The Belle of Bedford Avenue : the sensational Brooks -Burns murder in turn-of-the-century New York / Virginia A. McConnell.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

McConnell, Virginia A., 1942- author.

Series:

True crime history series.

True Crime History

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Trials (Murder)--New York (State)--New York.

Trials (Murder).

Murder--Investigation--New York (State)--New York.

Murder.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (175 pages).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Kent, Ohio : Kent State University Press, [2019]

Summary:

Affluenza leading to bad behavior among the youth of an earlier century--ultimately ending in murder At the turn of the 20th century, many affluent Brooklyn teens and young adults were bucking the constraints of their immigrant parents and behaving badly: drinking, having sex, staying out all night, stealing, scamming local businesses--and even more serious activities. The culmination for twenty-year-old Walter Brooks was being murdered in a seedy Manhattan hotel in 1902. The ensuing court case was front-page news throughout the country. The hearings featured testimony about these young people's secret lives, which shocked parents and inspired much editorial commentary in the newspapers. From start to finish, the case was viewed as a cautionary tale for parents, for boys who could be led astray, and for girls who risked their reputations to be popular. Set against the colorful backdrop of Coney Island, roadhouses, forbidden dance halls, and vaudeville, The Belle of Bedford Avenue follows the young woman at the heart of the case from her trial for the murder of Walter Brooks to her adulthood. The crime itself, interestingly, occurred in the location of Ground Zero and today's September 11 memorial. The trial was conducted by William Travers Jerome, who went on to become a legendary New York City prosecutor.

Contents:

Intro

Halftitle Page

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Dramatis Personae

1. Murder at Ground Zero

2. The Bedford Avenue Gang

3. Florence Burns and Walter Brooks

4. Walter Brooks's Last Week

5. Arrest

6. Florence and the Tombs Angel

7. The Unwritten Law

8. Florence in Jail and a City Obsessed

9. The Court of Special Sessions

10. The Verdict and an Intermission

11. The Inquest

12. Florence's New Life

13. The Badger Game

14. Arrest, Trial, and the Law of Unintended Consequences

15. Lessons Not Learned

Epilogue

Notes

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-63101-349-1

OCLC:

1089969586