On this day, June 25, in 1906, Pittsburgh millionaire Harry Thaw shot and killed prominent architect Stanford White at Madison Square Garden. Thaw, the ne’er-do-well son of a Pittsburgh coal and railroad baron, had competed with White for the affection of a raven-haired New York chorus girl named Evelyn Nesbit. After years of courtship, Thaw married her.
On that fateful night 103 years ago, Thaw and Evelyn bumped into White and learned that they were attending the same premiere.
During the show, Thaw approached and shot White three times in the face, killing him. Thaw held the gun aloft and walked out. The crowd thought that it was part of the show.
Before the trial, Thaw’s mother convinced Evelyn to testify that White beat her. For her testimony, Evelyn got a divorce and $1 million.
A jury found Thaw not guilty by reason of insanity. After spending time in and out of asylums, he moved to a farm in Frederick County, Va., where he lived until 1944. He died in 1947.
