The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing

Many years ago on I was driving with my grandmother, Esther McBee.  We were heading from Berkeley Springs, West Virginia south along Route 522 to go to Winchester, Virginia for some shopping.  Along the way threre used to be a grand, lovely old home with tall columns and front porch and a balcony.  There was a stone fence that ran along the front of the property. 

I had always admired the house and I mentioned it to my grandmother.  She said that the house had something to do with the girl in the red velvet swing.  I don't recall the rest of our conversation that day.  Likely we moved on to other topics of mutual interest.

So today in the newspaper I read an item under Crime History, that on June 25, 1906, Harry Kendall Thaw shot and killed architect Stanford White on the roof of Madison Square Garden.  Thaw and White had both been suitors of Evelyn Nesbit.  Despite being the more determined suitor and successful suitor (Nesbit married Thaw), Thaw held a grudge against White.  A few years later Thaw seized his opportunity and killed White.

You can get the basics of the story from Wikipedia.

It was termed the Trial of the Century!  Thaw was cleared by reason of temporary insanity.  Nesbit and Thaw divorced and Thaw eventually settled in a Clearbrook, Virginia in a home called Kenilworth.  That is the house that formerly stood along Route 522.  Miss Nesbit was the Girl in the Red Velvet Swing.

There have been several books written about the people and incidents.  One with the title that was used for the 1955 movie - The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing.  A more recent book is American Eve.

I am going to have to read this - a spark of interest has been ingnited!