Theresa Fair Oelrichs
Oelrichs (seated) with her son standing on left, c. 1910
Born
Theresa Alice Fair

June 30, 1871
Virginia City, Nevada, U.S.
DiedNovember 22, 1926(1926-11-22) (aged 55)
Newport, Rhode Island, U.S.
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1890; died 1906)​
Children1
Parent(s)James Graham Fair
Theresa Rooney
RelativesVirginia Fair Vanderbilt (sister)

Theresa Alice "Tessie" Fair (June 30, 1871 – November 22, 1926)[1] was an American socialite. She went from being the daughter of a hard-scrabble California miner to become heiress to a fortune in Comstock Lode gold and silver, the wife of steamship magnate Hermann Oelrichs, mistress of the Rosecliff estate in Newport, Rhode Island, and a member of the elite "Triumvirate" of American society."[2]

Early life

Tessie was born on June 30, 1871, in Virginia City, Nevada. Her father, James Graham Fair, was born in Clogher, County Tyrone, and immigrated to the United States from Belfast, Ireland in 1843 at age twelve. He worked the California mines until 1860, when he moved to Nevada to work the newly-discovered traces there. He met Theresa Rooney, an innkeeper's daughter, and they wed in 1861. Tessie grew up in mining camps as her father prospected for gold and was the eldest of four children born to her parents, including Virginia (nicknamed "Birdie"), Charles and James, Jr.[3]

In 1873, her father and three partners,[a] discovered the "Big Bonanza" in Virginia City, Nevada, which became the largest single deposit of gold and silver ever found. More than $100 million worth of gold ($3.5 billion in today's currency) was extracted from that mine before it was exhausted in 1898. Fair used his share to expand into railroads and real estate, generating a fortune of $50 million.[3] Money led to a dissolute life of affairs and drinking for him, and in 1883 his wife filed for divorce, getting custody of Tessie and Virginia.

Personal life

Rosecliff's dining room in the Louis XVI style, 1905.
Rosecliff's staircase, 1905.
Rosecliff's rear steps.

In 1889, in Newport, Tessie met steamship tycoon Hermann Oelrichs, whom she wed the following year on June 3, 1890.[5] The lavish wedding was held in San Francisco. James Fair's gift to his daughter was one million dollars, but even so he was not invited to the wedding. Now a wealthy heiress, Tessie moved east permanently to join the social circles of New York, Newport and Europe.[3] Tessie later gave birth to her only child, Hermann Oelrichs, Jr. (1891–1948),[6] who married Dorothy Haydel (1893–1961) in 1925.[7] After his death, she married Prince Ferdinand of Liechtenstein (1901–1981) in 1950.[8]

In New York, Hermann and Tessie Oelrichs lived at 1 East 57th Street in "the big house at the northeast corner of Fifth Avenue and Fifth-seventh Street,"[1] which was later occupied by the New York Trust Company. Tessie Oelrichs then lived at 1 East 72nd Street.

She publicly acted as a devoted and happy wife, but privately, she and Hermann were estranged. When news reached her that he survived the massive San Francisco earthquake of 1906, she hoped for a reconciliation.[9][10] Hermann returned east, so she prepared a lavish supper for them together. When he did not attend, she was enraged. Unreconciled, Hermann later died of a heart attack.[11][12][13] He left his full estate to his brother Charles May Oelrichs, thinking that Tessie would be content with her own fortune,[14] but Tessie contested the will.[15][16] Eventually, they settled the dispute and she received half of the estate.[17][3]

Oelrichs died at Newport on November 22, 1926.[1] After a funeral in the "beautiful blue and gold tapestry room" at Rosecliff,[18] which was attended by Charles M. Oelrichs and his wife among others, she was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery, The Bronx, New York City.[18][b] Her son inherited the vast majority of her estate with the provision that should he die without issue, her sister Virginia would be the residuary legatee.[20] Her son later sold her stately home in 1941,[21][22] and today, Rosecliff stands open to the public.[2]

Society life

Tessie's social peers, Alva Vanderbilt and Grace Vanderbilt, already had expensive mansions in Newport, which were called "summer cottages" by the elite of the day. Tessie set her sights on being mistress of her own grand estate, so she commissioned architect Stanford White to renovate their recently purchased Rosecliff on Bellevue Avenue.[1] Begun in 1899, and purchased from the estate of George Bancroft, Rosecliff was modeled after the Grand Trianon at Versailles, and was completed in 1902 with a final cost of $2.5 million.[23] In 1899, Tessie orchestrated a coup for the family by marrying her younger sister Birdie off to William K. Vanderbilt II,[19] son of Alva and William K. Vanderbilt and brother of Consuelo Vanderbilt, Duchess of Marlborough, in a wedding that was extensively covered in the society pages.[3][24]

After the "retirement" of Caroline Schermerhorn Astor (the "Mrs. Astor"), Tessie ruled American society as one of the so-called Triumvirate, made up of herself, Mamie Fish and Alva Belmont.[1] Where Alva was the extravagant hostess and Mamie threw exotic and often raucous parties, Tessie was known as the martinet, the drill sergeant, of the three, enforcing the rules of polite society.[2] Hermann's niece Blanche once described her as "strongly addicted to Society as business."[2]

References

Notes
  1. ^ The four partners were John William Mackay, James Graham Fair, James C. Flood and William S. O'Brien, who were collectively known as the Bonanza Kings.[4]
  2. ^ Her sister, Virginia Fair Vanderbilt, was buried beside her at Woodlawn after her death in 1935.[19]
Sources
  1. ^ a b c d e "MRS. H. OELRICHS, SOCIAL LEADER; With Sister, Mrs. William K, Vanderbilt Jr., Inherited J. G. Fair's Fortune. | ENTERTAINED IN SPLENDOR | One of Three Women Who Succeeded Mrs. William Astor, the Arbiter of Society" (PDF). The New York Times. November 23, 1926. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d Columbia, David Patrick (August 30, 2007). "The Adventures of Tessie". New York Social Diary. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e Gavan, Terrence. The Barons of Newport: A Guide to the Gilded Age. Newport: Pineapple Publications, 1998. ISBN 0-929249-06-2
  4. ^ "THE MINING ARISTOCRACY. SOCIAL STANDING OF SAN FRANCISCO'S BONANZA KINGS. THE ANCIENT FEUDS OF THE MAGNATES OF THE MINES—FLOOD AND O'BRIEN, FAIR AND MACKEY, MORROW AND BALDWIN IGNORED IN SOCIETY—RALSTON'S RUIN—THE EXPLOITS AND CHARITIES OF "KNIGHTLY JIM" KEENE" (PDF). The New York Times. December 15, 1876. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  5. ^ "HERMANN OELRICHS WEDS. HE GOES ACROSS THE CONTINENT AND SECURES A CALIFORNIA BRIDE" (PDF). The New York Times. June 4, 1890. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  6. ^ "HERMANN OELRICHS DIES AT HOME HERE; Society Leader Who Had Been in Diplomatic Service Was Son of Shipping Executive" (PDF). The New York Times. August 6, 1948. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  7. ^ "HERMANN OELRICHS WEDS MISS HAYDEL; New Yorker Married to St. Louis Girl in Biarritz, France, on Last Tuesday. THEIR TROTH TOLD IN MAY Wedding Was First Set for June 29 -- Bridegroom !s Nephew of Mrs. W. K. Vanderbilt" (PDF). The New York Times. September 16, 1925. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  8. ^ "LIECHTENSTEIN PRINCE WEDS MRS. OELRICHS" (PDF). The New York Times. August 22, 1950. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  9. ^ "NO WORD FROM FRIENDS. Anxiety for Many New Yorkers Who Were in San Francisco" (PDF). The New York Times. April 21, 1906. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  10. ^ "MR. OELRICHS'S STORY. He Did Police Duty in the Streets of San Francisco" (PDF). The New York Times. April 28, 1906. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  11. ^ "HERMANN OELRICHS DIES ON A LINER AT SEA | His Work in the San Francisco Earthquake Hastened His End. | NEWS COMES BY WIRELESS | He Died on Saturday on the Big Kaiser — No Details Yet — Widow Hurries from Newport" (PDF). The New York Times. September 4, 1906. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  12. ^ "MR. OELRICHS'S BODY BROUGHT TO HIS WIDOW She and Mrs. Vanderbilt Meet It at the Pier. CAUSE OF DEATH MADE KNOWN Bright's Disease Killed the Famous Amateur Athlete and Society Leader — Warned of His Fate" (PDF). The New York Times. September 5, 1906. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  13. ^ "HERMANN OELRICHS BURIED. His Funeral Attended by Many Friends and Former Business Associates" (PDF). The New York Times. September 6, 1906. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  14. ^ "MRS. OELRICHS LEFT OUT OF HER HUSBAND'S WILL Testator Says She Has a Fortune of Her Own. SON GETS PERSONAL EFFECTS The Fortune, Whose Value Is Unknown, Is Divided Among Relatives — $300,000 to Brother" (PDF). The New York Times. September 11, 1906. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  15. ^ "WIDOW MAY CONTEST MR. OELRICHS'S WILL She Now Wants to Administer Her Brother's Estate. TWO WILLS SAID TO EXIST One Executed in 1902 Gave Mrs. Oelrichs the Estate Now Left to Oelrichs's Brother" (PDF). The New York Times. September 12, 1906. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  16. ^ "OELRICHS WILL FIGHT BEGUN BY THE WIDOW Refusing a Compromise, She Objects to Probate Here. CALIFORNIA LAWS GOVERN Her Husband Being a Citizen of That State, She Says, Under the Law Half the Estate Is Hers" (PDF). The New York Times. October 25, 1906. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  17. ^ "OELRICHS WILL FIGHT ENDED BY COMPROMISE The Widow to Get $100,000 in Bonds and Son a $50,000 Ranch. SHE ABANDONS ALL CLAIMS Settlement Also in Accounting of Trusteeship of Fair Estate by Hermann Oelrichs" (PDF). The New York Times. November 25, 1906. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  18. ^ a b "HOLD FINAL RITES FOR MRS. OELRICHS; Only Relatives and Intimate Friends at Funeral of the Former Society Leader. | BURIAL IN THIS CITY TODAY | Floral Blanket Ordered From Paris by Sister, Mrs. W. K. Vanderbilt 2d, Covers Coffin" (PDF). The New York Times. November 24, 1926. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  19. ^ a b "MRS. VANDERBILT DIES IN HOME HERE | Former Wife of W. K. 2d, Long Social Leader in New York, Had Been III Nine Weeks | HAD NOTED RACING STABLE | Owner of Sarazen Was Heir to $5,000,000 Left by Father, Senator James G. Fair" (PDF). The New York Times. July 8, 1935. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  20. ^ "SON GETS OELRICHS ESTATE; Mrs. Theresa Oelrichs Also Left Trust Fund for Her Nurse" (PDF). The New York Times. December 14, 1926. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  21. ^ "OELRICHS ESTATE SOLD; Deed Names Abraham Leighter as Purchaser of Newport House" (PDF). The New York Times. February 25, 1941. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  22. ^ "OELRICHS VILLA SOLD FOR $21,000; Mother Buys Former Newport Showplace as a Gift for Gertrude Niesen, Actress" (PDF). The New York Times. July 17, 1941. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  23. ^ "Rosecliff | Newport Mansions". www.newportmansions.org. Preservation Society of Newport. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  24. ^ "VANDERBILT-FAIR WEDDING. | MISS FAIR'S BRIDAL GIFTS | Shown Yesterday to Friends--To be on View to Guests To-day" (PDF). The New York Times. April 2, 1899. Retrieved September 10, 2018.

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