Respectability on Trial: Sex Crimes in New York City, 1900-1918

246 Pages·2016·1.282 MB·English

by  Brian Donovan

RESPECTABILITY
ON TRIAL

RESPECTABILITY
ON TRIAL
Sex Crimes in New York City, 1900–1918
Brian Donovan
Published by State University of New York Press, Albany
© 2016 State University of New York
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever
without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system
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For information, contact State University of New York Press, Albany, NY
www.sunypress.edu
Production, Ryan Morris
Marketing, Fran Keneston
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Donovan, Brian, 1971– author.
Title: Respectability on trial : sex crimes in New York City, 1900–1918 /
Brian Donovan.
Description: Albany : State University of New York Press, 2016. | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016000438 (print) | LCCN 2016012982 (ebook) | ISBN
9781438461953 (hbk. : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781438461960 (e-book)
Subjects: LCSH: Sex crimes—New York (State)—New York—History—20th
century.
Classification: LCC HQ72.U5 D66 2016 (print) | LCC HQ72.U5 (ebook) | DDC
364.15/3—dc23
LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2016000438
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For Natalie
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Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
1. Trials of the First Sexual Revolution 21
2. Date Rape and the Crime of Seduction 37
3. Rape and the Double Bind of Progressive-Era Femininity 71
4. White Slaves and Ordinary Prostitutes 105
5. Sodomy, Manhood, and Consent 141
6. Conclusion: Rethinking Sexual Revolution 177
Notes 183
Bibliography 211
Index 227

Acknowledgments
I am grateful to Ellen Belcher from the Lloyd Sealy Library at the John
Jay College of Criminal Justice for helping me acquire material from the
Trial Transcript Collection. This book would have been impossible to
write without her help. I need to thank several colleagues for their helpful
comments and encouragement, including Sherrie Tucker, Michael Baskett,
Cathy Preston, Akiko Takeyama, and Marta Vicente. Lynn Davidman
delivered critical feedback on the manuscript as well as timely support.
William Staples and Joane Nagel gave me a needed kick in the pants to
finish the project.
The Hall Center for the Humanities at the University of Kansas
provided a wonderful space for me to present and discuss my research.
I am especially thankful for Victor Bailey, Kathy Porsch, Ann Schofield,
and Kim Warren. Others gave me generous help at different stages of the
project. Tori Barnes-Brus proved to be an excellent collaborator, and her
research help on chapter 4 was invaluable. Aislinn Addington conducted
important research for chapter 3. I am forever indebted to her friendship
and support. Nicole Perry and Jane Webb are two young scholars whose
research helped sharpened my own. I am appreciative of others who
have given me support and inspiration, often without knowing it: Jason
Barrett-Fox, Rebecca Barrett-Fox, Matt Burke, Kelly Chong, Christy
Craig, Kerry Donovan, Mary Donovan, Robin Henry, Meredith Kleykamp,
Randy McAvoy, Trudy McAvoy, Stephanie Russell, David Smith, Christian
Watkins, and Janelle Williams. Substantially revised versions of chapters
2 and 4 were published in the journal Law and Social Inquiry. A research
fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities funded this
project during a crucial stage of its development. Finally, I would like to
thank my editor at State University of New York Press, Beth Bouloukos,
ix