Strong Passions: A Scandalous Divorce in Old New York | Barbara Weisberg

And you thought your friend had the messiest divorce ever? Just read what it's like for a society woman to want to get out of a loveless marriage in Old New York (that's pre-Gilded age) in 1982.

The woman in question is Mary Strong, married to Peter Strong, a dilettante, society type who didn't really work but seemed to have lots of places to be. Mary lived with her ini-laws, never having a home of her own. She was swept over her feet by Peter but the reality turned out to be much less fairy-tale-like than she hoped. There's a whole lot of he said/she said here, but early on Mary confesses to having struck up an affair with Peter's brother, a widower. The trial goes on for years, and the patriarchal laws made for a drawn-out and messy, messy, messy process. Women were in a definite position of weakness and had trouble maintaining custody or even contact with their children, let along their reputation. Press coverage of this divorce trial was extensive and riveting to the whole country.

At one point, Peter (although he denies it) forces Mary into an abortion because he's not sure the baby is his; Mary, in turn, accuses him of having an affair with the abortionist. Juicy, right? Mary's family, also society types (of course) supported her and defended her during this whole process which was considered in itself, somewhat scandalous since she was, after all, being divorced for adultery. Mary had to make some very tough choices. She actually disappears from the story after she takes one of the couple's two daughters and vanishes. (No worries, her lawyer is still on the job)

Weisberg draws from a wide range of source material including testimony from actors and side actors in the household. Needless to say, much of this was contradictory and racy, especially for its time. Weisberg has written a nonfiction book that reads like a novel and which leaves you thinking about how things were, or are, in society over the years. Interesting side note: Mary is a relative of Edith Wharton who went on to write books about, you guessed it, New York society.