The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson
“at once cheap wooden quarters: Burnham to Committee on Buildings and Grounds, December 1, 1890, Burnham Archives, Box 58, File 3.
“It may not occur to you: Burnham to Davis, December 8, 1890, Burnham Archives, Business Correspondence, vol. 1.
“cut to the quick: Monroe, Root, 235.
“feeling confident: Moore, Burnham interview, 3.
“McKim, damn your preambles: Moore, McKim, 113.
“To himself: Monroe, Poet’s Life, 115.
“They all approved: Burnham to Olmsted, December 23, 1890, Olmsted Papers, Reel 57.
“they said: Moore, Burnham interview, 3.
“Burnham had believed: Sullivan, Louis, 319.
“I think he, Adler: Moore, Burnham interview, 4.
“He said he was tired: Inland Architect and News Record, vol. 16, no. 8 (January 1891), 88.
He was depressed: Monroe, Root, 249.
“He felt that this: Ibid., 249.
A Hotel for the Fair
In a parody: Boswell and Thompson, 81.
When Myrta’s great-uncle: Ibid., 80; Schechter, 235; Chicago Tribune, July 27, 1895; New York Times, July 29, 1895; Philadelphia Public Ledger, July 29, 1895.
Holmes returned to Englewood: Boswell and Thompson, 80.
“Beside his own person: See Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed.
Half a century later: Cleckley, 369.
People exhibiting: Millon et al., 124.
“When I went to bed: Schechter, 235.
“Presently,” Belknap said: Ibid.
“I refused to open: Ibid.
“If I’d gone: Boswell and Thompson, 80.
He planned to install: Chicago Tribune, July 30, 1895.
The manager of the furnace company: Franke, 94–95
“the necessary amount of heat: Ibid., 94.
“In fact,” he said: Ibid.
These clerks: Philadelphia Public Ledger, July 27, 1895.
The Landscape of Regret
The eastern architects left: Hunt to Olmsted, January 6, 1891, Olmsted Papers, Reel 58.
Two hours before: Moore, McKim, 113; Chicago Tribune, January 11, 1891.
“It was one: Moore, Burnham Interview, 3.
“they gazed: Burnham, Design, 24.
“remote and repulsive: Ingalls, 142.
“sandy waste: Bancroft, 46.
“If a search had been made: “A Report Upon the Landscape,” 8, Olmsted Papers, Reel 41.
“it became almost: Burnham and Millet, 45.
The park’s gravest flaw: “A Report Upon the Landscape,” 7, Olmsted Papers, Reel 41.
“a feeling of discouragement: Burnham and Millet, 5.
“Do you mean to say: Hines, 82; Moore, Burnham interview, 4;
“He went down to the office: Monroe, Root, 259.
“looking ill: Starrett, 47.
“ill almost unto death: Monroe, Poet’s Life, 113.
“After the 15th: Ibid., 260.
“Oysters: Chicago Tribune, January 11, 1891.
“Gentlemen,” he said: Poole, 184; Moore, Burnham, Architect, 43.
“The men left: Burnham, Design, 26.
“In talking with them: Monroe, Root, 249; Monroe, Poet’s Life, 113.
Vanishing Point
After years spent: Chicago Tribune, July 21, 23, 24, 26, 28, 29, 1895; Philadelphia Public Ledger, July 22, 23, 27, 1895; Boswell and Thompson, 83–84; Franke, 98–101; Schechter, 39–44.
“I shut the door: Chicago Tribune, July 28, 1895.
“a mysterious disappearances: Chicago Tribune, November 1, 1892.
Fannie Moore: Ibid.
J. W. Highleyman left: Ibid.
Cheyenne: Ibid.
Alone
“Himself not especially: Sullivan, Louis, 288.
“It soon became noticeable: Ibid., 320.
“Hell,” he snapped: Ibid.
“Burnham came out: Ibid.
“The natural dominance: Baker, Hunt, 398.
“the function created: Sullivan, Louis, 290.
“In each firm: Ibid., 288.
“John Root was: Ibid.
“I haven’t escaped sickness: Monroe, Root, 261.
“Mr. Root is quite low: Burnham to Boyington, January 14, 1891, Burnham Archives, Business Correspondence, Vol. 1.
“am able this morning: Burnham to Boyington, January 15, 1891, ibid.
“You won’t leave me: Moore, Burnham interview, 5.
“Do you hear that?: Ibid.
“I have worked: Monroe, Poet’s Life, 114.
“most distinguished architect: Chicago Tribune, January 16, 1891.
“There is no man: Chicago Tribune, January 17, 1891.
“It’s all nonsense: Chicago Tribune, January 25, 1891.
“I was born: Philadelphia Inquirer, April 12, 1896.
PART II: AN AWFUL FIGHT
Convocation
His gout: Moore, Burnham interview, 6.
“almost in whispers: “The Organization, Design and Construction of the Fair,” January 7, 1895, 56, Moore Papers.
Its center was an octagon: Rand, McNally, 49–57.
“a panorama: Ibid., 126.
“I don’t think I shall advocate: Moore, Burnham, Architect, 47 (In Moore, Burnham interview, 4, the phrasing is slightly different: “I do not think I will advocate that dome, I will probably modify the building.”)
“one grand entrance: Burnham to Sullivan, February 11, 1891, Burnham Archives, Business Correspondence, Vol. 1.
“the tension of feeling: Burnham and Millet, 29.
“quiet intentness: “The Organization, Design and Construction of the Fair,” January 7, 1895, 56, Moore Papers.
“Drawing after drawing: Burnham and Millet, 29.
“The room was still as death: Moore, Burnham, Architect, 47.
“You are dreaming: “The Organization, Design and Construction of the Fair,” January 7, 1895, 58, Moore Papers.
“I never expected: Different versions of St. Gaudens’s remark appear in the literature. I’ve combined elements of two. See Burnham, Design, 39, and Hines, 90.
“We should try to make: Olmsted to Burnham, January 26, 1891, Olmsted Papers, Reel 41.
“What we shall want: Ibid.
“I mean such as Malay proas: Ibid.
“mysterious poetic effect: “Memorandum as to What is to be Aimed at in the Planting of the Lagoon District of the Chicago Exposition,” Olmsted Papers, Reel 59.
“through the mingling intricately together: Ibid.
“a display of flowers: Ibid.
“to slightly screen: Ibid.
The overall effect: Ibid.
“that army our hundreds: Olmsted to “Fred” (most likely Federick J. Kingsbury, a friend), January 20, 1891, Olmsted Papers, Reel 22.
“How is it possible: Lewis, 172.
“We must push this now: Chicago Tribune, February 20, 1891.
“Examination of the facts: Director of Works Report, October 24, 1892, Burnham Archives, Box 58, File 12.
“There will not be a brick: Chicago Tribune, March 20, 1891.
Atwood stood him up: Moore, Burnham interview, 7.
He was an opium addict: Ibid.
RUSH: Chicago Tribune, May 16, 1891.
“a family of twelve: Chicago Tribune, February 20, 1891.
“That un-American institution: Inland Architect and News Record, vol. 17, no. 5 (June 1891), 54.
P. T. Barnum died: Chicago Tribune, May 30, 1891.
“I think it quite necessary: Chicago Tribune, February 14, 1891.
Cuckoldry
Lovely, dark Gertrude: Chicago Tribune, July 26, 1895.
“of an easy-going innocent: Chicago Tribune, July 21, 1895.
“Some of my friends: Chicago Tribune, July 26, 1895.
Holmes proposed to sell: Chicago Tribune, July 21, 1895.
Holmes even wanted Ned: Chicago Tribune, July 26, 28, 1895.
“Separation couldn’t come: Chicago Tribune, July 26, 1895.
&
“I told her after I left: Ibid.
At night, after the first-floor stores: This is speculation, but I base it on the following: In Mooers Holmes was known to pace at midnight, suggesting he was not a restful sleeper. Psychopaths need stimulation. The kiln would have been an irresistible attraction. Admiring it and igniting its flames would have reinforced his sense of power and control over the occupants above.
Vexed
“You must not think: Burnham to Margaret, March 15, 1892, Burnham Archives, Family Correspondence, File 4.
“Among the trees: Burnham and Millet, 36.
“practically an unknown: Inland Architect and News Record, vol. 22, no. 1 (August 1893), 8.
They laid a platform: Ibid.
Edison suggested: Chicago Tribune, May 12, 13, 1891.
General Electric offered: Baker, Life, 158–59.
“We are at a dead standstill: Burnham to Hunt, June 2, 1891, Burnham Archives, Business Correspondence, Vol. 2.
“The delay you are causing us: Burnham to Hunt, June 6, 1891, ibid.
He ordered: “List of bedding plants to be ordered either in this country, or from Europe,” July 13, 1891, Olmsted Papers, Reel 59.
“It was bad enough: Ulrich, 11.
“He is the arbiter: Chicago Tribune, May 14, 1891.
“incongruity: World’s Fair, 851.
“President Baker wants: Chicago Tribune, July 21, 1891.
C. F. Ritchel of Bridgeport: Chicago Tribune, October 12, 1889.
“As the cost: McComber’s tower idea: Chicago Tribune, November 2, 1889.
The engineer urged: Chicago Tribune, November 9, 1889.
In August 1891: Chicago Tribune, August 5, 1891.
The engineers were outraged: Chicago Tribune, August 16, 1891.
“How soon: Bloom, 117.
“The more I thought: Ibid.
“I could not: Burnham to Dredge, November 18, 1891, Burnham Archives, Business Correspondence, vol. 4.
“The criticism now: Burnham to Dredge, November 24, 1891, ibid.
“was about as intelligent: Bloom, 119.
“anxious to get: Sandweiss, 14.
“You are a very young man: Bloom, 120.
“I do hope: Allen to Palmer, October 21, 1891, Chicago Historical Society, World’s Columbian Exhibition–Board of Lady Managers Archive, Folder 3.
“When I think of the days: Weimann, 176.
“‘I think it would be better: Ibid.
“A severe breakdown: Ibid., 177.
“I suspect that even Codman: Olmsted to Burnham, December 23, 1891, Olmsted Papers, Reel 22.
In December: Burnham, Final Official Report, 78.
“A few questions of design: Interim Report on Construction, “To the Editor of the Chicago Herald,” December 28, 1891, Burnham Archives, Box 58, File 9.
“the failure of the fair: Lewis, 175.
Remains of the Day
Holmes left no firsthand account of the method he used to kill Julia and Pearl Conner; nor did he describe how he managed to subdue both victims, although he did at one point state that Julia had died of a “criminal operation,” meaning an abortion. I constructed the murder scenes in this chapter using a combination of sources: fragments of known evidence (for example, the fact that he possessed two cases of surgical instruments, equipped his building with dissection tables, and favored chloroform as a weapon and bought large quantities of it); the detective work of other investigators of the Holmes saga (Schechter, Franke, and Boswell and Thompson); statements made by Holmes after the murders; psychiatric research into the character, motives, and needs of criminal psychopaths; and testimony at Holmes’s trial as to how a person would react to an overdose of chloroform. The Conner case and the anatomical moonlighting of Charles Chappell received extensive news coverage. In addition to the specific sources cited below, see Chicago Tribune, July 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 1895; New York Times, July 29, 1895; Philadelphia Public Ledger, July 23, 27, 29, 30, 1895; Boswell and Thompson, 81–86; Franke, 98–101; Schechter, 39–44.
In November 1891: Schechter, 43–44.
Julia and Mrs. Crowe: Chicago Tribune, July 29, 1895.
dark amber bottle: Merck’s Manual, 28.
She gripped his hand: Trial, 166, 420–422.
On Christmas morning: Chicago Tribune, July 29, 1895.
“The gentlemen were acting: Chicago Tribune, February 27, 1890. See also March 2, 1890, for a tantalizing but likely apocryphal story of a St. Louis man buried alive—allegedly in a deep coma—only to have his body stolen by medical students. The students discovered his true condition with the first incision and quickly deposited him on the steps of the St. Louis courthouse, where he awoke with a painful and inexplicable cut across his abdomen. Or so the story went.
“Yes, the party: Chicago Tribune, March 24, 1890.
“The body,” he said: Philadelphia Public Ledger, July 29, 1895. The article also cites the $36 price.
They found dishes: Franke, 101.
“I last saw her: Mudgett, 33.
A Gauntlet Dropped
The ranks included: Hines, 74–75.
A rising union man: Burnham to Geraldine, February 24, 1892, Burnham Archives, Business Correspondence, vol. 6.
“inaccurate or ‘slouchy’ work: Burnham to Cloyes, January 6, 1892, ibid., vol. 5.
“it seems to me: Burnham to Ulrich, January 6, 1892, ibid.
“You will please dismiss: Burnham to Geraldine, January 6, 1892, ibid.
“Guarded by sentries: Wyckoff, 248.
“ho, boy: Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., 278; Wyckoff, 11.
He “was eminently engaging: Anderson, 53.
“the architects of America: Untitled typescript, Ferris Papers, 1.
“cut to the quick: Ibid.
superintendent of sheep: Chicago Tribune, July 14, 1892.
“We are now organizing: Burnham to Davis, November 12, 1891, Burnham Archives, Business Correspondence, vol. 4.
“I think it is pretty well understood: Chicago Tribune, January 5, 1892.
“The time was well spent: Burnham to Margaret, March 15, 1892, Burnham Archives, Family Correspondence, Box 25, File 4.
Late in March: Burnham to Margaret, March 31, 1892, ibid.
“Mr. Davis has not been to see me: Chicago Tribune, April 9, 1892.
The congressmen, Burnham wrote: Burnham to Margaret, March 31, 1892.
“spectacular advertising: Bloom, 120.
“I could tell: Ibid.
The Angel from Dwight
In addition to the specific citations below, for this chapter I relied on detailed coverage of the Cigrand case in the Chicago Tribune and Philadelphia Public Ledger, as well as broader accounts of the case in Boswell and Thompson, Franke, and Schechter.
H. Wayne Morgan’s detailed historical essay on Leslie Enraught Keeley’s alcohol-treatment empire, ‘“No, Thank You, I’ve Been to Dwight,’” in the Illinois Historical Journal, offers a charming look at a bygone rage.
See Chicago Tribune, July 26, 27, 29, 30, 31, 1895; Philadelphia Public Ledger, July 27, 29, 31, 1895; Boswell and Thompson, 86–87; Franke, 102–105; Schechter, 48–51.
In the spring of 1892: Schechter, 48.
Gold was the most famous: Morgan, 149.
the Chicago post office: Ibid., 159–160.
“he was too valuable: Mudgett, 122.
Thousands of people: Morgan, 157.
“passing through the line: Ibid., 154.
“No, thank you: Ibid., 158.
the story Pitezel now told: Schechter, 48, 49.
“a flattering offer: Chicago Tribune, July 30, 1895.
Emeline accepted: Ibid.
“White pique hats: Chicago Tribune, August 7, 1895.
“got to talking: Chicago Tribune, July 28, 1895.
“a handsome blonde: Ibid.
“I told her: Ibid.
“She was one: Franke, 102.
“It was not long
son of an English lord: Schechter, 49.
“I was charmed: Chicago Tribune, July 30, 1895.
Dedication Day
“All over its surroundings: Ulrich, 19.
“Would you object: Burnham to Olmsted, November 20, 1891, Burnham Archives, Business Correspondence, vol. 4.
“a few tents, some horses: Burnham to Buchanan, December 19, 1891, ibid.
“They propose: Burnham to Olmsted, February 5, 1892, ibid.
“unreasonable, unjust: Roper, 434.
“When Olmsted is blue: Rybczynski, Clearing, 247–48.
“They had picked: Bloom, 122.
“a tolerable idea: Olmsted, “Report by F.L.O.,” April 1892, Olmsted Papers, Reel 41.
“It seemed to me: Olmsted to John, May 15, 1892, Olmsted Papers, Reel 22.
The Paris buildings: Olmsted, “Report by F.L.O.”
“I am having: Rybczynski, Clearing, 391.
“I can only conclude: Olmsted to Codman, May 25, 1892, Olmsted Papers, Reel 22.
A doctor, Henry Rayner: Roper, 439.
“You know that I am: Olmsted to Codman, June 16, 1892, Olmsted Papers, Reel 22.
“every day more or less: Olmsted to “Partners,” July 21, 1892, ibid.
“childish, vulgar, flaunting: Ibid.
“there is nothing in America: Olmsted to Codman, July 30, 1892, ibid.
“The finest combination: Olmsted to John, May 15, 1892, ibid.
“Everywhere the best ornamental grounds: Olmsted to John Olmsted, May 19, 1892, ibid., Reel 41.
“Let us as much as possible: Olmsted to “Partners,” July 17, 1892, ibid. 172. “I think more than ever: Olmsted to Codman, April 20, 1892, ibid.
“The standard of an English laborer: Olmsted to Codman, April 21, 1892, ibid., Reel 22.
“The only cloud: Olmsted to “Partners,” July 21, 1892, ibid.
“I could see them: Bloom, 122.
“I suggest you be more civil: Ibid.
“At present,” he said: Ibid.
“Too fragile: Barnes, 177.
“The wind: Chicago Tribune, April 28, 1892.