Murder at Chateau sur Mer

by Alyssa Maxwell

  “Yes, we’ll talk about it,” I said, and together we made our way to the kitchen at the back of the house.

  Author’s Note

  Chateau sur Mer and the Wetmore family might not be quite as well-known outside of Rhode Island as The Breakers and the Vanderbilts, but both the house and the family were no less significant in leaving their mark on Newport’s history. George Peabody Wetmore, son of China trade merchant William Wetmore, served as a governor of Rhode Island, and a U.S. senator. Though born during a family trip to England, George Wetmore was raised in Newport, and is buried in Newport’s Island Cemetery. Upon his father’s death, he inherited Chateau sur Mer, an Italianate villa completed in 1852 and remodeled in the Second Empire French style in the 1870s. He continued to live there when his duties didn’t take him to Washington, D.C.

  What set the Wetmores apart from most other Gilded Age families was a quiet dignity that was never sacrificed for the sake of ostentation. Rather like the Astors, they were secure in their place in society and had little to prove; they were neither publicity seekers nor scandal courters. While society matrons went to great lengths to marry off their daughters to titled Europeans, the Wetmore daughters, Edith and Maude, remained single during their entire lives. The sisters would marry for love, or not at all. Their younger brothers having passed away at early ages, Edith and Maude inherited their father’s vast wealth along with his properties. They split their time between Chateau sur Mer and an apartment in New York City, but it was Edith who truly continued to call Chateau sur Mer home until her death in 1951. Both sisters were active politically—both Republicans, like their father—with Maude holding office in the National Civic Federation, the American Women’s Association, and the Women’s National Republican Club.1

  Chateau sur Mer was the grandest house in Newport until the Vanderbilts began building their palazzos in the 1890s. It’s now considered one of the smaller “cottages” in Newport. But don’t be fooled into thinking the visitor will come away disappointed, or that the stoic Wetmores were frugal in the design of their home or the comforts they enjoyed. On the contrary, the house is a treasure trove of architectural delights and ingenious innovations that made life for the Wetmores luxurious. For anyone visiting Newport, I highly recommend taking the house tour, which is much more intimate in nature than the tours of the larger houses. The enthusiasm and knowledge of the tour guides present a very personal view into the history of the house and the Wetmore family.

  I decided to use a fictional name for the wharf where the “Blue Moon Tavern” is located. The wharves present at the time of the story still exist today, but what was once (even in my own memory) a somewhat rough and rundown part of town is now prime real estate filled with condos overlooking Narragansett Bay; I thought it better not to imply that one of them once housed a brothel. However, Blue Moon Gardens was a “restaurant” in Newport for several decades during the twentieth century. There are numerous articles about the establishment in the Newport newspapers, none of them flattering. Located on Thames Street and popular with sailors and lobstermen, the place was often cited for serving liquor after hours and to minors, frequent fights, and the antics of intoxicated patrons. For instance, in 1951 a drunken sailor attempted to steal a wallet and a “spangled brassiere” from a dancer after following her into her dressing room. On another occasion, one of those dancers was arrested for intoxication and “indecent dancing.” The place certainly had a reputation, as any longtime Newporter can tell you.

  James Gordon Bennett’s Casino is now the Tennis Hall of Fame. The story of why he established the Newport Casino was taken from history, but exactly where truth leaves off and legend begins, no one is quite sure. While wagering probably did take place there among male patrons, this was never a gambling establishment. Casino is an Italian word for “small house” or “small villa.” Bennett’s residence across the street, Stone Villa, was demolished in 1957 to make way for the Bellevue Shopping Center. It’s one of many casualties of post–Gilded Age Newport.

  The Stanford Whittaker character in the story is based on Stanford White of the architectural firm of McKim, Meade, & White. White was well-known for his innovative and exciting designs in commercial, civic, and residential architecture, including the Newport Casino, but also for his scandalous lifestyle. The fictionalizing of his name is more for the purpose of not confusing the reader with the character of Jesse Whyte, as similar names are something authors try to avoid.

  The Westchester Polo Club Grounds are now located in Portsmouth, at the north end of Aquidneck Island; the grounds described in the story arew now a residential area just west of Morton Park. The Westchester Polo Club was America’s first polo club. The Meadowview Club mentioned in this book, however, is fictional.

  Notes

  1 Kathleen Kennedy Wood, Chateau sur Mer: A Child’s View of Life at the Famous Newport Mansion, Morgan Hill, CA: Bookstrand Publishing, 2015.