Chauncey Depew’s Big Day

New York City,
1890 

Although he led a very productive life, Chauncey Depew was particularly busy on February 17, 1890. In addition to being the president of the New York Central Railroad, Depew headed the so-called World’s Fair Committee, charged by New York’s moneyed interests with securing the upcoming Colombian Exposition for their city. It had been four months since they discussed the matter over dinner at Delmonico’s and time was now running out. It was Monday and Congress was expected to make a decision by the end of the week. And yet, even at this late date, New York’s political leaders were still divided as to whether they wanted to host such a massive event—the municipality was difficult enough to manage without having millions of additional people descend on it over a six-month period. During a long day marked by striking contrasts, Depew made one last effort to align the warring political factions; the newspapers seemed to report his every move. 

William Waldorf Astor’s World’s Fair Dinner

This article was first published in the 2010 summer issue of Gastronomica. It is being posted here as a prelude to the next essay titled “Chauncey Depew’s Big Day.”

New York City,
1889

William Waldorf Astor

At grand dinners of the Gilded Age, canvasback duck was a typical autumn dish, much appreciated for its subtle flavor of celery. In the fall of 1889, however, the species was suddenly scarce. There were reports from Havre de Grace, Maryland, a small town at the mouth of the Susquehanna River, that storms had driven mud over the wild celery upon which the canvasbacks liked to feed.1 Some feared the ducks had simply been overhunted.1 Whatever the trouble, Charles Ranhofer, Delmonico’s longtime chef, could not get his hands on them—not even for someone the New York Times would shortly proclaim “the wealthiest man in the world.”2