She was the Queen of the Cakewalk and the Most Famous Black Woman of the Gilded Age

In 1912, Aida Overton Walker stood at the top of the stairs at the Victoria Theater about to make her entrance as the titular role in the play Salomé. By then, the Salomé craze was mostly over, but the role still had plenty of allure. At a time when women had few rights and little…

The Wicked Society Magazine of the Gilded Age

Before the devil wore Prada, there was a Civil War veteran, a so-called “pasha of the Gilded Age,” who was one of the most vilified characters in magazine publishing. Arising out of nowhere like our beloved Gatsby, William d’Alton Mann became the kind of person all society people wished to emulate (in practice). He was well read,…

The Great Binge: An Unsettling Reality Check of the Drug-Fuelled “Belle Epoque”

Curiously absent from our historical timelines is “The Great Binge”, a more recently-coined but arguably more appropriate term for that famous period at the turn of the century which we typically refer to as the “Belle Epoque” or the “Gilded Age”. This wasn’t just a time when culture and industry flourished however, it was also…

The Secret History of the Conversation Chair

It’s taken many names, shapes and forms over the centuries – the conversation chair, the courting bench, a tête-à-tête, a chaperone chair, the vis-à-vis, gossip chair or the indiscret. Considered the pinnacle of sophistication and style during the Gilded and Victorian age, if you were entertaining the fashionable elite, one simply wasn’t running a home…

Once upon a time in Detroit’s ‘Little Paris of the Midwest’

You shall go to the Ball! The Belle Époque was that party at the end of the 19th century when European influence, wealth, culture and glamour reigned supreme. All wanted to join the party, and Detroit, that French Trading post on the North American lakes, was up for it. Prosperous and progressive from its new…

The Forgotten Power of the Parlour Palm

We forget that once upon a time, social status had a lot to do with the common houseplant. We’re talking about the parlour palm, one of the most significant decorative features in a Victorian home, which referred to any number of varieties of palms, ferns, and other hardy perennials that were native to South America,…

There’s No Place Quite like that Big Empty Mansion sitting on a Hilltop outside NYC

You can tell a lot about William Boyce Thompson by walking through the magical garden he left behind nearly a hundred years ago. Meticulously sculpted and adorned with archaeological treasures at every turn, you’ll find sunken swimming pools lined with blue Roman mosaics next to a replica of what is thought to be the world’s…

A Brief Compendium of Historical Maximalism

This is a case for “more is more”, masterfully argued by the brushstrokes of history’s finest interiors artists. Before we had glossy decor magazines to pour over, we had a pictorial genre known as interior portraiture which became all the rage during the Belle Epoque, but first appeared in Europe in the 17th century to…

The Vault

In Newark, NJ the Number of Abandoned Theatres Lying Around Is Kind of a Problem

There is nothing quite so poignant and eerie as an abandoned theatre. From the torn, dusty remnants of old red velvet curtains, to rows of empty and dilapidated seats, it is easy to imagine the bustling crowds, thronging together for an evening’s entertainment. For those who love to explore the faded gilt of old, grand…

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Murder over the World’s First Supermodel at Madison Square Garden

Madison Square Garden is one of New York’s most well known landmarks. It is arguably one of the most famous arenas in the world. Unfortunately, it is also one of the least appealing, but it was not always so. For there have been four incarnations of Madison Square Garden, located throughout the city since 1879.…

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She was the Queen of the Cakewalk and the Most Famous Black Woman of the Gilded Age

The Wicked Society Magazine of the Gilded Age

The Great Binge: An Unsettling Reality Check of the Drug-Fuelled “Belle Epoque”

The Secret History of the Conversation Chair

Once upon a time in Detroit’s ‘Little Paris of the Midwest’

The Forgotten Power of the Parlour Palm

There’s No Place Quite like that Big Empty Mansion sitting on a Hilltop outside NYC

A Brief Compendium of Historical Maximalism

In Newark, NJ the Number of Abandoned Theatres Lying Around Is Kind of a Problem

Pssst! You've stumbled across content that is exclusive to Nessy's Keyholders.

Murder over the World’s First Supermodel at Madison Square Garden

Pssst! You've stumbled across content that is exclusive to Nessy's Keyholders.

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