“Mrs. Stewart’s Gift …” New York Times, May 22, 1885.
“Mrs. Stewart’s Gift. The Deed of the Garden City Property Placed on Record.” Brooklyn Eagle, May 21, 1885.
“Mrs. Stewart’s Gifts. Popular Jewish Sentiment Compels Their Rejection.” New York Times, December 19, 1878.
“Mr. Walling’s Trip to New Jersey …” New York Times, November 15, 1878.
N
Nash, Jay Robert. Bloodletters and Badmen. New York: M. Evans, 1973.
Nation. The Nation Co., July–December, 1879.
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“The Newly Aroused Interest in Cypress Hills Cemetery …” New York Times, August 22, 1881.
New York Herald, 1846.
“A New York Sensation. A. T. Stewart’s Remains Carried Off.” Montreal Gazette, November 8, 1878.
New York Times, November 15, 1998.
“No Further Arrests Made …” New York Times, November 24, 1878.
“Not Found. The Stewart Mystery Still Unsolved.” Brooklyn Eagle, November 16, 1878.
“Not Only for the Women. A White Elephant to be Made Profitable …” New York Times, May 26, 1878.
O
“The Old Stewart Building.” New York Times, September 20, 1882.
“Opinions of Jews in This City …” New York Times, June 20, 1877.
P
“A Permit for an Excavation. The Controller of the Cypress Hills Cemetery Astonished.” New York Times, August 21, 1881.
“A Possible Clue to the Stewart Grave Robbery.” Brooklyn Eagle, November 18, 1878.
“Preparations for the Funeral. The Arrangements Not Complete.” New York Times, April 12, 1876.
Putnam’s Monthly. Issues 1–6. New York: G. P. Putnam & Co., 1853.
R
“A Ramble in a Cemetery. Introducing a Somewhat Novel Phase of Detective Work.” New York Times, August 21, 1881.
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“The Recovery of Stewart’s Body.” Brooklyn Eagle, January 16, 1879.
“Removal of the Stewart Wholesale Store …” New York Times, November 13, 1878.
“A Reply to Judge Hilton …” New York Times, June 20, 1877.
Resenting Their Insult. They Are Determined to Deal No More with A. T. Stewart …” New York Times, June 22, 1877.
Resseguie, Harry E. “Alexander Turney Stewart and the Development of the Department Store, 1823–1876.” Business History Review, Vol. 39, 1965.
———. “A. T. Stewart’s Marble Palace—The Cradle of the Department Store.” New York Historical Society Quarterly, Vol. 48, Issue 2, 1964.
———. “The Decline and Fall of the Commercial Empire of A. T. Stewart.” Business History Review, Vol. 36, 1962.
“Retiring from Business. The Firm of A. T. Stewart & Co. Winding Up Affairs.” New York Times, April 16, 1882.
Rich Men of the World, and How They Gained Their Wealth. Jesse Haney & Co., 1867.
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“The Robbers of the Tomb. A Rumor That Mr. Stewart’s Body Found …” New York Times, November 11, 1878.
S
“Sala’s Remarkable Story. An Italian Stone-Cutter’s Queer Experiences …” New York Times, August 14, 1879.
“Saratoga’s Public Benefactor. Mr. Stewart’s Death Profoundly Lamented at the Springs.” New York Times, April 11, 1876.
Schechter, Harold. The Whole Death Catalog: A Lively Guide to the Bitter End. New York: Random House Digital Inc., 2009.
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“Scolding Judge Hilton. The Women’s Great Mass Meeting …” New York Times, June 5, 1878.
“The Search Begun. Unexpected Parties Appear on the Scene …” New York Times, August 21, 1881.
“Search for the Robbers. No Further Arrests Made.” New York Times, November 22, 1878.
“The Search for Stewart’s Body: Special Dispatch to the New York Times.” New York Times, December 12, 1878.
“Searching. Are the Brooklyn Police on the Track of A. T. Stewart’s Remains.” Brooklyn Eagle, November 9, 1878.
“Searching New Jersey.” New York Times, November 11, 1878.
“Seeking for the Ghouls. Mr. Stewart’s Body Likely to Be Recovered …” New York Times, November 12, 1878.
“Selecting Their Guests. The Grand Union Restrictions …” New York Times, June 20, 1877.
“A Sensation at Saratoga … No Jews to Be Admitted …” New York Times, June 19, 1877.
“Services of Consecration …” New York Times, May 27, 1885.
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“Startling. The Late A. T. Stewart’s Remains Stolen.” Brooklyn Eagle, November 8, 1878.
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“The Stealing of A. T. Stewart’s Body.” Brooklyn Eagle, November 8, 1878.
“Stealing the Body of a Dead Millionaire.” Boston Globe, November 8, 1878.
“The Stewart Chicago Branch …” New York Times, April 21, 1882.
“The Stewart Collection …” New York Times, December 17, 1886.
“Stewart. Contradictory Reports about the Missing Body.” Brooklyn Eagle, November 15, 1878.
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“The Stewart Grave Robbery. A Number of Detectives Withdrawn from the Case.” New York Times, November 26, 1878.
“Stewart Heirs in Court …” New York Times, February 19, 1887.
“The Stewart House in Chicago …” New York Times, December 20, 1877.
“The Stewart Memorial. The New Cathedral at Garden City …” New York Times, April 9, 1885.
“The Stewart Mystery.” New York Times, November 25, 1878.
“The Stewart Mystery. The Police Still Looking …” New York Times, November 25, 1878.
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“Stewart’s Body Sought. An Important Excavation Begun at Cypress Hills …” New York Times, August 21, 1881.
“Stewart’s Grave Robbers. All But One of Them Arrested.” New York Times, November 20, 1878.
“Stewart’s Stolen Body. Capt. Byrnes Corroborates the Times Statement …” New York Times, November 19, 1878.
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U
“A University at Garden City …” New York Times, August 1, 1880.
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V
“The Vanderbilt Palaces. An Interior View of the Great Houses on Fifth Avenue …” New York Times, August 25, 1885.
“The Village of Chatham Excited. Looking for Mr. Stewart’s Remains …” New York Times, November 20, 1878.
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W
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
J. NORTH CONWAY is the author of seven nonfiction books, including The Big Policeman and King of Heists (both from Lyons Press); The Cape Cod Canal: Breaking Through the Bared and Bended Arm; and American Literacy: Fifty Books That Define Our Culture and Ourselves. He teaches at the University of Massachusetts in Dartmouth and Bristol Community College in Fall River.
NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
Alexander Turney Stewart, hailed as the father of the American department store, was one of the richest men in America when he died in 1876, leaving behind an estimated fortune of forty million dollars. His fortune was derived from his massive retail and wholesale dry goods business.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
A. T. Stewart’s cast-iron front department store, built in 1862, occupied an entire city block at Broadway and Tenth Street. It was considered the first “true” department store with nineteen departments and employing upwards of two thousand people.
NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
Along with his retail business, Stewart ran a successful wholesale business out of the massive store located on Broadway, Chambers, and Reade Streets.
FROM THE SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS HOUSES OF NEW YORK (1872)
An advertisement for A. T. Stewart & Company’s retail goods demonstrated the vast and varied dry goods made available to New York shoppers, especially women.
FROM THE SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS HOUSES OF NEW YORK (1872)
Nothing ever escaped the eye of A. T. Stewart, and he made sure that his clerks didn’t misrepresent his products or display his goods in a gaudy fashion.
FROM FRANK LESLIE'S ILLUSTRATED
Stewart often reminded his clerks, “You must be wise, but not too wise. You must never actually cheat the customer, even if you can. If she pays the full figure, present her a hank of dress-braid, a card of buttons, a pair of shoestrings. You must make her happy and satisfied, so she will come back.”
FROM FRANK LESLIE'S ILLUSTRATED
A. T. Stewart & Company’s “Marble Palace” employed more than 150 women in its sewing room, where seamstresses were kept constantly busy making alterations to goods and merchandise.
FROM FRANK LESLIE'S ILLUSTRATED
The Working Women’s Hotel, located on Fourth Avenue between Thirty-second and Thirty-third Streets, was built by A. T. Stewart to provide New York City working women with safe and reasonably priced accommodations. The hotel had 502 private rooms.
FROM FRANK LESLIE'S ILLUSTRATED
Stewart’s home, a huge Italian marble mansion, was on the corner of Fifth Avenue and Thirty-fourth Street. It was considered one of them most ornate and elaborate private homes in America.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
It was built in 1864–1869 at a cost estimated at two million dollars. The designer of Stewart’s marble mansion was John Kellum, who designed all of Stewart’s buildings, including the cast iron retail store, the women’s hotel, and the buildings and homes at Garden City.
NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
When all of Fifth Avenue’s stately homes were magnificent brownstones, Stewart’s was the only one with a white marble façade. There is little doubt that Stewart’s marble mansion was calculated to impress and outdo his wealthy, illustrious neighbors.
NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
Stewart’s funeral was an elaborate and lavish affair befitting a man of his wealth and stature. The pomp and circumstance surrounding it equaled that of the death of an American statesman. His widow, Cornelia, and his legal advisor, Judge Henry Hilton, paid their last respects.
FROM FRANK LESLIE'S ILLUSTRATED
An hour before dawn, on the morning of Wednesday, November 7, 1878, ghouls broke into A. T. Stewart’s family vault in St. Mark’s Church cemetery and stole the body of the great retail magnate and held it for ransom.
W. P. SNYDER/HARPER’S WEEKLY
Captain Thomas Byrnes of the Fifteenth Precinct, who had a penchant for gaining publicity, told reporters that he was sure his investigation would lead to an immediate arrest in the case, along with the recovery of Stewart’s body.
PRINT COLLECTION, MIRIAM AND IRA D. WALLACH DIVISION OF ART, PRINTS AND PHOTOGRAPHS, THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY, ASTOR, LENOX, AND TILDEN FOUNDATIONS
In 1879, Attorney Patrick Jones, a former New York postmaster and Civil War veteran, reported that he had been contacted by A. T. Stewart’s grave robbers, who asked that he act as an intermediary in negotiations for the return of the body.
In June 1877, New York City banker Joseph Seligman w
as refused accommodations at the Grand Union Hotel in Saratoga by its owner, Judge Henry Hilton. A firestorm of protest followed, and the New York City Jewish community boycotted the A. T. Stewart stores in retaliation for Hilton’s behavior.
Stewart’s closest friend and confidant, Judge Henry Hilton, became the executor of Stewart’s will and overseer of his forty-million-dollar fortune. Hilton’s lack of business savvy, his imperious management style, and a series of egregious public relations blunders all ultimately led to the liquidation of the once successful retail company and the depletion of the Stewart family fortune.
FROM HISTORY OF THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF THE CITY AND COUNTY OF NEW YORK (1896)
Cornelia Stewart commissioned the building of the elaborate Gothic-style Cathedral of the Incarnation in Garden City, New York, as a monument to her husband’s memory. Her husband’s remains were interred in the crypt at the Cathedral. (Or, were they?)
Bag of Bones Page 30