whitney

Here is Wikipedia article about polo player Tommy Hitchcock, Jr. (born in 1900) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Hitchcock,_Jr.

the wealthy Whitney Family was very involved in thoroughbred horse racing, according to this article from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitney_family

Flora Whitney was born in 1897, according to this article about her mother: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gertrude_Vanderbilt_Whitney She was 3 years older than Tommy Hitchcock, which seems about right looking at the photo.

I love their clothes. Such a damn romantic era (though with child labor and racial segregation, I suppose one could argue pretty convincingly that it was all a facade).

Flora Payne Whitney (1897 - 1985) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flora_Payne_Whitney I agree that Miss Whitney looks to be about three years older than young Hitchcock. Do you suppose they would have been at the Steeplechase races without their parents? No way. I've had a look at the uncompressed Tiff version of this photograph downloaded from the persistent URL, and Hitchcock Jr. is holding a card that has a headline at the top "RACING" and lower down "Meadow Brook Steeplechase Association Belmont Park Terminal ..." Therefore, I believe this photograph was almost certainly taken at the Steeplechase meeting held on May 4, 1912. The New York Times report of the following day is here: query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=990DE5DC153CE633A... and amongst the Society notables in the crowd of 4,000 people were Mr. and Mrs. Payne Whitney, and Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Hitchcock.

This seems quite likely to be the former Alice Cornelia Thaw. From profilesintime.blogspot.com/2007/02/benjamin-thaw.html "Alice Thaw (January 2, 1880 - ? March 1969) - Baptized 11 DEC 1881 at 3rd Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh, Allegheny, Pennsylvania Alice Cornelia (Thaw) Seymour Whitney; in a much talked of international match, she became the Countess of Yarmouth. She married George Francis Alexander Seymour (20 October 1871, d. 16 February 1940), the son of Hugh de Grey Seymour, 6th Marquess of Hertford and Hon. Mary Hood, on 27 April 1903 in Pittsburgh. It is said that the earl extorted money from her at her wedding and promptly deserted her. Her marriage to George Francis Alexander Seymour was annulled in 1908. He was styled Lord Hertford; he died in 1940, aged 68 and childless, and his titles passed to his nephew. Later (before 1914), Alice Thaw became Mrs. Geoffrey G. Whitney (Geoffrey Gordon Whitney was born July 21, 1882 in Boston). Their estate was at Woods Hole. " The engagement announcement on December 19, 1912 query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9D03E4DA1E3AE633A... has a different middle initial for her future husband, but her May 1955 obituary at select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0A14F8345B167B... (subscripton required), gives his name as Geoffrey G. Whitney. query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9A07E5DA173FE633A... dates the wedding as April 22, 1913. So the photo may be from around the time of the wedding. She was the sister of Harry K. Thaw, husband of Evelyn Nesbit. See www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2929579164/

I started a biography of her in Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Cornelia_Thaw LOC: Please correct her death year to 1955.

Thanks for pointing out the correct death date. We'll adjust the description when we next update.

This is Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney. I think this photo is from a flower show where she exhibited her dahlias: laura.moncur.org/archives/2008/11/21/so-much-more-than-th...

Wonderful, the way we used to dress. Thanks for posting this.

It looks like racing (horse-racing) to me. Surely that's a jockey cap and boots under the overcoat of the person she is looking up at.

The railing in the background shows up in a lot of Bain racetrack photos. Mrs. Whitney appears to be carrying a dainty pair of binoculars. Her husband, Harry Payne Whitney, was elated by the performance of his horse that day -- it was the star of the show that afternoon, according to the New York Times story next day.

These were some of New York society's bluebloods at the Belmont Park racetrack, on June 17, 1913. A New York Times story the next day reported the roster of winners: query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9406E...