800–804 Broadway, New York, NY (1847)

Manhattan, NY (settled 1624, pop. 1.6MM) • East Village

• Grace Episcopal Church • French Gothic Revival design by 25 yr. old James Renwick, Jr. (1818-1895), his first major commission • cornerstone laid, 1843 • church consecrated, 1846 • church history

• built of “Sing Sing marble,” actually Tuckahoe Marble quarried from the Sing Sing Quarry [photo] by Sing Sing Correctional Facility prisoners

• spire, 226’ high, was among the tallest points on the early NYC skyline • originally wood, was replaced by a marble spire, 1883

• situated in one of the most visible locations in Manhattan, the corner of East 10th St. where Broadway bends S/SE, aligning w/ the city’s avenues [c. 1900 photo]

• for much of the mid/late 19th C., considered NYC’s most fashionable church & most prestigious site for marriage or burial • like many other churches, charged “pew rents,” an annual fee for the use of its seats • initial pew rents were $3/wk. (= $114 today), thus the congregation in the early years consisted largely of wealthy New Yorkers [1918 video]

“In his 1882 New York by Gaslight, author James, D. McCabe, Jr. would point out, “At the morning service a greater display of wealth and fashion is presented here than at any other city church. Grace Church has been the scene of more fashionable weddings and funerals than any other place of worship.” —Daytonian in Manhattan

• on 10 Feb, 1863, the American Civil War was raging, demonstrations, protesting the country’s first military draft were on the verge of becoming full-blown draft riots, and a widely anticipated event took place in Grace Church; Charles Sherwood Stratton (1838-1883) — a wealthy, international celebrity better known as General Tom Thumb — and Mercy Lavinia Warren (1841-1919) exchanged wedding vows • both were proportionate dwarfs in the employ of P.T. Barnum, performers at his American Museum

• Stratton was a gifted entertainer who sang, danced & performed physical comedy, stage name taken from “The History of Tom Thumbe,” a story first published in 1621, attributed to London romance writer Richard Johnson (1573–c.1659) • Lavinia began her career performing on a river boat, signed w/Barnum, age 21

“The church was comfortably filled by a highly select audience of ladies and gentlemen, none being admitted except those having cards of invitation. Among them were governors of several of the States, to whom I had sent cards, and such of those as could not be present in person were represented by friends, to whom they had given their cards. Members of Congress were present, also generals of the army, and many other prominent public men. Numerous applications were made from wealthy and distinguished persons, for tickets to witness the ceremony, and as high as sixty dollars [= $1,400 today] was offered for a single admission. But not a ticket was sold; and Tom Thumb and Lavinia Warren were pronounced ‘man and wife’ before witnesses.” —P.T. Barnum, “Struggles and Triumphs”

• the Brooklyn Eagle editorialized, “We are surprised that the clergy, or representatives of so respectable a body as the Episcopal Church should, for a moment, allow themselves to be used by this Yankee showman to advertise his business”

• amid widespread criticism of the church for it’s complicity in what was widely viewed as another Barnum publicity stunt, Stratton responded, “It is true we are little but we are as God made us, perfect in our littleness. We are simply man and woman of like passions and infirmities with you and other mortals. The arrangements for our marriage are controlled by no showman.”

“The more than 2,000 invited wedding guests [photo] appeared to be a who’s who of American nobility, including a number of congressmen and high-ranking generals, in addition to the thousands of average New Yorkers who showed up hoping to catch a glimpse of the famous tiny couple.” —A General, a Queen and the President

“The wedding party’s arrival outside the church at half past noon touched off a stampede among combatants fighting for a close-up view. The police restrained them only with extreme exertion. Inside, ‘an instantaneous uprising ensued,’ The New York Times reported the following day. ‘All looked, few saw. Many stood upon the seats, others stood upon stools placed on the seats. By many, good breeding was forgotten. By very many the sanctity of the occasion and the sacredness of the ceremonies were entirely ignored. As the little party toddled up the aisle, a sense of the ludicrous seemed to hit many a bump of fun, and irrepressible and unpleasantly audible giggles ran through the church.’” —Boundary Stones

• the couple received wedding presents from wealthy Americans, including a miniature horse-drawn carriage fashioned by Tiffany & Co. • the ceremony, officiated by Stratton’s hometown minister, Junius Willey, was followed by a reception at the Metropolitan Hotel, attended by guests who had purchased tickets from Barnum

• the newlyweds [illustration] then traveled to Washington where Charles’s brother was stationed w/ the Union Army • checked in to Willard’s Hotel

• on 13 Feb, 1863, a well-publicized reception for the couple was held in the East Room of the Lincoln White House, hosted by First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln & America’s tallest president [illustration] —Andrew Martin

Livinia Warren: “[The] President took our hands and led us to the sofa, lifting the General up and placed him at his left hand, while Mrs. Lincoln did the same serve for me, placing me at her right… Tad, the favorite son, stood beside his mother and gazing at me… whispered to his mother, ‘Mother if you were a little woman like Mrs. Stratton you would look just like her.'”

“The marriage of Gen. Tom Thumb cannot be treated as an affair of no moment -- in some respects it is most momentous. Next to LOUIS NAPOLEON, there is no one person better known by reputation to high and low, rich and poor, than he…

“Those who did and those who did not attend the wedding of Gen. Thomas Thumb and Queen composed the population of this great Metropolis yesterday, and thenceforth religious and civil parties sink into comparative insignificance before this one arbitrating query of fate -- Did you or did you not see Tom Thumb married?” —NYT 22 Feb, 1863

• Stratton retired wealthy • couple lived in a Bridgeport, CT mansion, owned a yacht, a summer home in Massachusetts [photo] and a custom-built cottage on Cut in Two Island East in Connecticut’s Thimble Islands • in 1855, when bad investments forced Barnum to file for bankruptcy, Stratton provided financial assistance d& became Barnum’s business partner

• 28 yrs. later, Charles died of a stroke • the couple’s lavish lifestyle had reduced their wealth but enough remained to support Lavinia’s retirement • chose instead to return to the stage, used the stage name “Mrs. Tom Thumb” & assembled a troupe of touring “Liliputians”

• married Italian proportionate dwarf Count primo Magri (1849-1920), who, with his brother, joined the troupe • Count & Countess [photo] lived in Middleborough, MA, • summers, operated a roadside general store for auto tourists called Primo’s Pastime, where they posed for photos w/customers —Atlas Obscura

• the Mrs. Tom Thumb company toured the country [photo], garnering favorable reviews, e.g., “The entertainment given by the Mrs. Tom Thumb Company Saturday was really a fine thing. The little people cannot help being interesting and the tricks of magic were also good, as were the music and trained birds, but the suspension in mid- air of the little countess and change of character was the best thing of the kind ever seen here,” —Newburyport (MA) Herald following a 2 July, 1889 performance at the Exeter (NH) Opera House

• shortly after Stratton’s death, theaters began staging re-enactments of the couple's nuptials • “Tom Thumb weddings,” aka "miniature weddings, became a fad in the 1890s-1900s and continued to be staged by churches, community organizations and charities well into the late 20th C., mainly as fundraisers [photo]

• Grace Church is a National Historic Landmark designated for its architectural significance and place within the history of New York City, and the entire complex is a New York City landmark • one of seven New York City buildings designated by the Municipal Art Society as being of national importance, to be preserved at all costs

designations:
NY Landmarks Preservation Commission:
• church & rectory landmarked, 1966
• Fourth Avenue church houses landmarked, 1977
National Register of Historic Places:
• church & dependencies, # 74001270, 1974
• national historic landmark, 1977

Taken on: October 27, 2010

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