The REALs of a Dream: Stanford White

Stanford White, famous American architect, was the most imaginative partner in the influential architectural firm McKim, Mead, and White.

White was the son of the essayist, critic, and Shakespearean scholar Richard Grant White. He was carefully trained as an architect by Henry Hobson Richardson. In June 1880 he helped found a new architectural firm that soon became the most popular and prolific one in the country. The firm focused on designing large country and seaside mansions in what was called the Shingle style.

White excelled at designing gracefully proportioned structures set off by exquisite Italian Renaissance ornamentation. White was a versatile artist who designed jewelry, furniture, and a wide range of interior decorations. An enthusiastic and extroverted man, he was noted for his lavish entertainments. He was shot to death at Madison Square Garden by Harry Thaw, the jealous husband of the showgirl Evelyn Nesbit, with whom White had had a love affair.