The Four Hundred (Gilded Age)

Portrait of Mrs. Astor by Carolus-Duran, in Paris 1890. This painting was placed prominently in Astor's house; she would stand in front of it when receiving guests for receptions. Today, it is held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The Four Hundred was a list of New York society during the Gilded Age, a group that was led by Caroline Schermerhorn Astor, the "Mrs. Astor", for many years. After her death, her role in society was filled by three women: Mamie Fish, Theresa Fair Oelrichs, and Alva Belmont, known as the "triumvirate" of American society.

On February 16, 1892, The New York Times published the "official" list of those included in the Four Hundred as dictated by social arbiter Ward McAllister, Astor's friend and confidant, in response to lists proffered by others, and after years of clamoring by the press to know who was on it.

History

In the decades following the American Civil War, the population of New York City grew almost exponentially, and immigrants and wealthy arrivistes from the Midwestern United States began challenging the dominance of the old New York Establishment. Aided by McAllister, Astor attempted to codify proper behavior and etiquette, as well as determine who was acceptable among the arrivistes, as champions of old money and tradition.

Reportedly, Ward McAllister coined the phrase "the Four Hundred" by declaring that there were "only 400 people in fashionable New York Society." According to him, this was the number of people in New York who really mattered; the people who felt at ease in the ballrooms of high society. In 1888, McAllister told the New-York Tribune that "If you go outside that number," he warned, "you strike people who are either not at ease in a ballroom or else make other people not at ease."

While the number four hundred has popularly been linked to the capacity of Caroline Schermerhorn Astor's ballroom at her large brownstone home at 350 Fifth Avenue and East 34th Street (today the site of the Empire State Building), the exact origins remain unknown. There were other lists in New York around the same time which necessitated a maximum capacity of four hundred, including Delmonico's restaurant and local cotillion dances, that may have contributed to the particular sum of four hundred.

February 1892 list

"Snobbish Society's Schoolmaster." Caricature of Ward McAllister as an ass telling Uncle Sam he must imitate "an English snob of the 19th century" or he "will nevah be a gentleman". Published in Judge, November 8, 1890.

In response to competing lists naming the purported members of New York society published in the New York World that insisted New York society was, in fact, made up of only 150 people, McAllister spoke with the Times, refuting the World article and giving the paper the "official list", which was published on February 16, 1892, and quoted McAllister stating:

The so-called Four Hundred has not been cut down or dwindled to 150 names. The nonsense, don't you know, printed to that effect in the World and some other papers, has made a very bad impression that will reflect badly against them, you understand. That list of names, you understand, printed on Sunday, did not come from me, don't you see. It is unauthorized, don't you see. But it is accurate as far as it goes, you understand.

It is incomplete and does injustice, you understand, to many eligible millionaires. Think of leaving out such names, don't you know, as Chauncey M. Depew, Gen. Alexander S. Webb, Mr. and Mrs. Edward Cooper, Mr. and Mrs. Luther Kountze, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Goelet, Mr. and Miss Wilson, Miss Greene, and many others! Don't you understand, it is absurd, senseless.

Let me explain, don't you know. There are three dinner dances, don't you know, during the season, and the invitations, don't you see, are issued to different ladies and gentlemen each time, do you understand? So at each dinner dance, you know, are only 150 people of the highest set, don't you know. So, during the season, you see, 400 different invitations are issued.

Wait a moment and I will give you a correct list, don't you know, of the people who form what is known as the Four Hundred. Do you understand it will be authorized, reliable, and, don't you know, the only correct list.

The list, purported to include the crème de la crème of New York society, consisted largely of "bankers, lawyers, brokers, real estate men, and railroaders, with one editor (Paul Dana of The New York Sun), one publisher, one artist, and two architects." It also included a mix of both "Nobs" and "Swells". "Nobs" came from old money (including the Astors, the Goelets, the Livingstons, and the Van Rensselaers), and "Swells" were representatives of the nouveau riche, whom Astor felt, begrudgingly, were able to partake in polite society (best personified by the Vanderbilt family).

Criticism and backlash

"The European Svengali and the trilbys of the 'Four Hundred' – He hypnotizes 'em every time!" Illustration published in Puck, October 2, 1895.

After McAllister released the names of the Four Hundred in The New York Times, there was significant backlash, both against the idea of a definitive list of "acceptable society" and McAllister himself. The papers dubbed him "Mr. Make-a-Lister" and, in combination with his memoirs published in 1890, entitled Society as I Have Found It, further ostracized him from the "old guard", who valued their privacy in an era when the leaders of society were the equivalent of modern movie stars. William d'Alton Mann, who owned Town Topics, a gossip magazine, considered it his duty to expose the sins of society and regularly criticized the Four Hundred.

Several years later, author O. Henry released a collection of short stories, entitled The Four Million, a reaction to this phrase, expressing his opinion that every human being in New York was worthy of notice.

In 2009, the Museum of the City of New York compiled its own list, entitled "The New York City 400", of the 400 "movers and shakers" who made a difference in the 400 years of New York City history since Henry Hudson arrived in 1609. McAllister was "the only person on the original Four Hundred to also make the museum's list."

Named members

Photograph of Alva Smith Vanderbilt at her 1883 Ball as "Venetian Renaissance Lady". Alva, the first wife of William Kissam Vanderbilt and second wife of Oliver Belmont, was one of Astor's successors. Photographed by José Maria Mora.

Photograph of Mamie Fish, the wife of Stuyvesant Fish, and one of Astor's successors.

Portrait of Elizabeth Astor Winthrop Chanler, by John Singer Sargent, 1893.

Photograph of Chauncey Depew, U.S. Senator and president of the Vanderbilt's New York Central Railroad, c. 1908.

Frank Gray Griswold, financier and writer, 1908.

Julia Dent Grant, who married Prince Mikhail Cantacuzène in 1899, was the daughter of Frederick Dent Grant and granddaughter of U.S. President Ulysses S Grant. Photo taken in 1904.

Photograph of William Kissam Vanderbilt, first husband of Alva Smith Vanderbilt.

Photograph of Alice Claypoole Vanderbilt, wife of Cornelius Vanderbilt II, at Alva's 1883 Ball as 'Electric Light'. Gown by Charles Frederick Worth. Photographed by José Maria Mora.

Portrait of Cornelius Vanderbilt II, husband of Alice Claypoole Vanderbilt, by John Singer Sargent, 1890.

Portrait of Ruth Livingston Mills, wife of Ogden Mills, by Francois Glamony.

A miniature portrait of Cornelia Sherman Martin, wife of Bradley Martin, who threw the infamous Bradley-Martin Ball in 1897.

Photograph of Frances Ellen Work, the former wife of James Roche, 3rd Baron Fermoy, c. 1910–1915.

Portrait of Emily Thorn Vanderbilt, wife of businessman William Douglas Sloane, by Benjamin Curtis Porter, 1888.

Portrait of Mr. and Mrs. Anson Phelps Stokes, a merchant and banker, by Cecilia Beaux c. 1898.

Portrait of Florence Adele Vanderbilt Twombly, wife of Hamilton McKown Twombly, by John Singer Sargent, 1890.

Portrait of George Washington Vanderbilt II, builder of the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina, by John Singer Sargent, 1890.

Photograph of William Collins Whitney, former U.S. Secretary of the Navy (during the Cleveland administration), c. 1892 photographed by Charles Milton Bell.

Mrs. Henry Isaac Lorillard Barbey. By Wilhelm Heinrich Funk, 1904.

Besides containing far fewer than 400 people, McAllister's list "abounded in inaccuracies: names were misspelled or incomplete and many spouses omitted or included although they were dead." The rules of the time dictated that "only the eldest unmarried daughter of a family carried the title 'Miss,' with no given name," but he regularly ignored the rule.

No.	Name as it appears in article	Full name
1, 2	Mr. and Mrs. F. R. Appleton	Francis R. Appleton Fanny Lanier Appleton
3	Fred H. Allen	Frederick Hobbes Allen
4, 5	Mr. and Mrs. Astor	William Backhouse Astor Jr. Caroline Schermerhorn Astor
6, 7	Mr. and Mrs. J.J. Astor	John Jacob Astor IV Ava Lowle Willing
8, 9	Mr. and Mrs. George H. Bend	George H. Bend Elizabeth Austen Townsend Bend
10	Miss Amy Bend	Amy Bend
11	Miss Beatrice Bend	Beatrice Bend
12, 13	Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd Bryce	Lloyd Bryce Edith Cooper Bryce
14	Mrs. Cavendish Bentinck	Elizabeth Livingston Cavendish-Bentinck
15, 16	Mr. and Mrs. F. Bronson	Frederic Bronson Sarah Gracie King Bronson
17	Heber Bishop	Heber Reginald Bishop
18	Miss Bishop	Mary Cunningham Bishop
19	William Harold Brown	William Harold Brown
20, 21	Mr. and Mrs. Edmund N. Baylies	Edmund L. Baylies Louisa Van Rensselaer Baylies
22	Mr. Temple Bowdoin	Temple Bowdoin
23, 24	Mr. and Mrs. J. Townsend Burden	I. Townsend Burden Evelyn Byrd Moale Burden
25	Miss Burden	Evelyn B. Burden
26	Mrs. Barbey	Mary Lorillard Barbey
27	Miss Barbey	Eva Barbey
28	Harold Brown	Harold Brown
29	Edward Bulkley	Edward H. Bulkeley
30, 31	Mr. and Mrs. James L. Barclay	James Lent Barclay Olivia Bell Barclay
32	C. C. Baldwin	C.C. Baldwin
33	Miss Baldwin	Louise Roman Baldwin
34	C. C. Baldwin Jr.	C.C. Baldwin, Jr.
35, 36	Gen. and Mrs. Henry L. Burnett	Henry Lawrence Burnett Agnes Suffern Tailer Burnett
37	Mr. Thomas Cushing	Thomas Forbes Cushing
38	Miss Edith Cushing	Edith Howard Cushing
39	Mr. F. Bayard Cutting	Robert Bayard Cutting
40	Miss Coster	Martha Ellery Coster
41	Mr. Harry Coster	Harry Coster Mary Lee Coles Coster
42, 43	Mr. and Mrs. Charles Carroll	Charles Carroll Suzanne Bancroft Carroll
44, 45	Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Cary	Clarence Cary Elisabeth Miller Potter Cary
46, 47	Mr. and Mrs. Winthrop Chandler	Winthrop Astor Chanler Margaret Terry Chanler
48	Mrs. Brockholst Cutting	Marion Ramsay Cutting
49, 50	Mr. and Mrs. Harry Cannon	Henry White Cannon Jennie Curtis Cannon
51	Robert L. Cutting Jr.	Robert Livingston Cutting Jr.
52	Col. J. Schuyler Crosby	John Schuyler Crosby
53	Miss Crosby	Angelica Schuyler Crosby
54, 55	Mr. and Mrs. W. Bayard Cutting	William Bayard Cutting Olivia Peyton Murray Cutting
56, 57	Mr. and Mrs. S. V. R. Cruger	Stephen Van Rensselaer Cruger Julia Grinnell Storrow Cruger
58	Rawlings Cottenet	Rawlins Lowndes Cottenet
59	F. Brockholst Cutting	F. Brockholst Cutting
60	W. Cutting Jr.	William Bayard Cutting, Jr.
61	Sir Roderick Cameron	Sir Roderick Cameron
62	Duncan Cameron	Duncan Ewen Cameron
63, 64	The Misses Cameron	Catherine Natalie Cameron Anne Fleming Cameron
65, 66	Mr. and Mrs. James Cross	Richard James Cross Annie Redmond Cross
67, 68	Mr. and Mrs. Edward Cooper	Edward Cooper Cornelia Redmond Cooper
69, 70, 71	The Misses Chanler	Elizabeth Astor Winthrop Chanler Margaret Livingston Chanler Alida Beekman Chanler
72	William R. Coster	William B. Coster Maria Griswold Gray Coster
73, 74	Mr. and Mrs. Elisha Dyer Jr.	Elisha Dyer III Sidney Turner Swan Dyer
75, 76	Mr. and Mrs. Duncan Elliot	Duncan Elliot Sallie Hargous Elliot
77, 78	Mr. and Mrs. George B. De Forest	George Beach de Forest Jr. Anita Hargous de Forest
79, 80	Mr. and Mrs. Chauncey M. Depew	Chauncey Depew Elise Hegeman Depew
81, 82	Mr. and Mrs. Frederic de Peyster	Frederic James de Peyster Augusta McEvers Morris de Peyster
83, 84	Dr. and Mrs. Francis Delafield	Francis Delafield Katherine Van Rensselaer Delafield
85	Miss Delafield	Elizabeth Ray Delafield
86, 87	Mr. and Mrs. Paul Dana	Paul Dana Mary Butler Duncan Dana
88	H. De Courcy Forbes	H. De Courcy Forbes
89, 90	Mr. and Mrs. Stuyvesant Fish	Stuyvesant Fish Marion Graves Anthon Fish
91, 92	Mr. and Mrs. C. G. Francklyn	Charles G. Francklyn Susan Sprague Hoyt Francklyn
93	J. C. Furman	John C. Furman
94, 95	Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton Fish Jr.	Hamilton Fish, Jr. Emily Mann Fish
96	Theodore Frelinghuysen	Theodore Frelinghuysen
97	Augustus C. Gurnee	Augustus C. Gurnee
98, 99	Mr. and Mrs. Ogden Goelet	Ogden Goelet Mary Wilson Goelet
100	Mr. Frank G. Griswold	Frank Gray Griswold
101	Miss Greene	Anne Dunkin Greene
102	Mr. Allister Greene	Alister Greene
103	Miss Grant	Julia Grant
104	Robert F. Hawkes	Robert Forbes Hawkes
105, 106	Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Howard	Thomas Howard Rose Post Howard
107, 108	Mr. and Mrs. Carly Havemeyer	Charles Frederick Havemeyer Camilla Woodward Moss Havemeyer
109	Meredith Howland	Meredith Howland
110, 111	Mr. and Mrs. Valentine G. Hall	Valentine Hall Jr. Mary Livingston Ludlow Hall
112	Miss Hall	Elizabeth Livingston Hall
113	John A. Hadden Jr.	John A. Hadden Jr.
114, 115	Mr. and Mrs. Columbus Iselin	Columbus Iselin Edith Colford Jones Iselin
116	Isaac Iselin	Isaac Iselin
117	Mrs. William Jaffray	Helen Smythe Jaffray
118	Miss Jaffray	Helen Frances Jaffray
119	Mrs. F. R. Jones	Mary Cadwalader Rawle Jones
120	Miss Beatrix Jones	Beatrix Cadwalader Jones
121	Shipley Jones	Shipley Jones
122, 123	Mr. and Mrs. DeLancey Kane	DeLancey Astor Kane Eleanora Iselin Kane
124	Nicholas Kane	Samuel Nicholson Kane
125	Miss Knowlton	Mary Knowlton
126	Miss Sybel Kane	Sybil Kane
127, 128	Mr. and Mrs. J. P. Kernochan	James Powell Kernochan Catherine Lorillard Kernochan
129, 130	Col. and Mrs. Kip	Lawrence Kip Eva Lorillard Kip
131	Miss Kipp	Edith Kip
132, 133	Mr. and Mrs. Frederick Kernochan	J. Frederic Kernochan Mary Stuart Whitney Kernochan
134	Miss Lusk	Anna Hartwell Lusk
135	Arthur Leary	Arthur Leary
136	Mrs. Maturin Livingston	Ruth Baylies Livingston
137, 138	Mr. and Mrs. James Lanier	James F. D. Lanier Harriet Bishop Lanier
139, 140	Mr. and Mrs. Henry B. Livingston	Henry B. Livingston Frances Redmond Livingston
141	Edward Livingston	Edward Livingston
142	Miss Clarissa Livingston	Clarisse Livingston
143	Edward De Peyster Livingston	Edward De Peyster Livingston
144, 145	Mr. and Mrs. Clement C. Moore	Clement Clarke Moore Laura Williams Moore
146	Ward McAllister	Ward McAllister
147, 148	Mr. and Mrs. Charles H. Marshall	Charles Henry Marshall Josephine Banks Marshall
149	Clement March	Clement March
150, 151	Mr. and Mrs. O. Mills	Ogden Mills Ruth Livingston Mills
152, 153	Mr. and Mrs. B. Martin	Bradley Martin Cornelia Sherman Martin
154	F. T. Martin	Frederick Townsend Martin
155	Peter Marié	Peter Marié
156, 157	Mr. and Mrs. H. W. McVickar	Harry Whitney McVickar Maud Robbins McVickar
158, 159	Mr. and Mrs. A. N. Morris	Augustus Newbold Morris Eleanor Colford Jones Morris
160	Miss Morris	Eva Van Cortlandt Morris
161, 162	Mr. and Mrs. R. Mortimer	Richard Mortimer Eleanor Jay Chapman Mortimer
163	Miss Morgan	Anne Morgan
164, 165	Mr. and Mrs. T. Newbold	Thomas Newbold Sarah Lawrence Coolidge Newbold
166	Mrs. Frederick Nelson	Isabelle Gebhard Neilson
167	S. H. Olin	Stephen H. Olin
168, 169	Mr. and Mrs. C. Oelrichs	Charles May Oelrichs Blanche de Loosey Oelrichs
170	James Otis	James Otis
171	Miss Otis	Sarah Birdsall Otis
172	Edward Post	Edward C. Post
173	Richard Peters	Richard Peters
174, 175	Mr. and Mrs. B. C. Porter	Benjamin Curtis Porter Mary Clark Porter
176, 177	Mr. and Mrs. Frank Pendelton	Francis Key Pendleton Elizabeth La Montagne Pendleton
178	Julian Potter	Julian Potter
179	I. V. Packer	James Vanderburgh Parker
180, 181	Mr. and Mrs. H. N. Potter	Howard Nott Potter Ethel Potter
182, 183	Gen. and Mrs. Pierson	John Frederick Pierson Susan Augusta Rhodes Pierson
184	Miss Pierson	Marguerite Pierson Hull
185, 186	Mr. and Mrs. George B. Post	George Browne Post Alice Stone Post
187	Mrs. William H. Perry	Constance Frink Perry
188	Miss Perry	Bertha Perry Ronalds
189	Goold H. Redmond	Goold H. Redmond
190	Mrs. Rogers	Susan LeRoy Fish Rogers
191	Miss Rogers	Julia Fish Rogers
192	J. Ritchie	J. Wadsworth Ritchie
193	T. J. Oakley Rhinelander	Thomas Jackson Oakley Rhinelander
194	Miss Cora Randolph	Cora Randolph Trimble
195	Mrs. Burke Roche	Frances Burke Roche
196, 197	Mr. and Mrs. S. O. Ripley	Sidney Dillon Ripley Mary Hyde Ripley
198	D. T. L. Robinson	Douglas Robinson Sr.
199	R. K. Richards	Robert Kerr Richards
200, 201	Mr. and Mrs. Douglas Robinson Jr.	Douglas Robinson Jr. Corinne Roosevelt Robinson
202, 203	Mr. and Mrs. H. Robins	Henry Asher Robbins Lizzie Pelham Bend Robbins
204	Miss Sands	Edith Cruger Sands
205, 206	Mr. and Mrs. William D. Sloane	William Douglas Sloane Emily Thorn Vanderbilt Sloane
207, 208	Mr. and Mrs. Philip Schuyler	Philip Schuyler Harriet Lowndes Langdon Schuyler
209, 210	Mr. and Mrs. Byam K. Stevens	Byam K. Stevens Eliza Langdon Wilks Stevens
211	Lispenard Stewart	Lispenard Stewart, Jr.
212, 213	Mr. and Mrs. W. W. Sherman	William Watts Sherman Sophia Augusta Brown Sherman
214	Miss Adele Sloane	Florence Adele Sloane
215, 216	Mr. and Mrs. Anson Phelps Stokes	Anson Phelps Stokes Helen Phelps Stokes
217	Miss Stokes	Olivia Egleston Phelps Stokes
218, 219	Mr. and Mrs. Walter L. Suydam	Walter Lispenard Suydam Jane Mesier Suydam
220, 221	Mr. and Mrs. F. K. Sturgis	Frank K. Sturgis Florence Lydig Sturgis
222	Miss Elizabeth Stevens	Elizabeth Callendar Stevens
223	G. Mead Tooker	Gabriel Mead Tooker
224	Miss Tooker	Charlotte Tooker Warren
225	E. N. Tailer	Edward Neufville Tailer
226, 227	Mr. and Mrs. H. McKay Twombly	Hamilton McKown Twombly Florence Vanderbilt Twombly
228	Miss Tailer	Fannie Bogert Tailer
229	Marquise de Talleyrand	Elizabeth de Talleyrand-Périgord
230	Miss Mabel Van Rensselaer	Mabel Van Rensselaer
231	Miss Alice Van Rensselaer	Alice Van Rensselaer
232, 233	Mr. and Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt	Cornelius Vanderbilt II Alice Claypoole Gwynne Vanderbilt
234	George W. Vanderbilt	George W. Vanderbilt
235	Mrs. A. Van Rensselaer	Louisa Barnewall Van Rensselaer
236	James Varnum	James Varnum
237	Mr. Worthington Whitehouse	Worthington Whitehouse
238, 239	Mr. and Mrs. W. Seward Webb	William Seward Webb Eliza Osgood Vanderbilt Webb
240	Barton Willing	John Rhea Barton Willing
241	Miss Willing	Susan Ridgway Willing
242, 243	Gov. and Mrs. Wetmore	George Peabody Wetmore Edith Keteltas Wetmore
244	Miss Wetmore	Edith M. Keteltas Wetmore
245	Egerton Winthrop	Egerton Leigh Winthrop
246	Thomas C. Winthrop	Thomas C. Winthrop
247	F. B. Winthrop	Bronson Winthrop
248, 249	Mr. and Mrs. Buchanan Winthrop	Buchanan Winthrop Sarah Townsend Winthrop
250	Miss Winthrop	Marie Austen Winthrop
251, 252	Mr. and Mrs. Ben. Wells	Benjamin Welles Frances Wyeth Swan Welles
253, 254	Mr. and Mrs. W. C. Whitney	William Collins Whitney Flora Payne Whitney
255	Miss Georgiana L. Wilmerding	Georgiana L. Wilmerding
256	Mrs. C. A. Whittier	Elizabeth Chadwick Whittier
257, 258	Mr. and Mrs. Wysong	John J. Wysong Martha Marshall Wysong
259	M. A. Wilkes	Matthew Astor Wilks
260, 261	Mr. and Mrs. W. Storrs Wells	William Storrs Wells Anna Cole Raynor Wells
262, 263	Gen. and Mrs. Alexander S. Webb	Alexander S. Webb Anna Remsen Webb
264	Miss Carrie Webb	Caroline LeRoy Webb
265	Alexander S. Webb	Alexander Stewart Webb

See also

• Bradley-Martin Ball
• List of Gilded Age mansions
• Lee Shelton's "Four Hundred Club" of St. Louis, Missouri

References

Notes

Sources

External links

• Patterson, Jerry E. The First Four Hundred: Mrs. Astor's New York in the Gilded Age, Rizzoli, New York (2000) ISBN 0847822850