumstances not only apart from their work but essentially unrelated to it.  In the case of Frank Lloyd Wright there is an intimate relation between the man’s work and the unusual life and personality that have caught the public eye.”[84]

Thank you Frank!

References:

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[1] Photograph of 1719 Military Street, Port Huron, Michigan by Balthazar Korab (date unknown).  Kathryn Bishop Eckert, “The Castle (John W. Thomson [Thompson] House)” [Port Huron, Michigan], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville; University of Virginia Press, 2012.  https://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/MI-01-SC7, accessed January 17, 2023.  Wikipedia, (2023).  Balthazar Korab.  Balthazar Korab was a celebrated Hungarian-American photographer based in Detroit, Michigan, who specialized in architectural, art, and landscape photography, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balthazar_Korab, accessed January 17, 2023.

[2] Dissolution of Co-Partnership (1886, February 8).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[3] Coal Thieves, (1894, November 20).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[4] Helen Endlich, (1981).  A Story of Port Huron, self-published by the author, printing and binding by Braun & Brumfield, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

[5] Geil & Jones, Smith, R.P, Worley & Bracher, (1859).  Map of the Counties of Macomb and St. Clair, Michigan; Philadelphia: Geil, Harley & Siverd.  Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2012593016/, accessed January 17, 2023.

[6] Obituary of Mrs. Ida A. Thomson (1894, October 19). The Port Huron Daily Times.

[7] Find a Grave, (2023).  Mary Harrington Thomson Thaw, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/181790965/mary-harrington-thaw, accessed January 17, 2023.

[8] D.B. Harrington: Death of this Pioneer of Port Huron; A Sketch of his Life (1878, July 8). The Port Huron Daily Times

[9] Mrs. D.B. Harrington (1881, December 3).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[10] The Harrington Homestead Burned, (1891, September 21).  The Port Huron Daily Times.

[11] An Important Project: Forty Acres of Land Near the New Depot of the Chicago and Grand Trunk Railway to be Sold at Auction; The Proceeds of the Sale to be used in the Construction of a New First Class Hotel (1891, April 15). The Port Huron Daily Times.  Action Sale of Lots in Tunnel Depot Sub-Division of C.F. & E.B. Harrington (1891, May 18).  The Port Huron Daily Times.  A Great Sale of Lots, (1891, May 22).  The Port Huron Daily Times.

[12] Ibid.

[13] Ibid.

[14] A New Hotel, (1891, September 21).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[15] The New Hotel (1892, March 1).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[16] City News, (1892, April 5).  The Port Huron Daily Times.  Hotel Company (1892, September 20).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[17] Zillow, For Sale 1719 Military Street, Port Huron, Michigan.  https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1719-Military-St-Port-Huron-MI-48060/77907258_zpid/, accessed January 17, 2023.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Wanted Ads, (1893, May 20).  A Cook, enquire Mrs. J.W. Thomson 1719 Military Street.  The Port Huron Daily Times

[20] The Harrington Estate: An Amicable Suit Begun for the Division; Copy of the Agreement Signed by the Heirs, (1894, January 5).  The Port Huron Daily Times.

[21] Obituary Ida A. Thomson, (1894, October 19).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[22] Licenses for All Who Ask, (1908, April 28).  The Port Huron Daily Times, New Building Hinges on the Court’s Order: John W. Thomson, H.E. Stevens and Other Plan Office Structure; Theatre also Planned; Building will be Erected on Site of the Old City Opera House, (1918, April 17), The Port Huron Daily Times

[23] Obituary Ida A. Thomson, (1894, October 19).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[24] The Harrington:  It was Formally Opened on Thursday; Two Hundred Ladies Entertained in the Afternoon; A Banquet was held in the Evening; Good Words for the Builders of the House, (1896, July 3).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[25] Ibid.

[26] Wikipedia, (2023).  Harrington Hotel, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrington_Hotel, accessed January 22, 2023.

[27] The Harrington:  It was Formally Opened on Thursday; Two Hundred Ladies Entertained in the Afternoon; A Banquet was held in the Evening; Good Words for the Builders of the House, (1896, July 3).  The Port Huron Daily Times.

[28] Ibid.

[29] Thomson-Thaw Wedding Took Place at Grace Church at 11:30 O’Clock Today (1903, November 18).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[30] Romance in Chance Meeting: Beginning in Florida, Climax is to Occur in Michigan, in the Thaw-Thomson Wedding, (1903, November 9).  Pittsburg Daily Post

[31] Wikipedia, (2023).  William Thaw, Sr.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Thaw_Sr., accessed January 17, 2023.

[32] Klepper, M. and Gunther, M., (1996).  The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates – A Ranking of Richest Americans, Past and Present, p. 256 https://archive.org/details/wealthy100frombe00klep/page/255/mode/2up?q=thaw, accessed January 21, 2023.

[33] CPI Inflation Calculator, (2023).  https://www.in2013dollars.com/us/inflation/1889?amount=120000000, accessed January 21, 2023.

[34] Wikipedia, (2023).  Alice Cornelia Thaw, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Cornelia_Thaw, accessed January 21, 2023.

[35] Wikipedia, (2023).  William Thaw, Sr. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Thaw_Sr., accessed January 17, 2023.  Wikipedia, (2023).  Mary Sibbet Copley, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Sibbet_Copley, accessed January 17, 2023.

[36] Ibid.

[37] Yarmouth may be at Wedding: Josiah C. Thaw’s Engagement to Miss Thomson Announced, (1903, August 8).  Pittsburgh Daily Post.

[38] Grace Episcopal Church website, (2023).  Parish Profile, https://www.graceporthuron.net/, accessed January 22, 2023.

[39] Thomson-Thaw Wedding Took Place at Grace Church at 11:30 O’Clock Today (1903, November 18).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[40] Ibid.

[41] Wikipedia, (2023).  Margaret Copley Thaw, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Copley_Thaw, accessed January 17, 2023.

[42] Wikipedia, (2023).  Alice Cornelia Thaw, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Cornelia_Thaw, accessed January 21, 2023.  Wikipedia, (2023).  George Seymour, 7^th Marquess of Hertford, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Seymour,_7th_Marquess_of_Hertford, accessed January 21, 2023.

[43] Wikipedia, (2023).  Margaret Copley Thaw, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Copley_Thaw, accessed January 17, 2023.

[44] Wikipedia, (2023).  Harry Kendall Thaw, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Kendall_Thaw, accessed January 17, 2023.

[45] Thomson-Thaw Wedding Took Place at Grace Church at 11:30 O’Clock Today, (1903, November 18) The Port Huron Daily Times

[46] Ibid.

[47] Ibid.

[48] Ibid.

[49] Helen Endlich, (1981).  A Story of Port Huron, p. 195-196, self-published by the author, printing and binding by Braun & Brumfield, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

[50] Spanburgh, S., (2012).  The Southampton Cottages of Gin Lane: The Original Hamptons Summer Colony, p. 109; Charleston, SC, The History Press.

[51] Countess of Yarmouth Coming to Pittsburg: With her Mother will Reach the City This Morning – Earl Comes Later, (1904, August 28).  The Pittsburgh Daily Post

[52] Atwell, Benjamin, H., (1907).  The Great Harry Thaw Case or A Woman’s Sacrifice; Chicago, Laird & Lee, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/66056/66056-h/66056-h.htm, accessed January 17, 2023.

[53] H.K. Thaw Married a Model: The Bride is Said to be a Well-Known Pittsburg Girl, Famous for her Beauty in Artists Circles, (1904, October 23).  The Pittsburgh Press.

[54] Mother Fell in a Faint: Evelyn’s Nesbit’s Alleged Escapades Has Caused her Mother to Fall Ill – Thaw is Expected Home at Lyndhurst No Preparations are Made to Receive the Young Woman – Ordered to Report to his Mother, (1904, November 3, 1904).  The Pittsburgh Press

[55] Wikipedia, (2023).  Harry Kendall Thaw, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Kendall_Thaw, accessed January 17, 2023.  Wikimedia, (2023).  Evelyn Nesbit Eickemeyer, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Eickemeyer_Evelyn_Nesbit3.jpg, accessed January 21, 2023.

[56] Atwell, Benjamin, H., (1907).  The Great Harry Thaw Case or A Woman’s Sacrifice; Chicago, Laird & Lee, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/66056/66056-h/66056-h.htm, accessed January 17, 2023.

[57] Find A Grave, (2023).  Margaret Copley Thaw Morris, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/181812108/margaret-copley-morris, accessed January 17, 2023.

[58] Atwell, Benjamin, H., (1907).  The Great Harry Thaw Case or A Woman’s Sacrifice; Chicago, Laird & Lee, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/66056/66056-h/66056-h.htm, accessed January 17, 2023.

[59] Ibid, p. 20.

[60] Atwell, Benjamin, H., (1907).  The Great Harry Thaw Case or A Woman’s Sacrifice; Chicago, Laird & Lee, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/66056/66056-h/66056-h.htm, accessed January 17, 2023.

[61] Wikipedia, (2023).  Stanford White, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanford_White, accessed January 21, 2023.

[62] Atwell, Benjamin, H., (1907).  The Great Harry Thaw Case or A Woman’s Sacrifice; Chicago, Laird & Lee, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/66056/66056-h/66056-h.htm, accessed January 17, 2023.

[63] Atwell, Benjamin, H., (1907).  The Great Harry Thaw Case or A Woman’s Sacrifice; Chicago, Laird & Lee, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/66056/66056-h/66056-h.htm, accessed January 17, 2023

[64] Baatz, Simon, (2018).  The Girl on the Velvet Swing, pp. 155-163: New York, Boston, London; Little Brown and Company.

[65] Ibid, p. 130.

[66] Atwell, Benjamin, H., (1907).  The Great Harry Thaw Case or A Woman’s Sacrifice; Chicago, Laird & Lee, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/66056/66056-h/66056-h.htm, accessed January 17, 2023.

[67] Ibid.

[68] Ibid.

[69] Baatz, Simon, (2018).  The Girl on the Velvet Swing, pp. 187-216: New York, Boston, London; Little Brown and Company.

[70] Wikipedia, (2023).  Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matteawan_State_Hospital_for_the_Criminally_Insane, accessed January 21, 2023.

[71] Trulia, Homes for Sale, 1719 Military Street, Port Huron, Michigan, https://www.trulia.com/p/mi/port-huron/1719-military-st-port-huron-mi-48060–2049796891, accessed January 22, 2023.

[72] Household Furniture for Sale, (1919, July 15).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[73] John W. Thomson Dies Thursday – Was one of the Founders of Hotel Harrington, (1928. November 2) The Port Huron Daily Times

[74] Thomson Will Leaves $5000 to Grace Church, (1928, November 5).  The Port Huron Daily Times

[75] Find a Grave, (2023).  Mary Harrington Thomson Thaw https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/181790965/mary-harrington-thaw, accessed January 17, 2023.  Find A Grave, (2023).  Josiah Copley Thaw, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/232413543/josiah-copley-thaw, accessed January 17, 2023.

[76] Ibid.

[77] Find A Grave, (2023).  Margaret Copley Thaw Morris, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/181812108/margaret-copley-morris, accessed January 17, 2023.  Find A Grave, (2023).  Augustus Newbold Morris, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/88590413/augustus-newbold-morris, accessed January 17, 2023.

[78] Wikipedia, (2023).  Newbold Morris, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newbold_Morris, accessed January 17, 2023.

[79] Lexox History website, (2023).  Lexox as a Resort-Hawthorne Street, https://lenoxhistory.org/tag/brookhurst/, accessed January 21, 2023.

[80] Englund, Lauren, (2019).  Environmental Living in Post War Honolulu: Harry W. Seckel’s Woodlawn Terrace Subdivision, University of Oregon’s Scholar’s Bank, https://scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/24491, accessed and downloaded January 17, 2023.

[81] Ibid.

[82] Ibid.

[83] Ibid.

[84] Seckel, Harry, (1938).  Frank Lloyd Wright; The North American Review, Autumn 1938, Vol. 246, No. 1 (Autumn, 1938).

[85] Wikpedia, (2023).  Fallingwater, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fallingwater, accessed January 22, 2023.