July 31

The Titled Americans: Three American Sisters and the British Aristocratic World into which They Married (2004)
By Elizabeth Kehoe

As a tour guide at the Newport Mansions, I had a fascination with the era of the "dollar princesses", those wealthy American heiresses who married penniless English aristocrats, virtually trading their fathers' money for a title.  The most famous Newport "princess" was Consuelo Vanderbilt, the beautiful daughter of William K and Alva Vanderbilt of Marble House.  Consuelo married (against her wishes) the 9th Duke of Marlborough in 1996; the duke would received $2.5M annually from Mr Vanderbilt and Consuelo would became Duchess of Marlborough.  Elizabeth Kehoe's book tells the story of some of the early dollar princesses.

This is the fascinating story of the three daughters of Leonard and Clara Jerome.  Shunned by New York's elite as "new money", Mrs Jerome takes her daughters to Paris, then (following the fall of the 2nd Empire), to London where the beautiful Jennie ends up marrying Lord Randolph Churchill (1874), Clara marries Moreton Frewen (1881, known colloquially as "Mortal Ruin"), and Leonie marries Baronet Jack Leslie (1884).   Although none of the husbands were wealthy, the wives had high standards for their children and many (e.g., Shane Leslie and Clare Sheridan, not to mention Winston Churchill) were quite successful.  Jennie and Leonie were especially good writers and their family letters are remarkable.  They mingled with royalty and society, and this triple biography is a fascinating window into a bygone era.