Is Alva Vanderbilt a real person

So when the writer stumbled upon the tale of alva vanderbilt's historic 1883.William kissam vanderbilt was alva's other half between 1875 and 1895.William kissam vanderbilt (née alva erskine smith) was determined to become part of new york's high society and get on the list.Alva vanderbilt, who badly wants to join the elites, did not.Hbo the socially ambitious and ostentatiously rich bertha russell is a fictionalized version of alva vanderbilt, the wife of railroad tycoon william.

Caroline shermerhorn astor had a similar rivalry with alva vanderbilt as the gilded age's mrs.Alva might have been an amusing party guest but to be related to her was an entirely different matter.She was the president and primary benefactor of the national woman's party (nwp) founded by alice paul.Astor was known to her friends, ruled the four hundred, which was the elite families of new york descended from the island's original european landowners centuries before.At that time, new york elites did not generally accept vanderbilt's fortune because it newly emerged.

Alva smith grew up in her birthplace of mobile, alabama, and, after.Vanderbilt's petite chateau stood at 660 fifth ave.At the real vanderbilt ball, all.This was the famous list of the four hundred people who were new york's high society of the gilded age.An heir to the vanderbilt railroad fortune, willie had an abundance of money and was unafraid to spend it on having a good time.

But novelist therese anne fowler hewed a little closer to the real history of the clash of old money and new by writing a novel about alva smith vanderbilt belmont, the mover and shaker at the.But to get on the list, alva would need to go through the.