Evander Berry Wall
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Evander Berry Wall (January 14, 1861 – May 4, 1940) was a
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
socialite A socialite is a person, typically a woman from a wealthy or aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having ...
and later an American
expatriate An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. The term often refers to a professional, skilled worker, or student from an affluent country. However, it may also refer to retirees, artists and ...
in France during the
Belle Époque The Belle Époque () or La Belle Époque () was a period of French and European history that began after the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871 and continued until the outbreak of World War I in 1914. Occurring during the era of the Fr ...
and beyond. He was famous for his extravagantly refined look and was crowned "King of the
Dude ''Dude'' is Regional vocabularies of American English, American slang for an individual, typically male. From the 1870s to the 1960s, dude primarily meant a male person who dressed in an extremely fashionable manner (a dandy) or a conspicuous ...
s" in the 1880s.


Early life and marriage

Evander was the son of Charles Wall and Elizabeth A. Wall. He was the grandson of William Wall, who was mayor of what was then Williamsburgh, New York (now part of New York City) and who developed a prosperous rope making business there in 1830, Wall Rope Works. When Berry was 11, his grandfather died, and Wall Rope Works was then run by Berry's father and his siblings. Unfortunately, Berry's father also died just eight years later in 1879. The 1880 US Census shows Berry living with his widowed mother and his occupation as "cordage manufacturer" at the age of 19. His siblings were James R. Wall and Louise Berry Wall Ladew (Mrs. Edward R. Ladew). Evander was raised as a wealthy New Yorker. At the age of 16, he owned his first race horse. He inherited $2 million before the age of 22. Wall became a leader of the American
café society Café society was the description of the "Beautiful People" and " Bright Young Things" who gathered in fashionable cafés and restaurants in New York, Paris and London beginning in the late 19th century. Maury Henry Biddle Paul is credited wi ...
, a group of rich socialites.Jeffers, p. 45. Wall married Salome "Lomie" Melbourne on December 16, 1887, in Baltimore. She was born July 4, 1867, in St. Joseph, Missouri, the daughter of William Fiske Melbourne and Josephine Shutt Melbourne. Wall was a
clotheshorse A clothes horse is a portable frame, usually made of wood, metal, or plastic, upon which wet laundry is hung to dry by evaporation. Usage and alternatives Clothes horses are a cheap, low-tech type of laundry equipment, in contrast to a clothes ...
. He generally wore a "very extraordinary costume" such as the one pictured on the right: "a dust coat of a reddish havana brown, a suit made of a large grey shepherd plaid check; extremely wide
trousers Trousers (British English), slacks, or pants ( American, Canadian and Australian English) are an item of clothing worn from the waist to anywhere between the knees and the ankles, covering both legs separately (rather than with cloth extending ...
tapered at the ankle, and turned up several inches to display white spats and highly
varnish Varnish is a clear Transparency (optics), transparent hard protective coating or film. It is not to be confused with wood stain. It usually has a yellowish shade due to the manufacturing process and materials used, but it may also be pigmente ...
ed shoes; a 'startling' striped shirt in red and sky blue, with very high false collar of a pattern different from the shirts, a striped
vest A waistcoat ( UK and Commonwealth, or ; colloquially called a weskit) or vest ( US and Canada) is a sleeveless upper-body garment. It is usually worn over a dress shirt and necktie and below a coat as a part of most men's formal wear. It ...
and a widely spread
stock Stocks (also capital stock, or sometimes interchangeably, shares) consist of all the Share (finance), shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided. A single share of the stock means fractional ownership of the corporatio ...
-
cravat Cravat, cravate or cravats may refer to: * Cravat (early), forerunner neckband of the modern necktie * Cravat, British name for what in American English is called an ascot tie * Cravat bandage, a triangular bandage * Cravat (horse) (1935–1954) ...
." He was popularly credited with the possession of over 500 trousers and 5,000
neckties A necktie, long tie, or simply a tie, is a cloth article of formal neckwear or office attire worn for decorative or symbolic purposes, resting under a folded shirt collar or knotted at the throat, and usually draped down the chest. On rare oc ...
.


King of the Dudes

Wall was first proclaimed "King of the Dudes" at the resort town of Long Branch, New Jersey in the summer of 1883. Wall was again proclaimed "King of the Dudes" in 1888 by the ''
New York American :''Includes coverage of New York Journal-American and its predecessors New York Journal, The Journal, New York American and New York Evening Journal'' The ''New York Journal-American'' was a daily newspaper published in New York City from 1937 ...
'' newspaper. A journalist named Blakely Hall judged that Wall had won the "Battle of the Dudes" against Robert "Bob" Hilliard, another sartorial dude when, during the March Blizzard of 1888, he strode into a bar clad in gleaming boots of
patent leather Patent leather is a type of coated leather that has a high-gloss finish. In general, patent leather is fine grain leather that is treated to give it a glossy appearance. Characterized by a glass-like finish that catches the light, patent leath ...
that went to his hips. Nevertheless, some historians still consider it was Hilliard who won that dude battle. Wall won another fashion contest in August 1888, in
Saratoga Springs, New York Saratoga Springs is a Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the United States Census 2020, 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the ...
. To win a bet against John "Bet a Million" Gates, Wall changed clothes 40 times between breakfast and dinner. He appeared at the
Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, Saratoga Springs, New York (state), New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting v ...
in one flashy ensemble after the other until, exhausted but victorious he at last entered the ballroom of the United States Hotel in faultless evening attire." Ever the fashion-leader, Wall is credited for having been the first person in the United States to wear a
dinner jacket Black tie is a semi-formal wear, semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and North American conventions for clothing, attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdoc ...
(tuxedo) to a ball. The white ensemble had been sent to him by the London
Savile Row Savile Row (pronounced ) is a street in Mayfair, central London. Known principally for its traditional bespoke tailoring for men, the street has had a varied history that has included accommodating the headquarters of the Royal Geographical ...
tailor
Henry Poole & Co Henry Poole & Co. is a bespoke tailor located on Savile Row in London, United Kingdom. In the 1860s, it is widely-believed to have designed the first modern-style dinner jacket, according to specifications provided by the Prince of Wales (lat ...
"to be worn for a quiet dinner at home or at an evening's entertainment at a summer resort." This was a time when
tailcoat A tailcoat is a knee-length coat (clothing), coat characterised by a rear section of the skirt (known as the ''tails''), with the front of the skirt cut away. The tailcoat shares its historical origins in clothes cut for convenient horse-riding ...
was still the rule, and Wall was immediately ordered off the floor. Wall's financial life was not as successful as his fashion life. An ill-conceived stock-broking career and additional failures as a stable owner ended in an 1899
bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...
. Wall finally declared that "New York had become fit only for businessmen" and left for
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
in 1912.


Parisian Grandeur

Whether in Paris,
Deauville Deauville () is a communes of France, commune in the Calvados (department), Calvados department, Normandy (administrative region), Normandy, northwestern France. Major attractions include its port, harbour, Race track, race course, marinas, con ...
,
Biarritz Biarritz ( , , , ; also spelled ; ) is a city on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the French Basque Country in southwestern France. It is located from the border with Spain. It is a luxu ...
, or
Aix-les-Bains Aix-les-Bains (, ; ; ), known locally and simply as Aix, is a Communes of France, commune in the southeastern French Departments of France, department of Savoie.Duchess of Windsor Wallis, Duchess of Windsor (born Bessie Wallis Warfield, later Spencer and then Simpson; June 19, 1896 – April 24, 1986) was an American socialite and the wife of Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor (former King Edward VIII). Their intenti ...
, the Grand Duke Dimitri of Russia, the
Aga Khan Aga Khan (; ; also transliterated as ''Aqa Khan'' and ''Agha Khan'') is a title held by the Imamate in Nizari doctrine, Imām of the Nizari Isma'ilism, Nizari Isma'ilism, Ismāʿīli Shia Islam, Shias. The current holder of the title is the ...
, and ex-king Nicholas of Montenegro (whom Wall called a "magnificent old darling"). They lived in a suite in the Hotel Meurice, with a consecutive string of chow dogs named Chi-Chi or Toi-Toi. This was located conveniently near the bespoke shirtmaker Charvet, where Wall had his signature "spread eagle" collar shirts and cravats custom-made for himself and his dog. Wall always dined at the
Ritz Ritz or The Ritz may refer to: Facilities and structures Hotels * The Ritz Hotel, London, a hotel in London, England ** Ritz Club casino * Hôtel Ritz Paris, a hotel in Paris, France * Hotel Ritz (Madrid), a hotel in Madrid, Spain * Hotel Ritz ...
with his dog, whose collars and ties were made by Charvet in the same style and fabric as his master's.Watkin, p. 151., "The chow was suitably attired in an ornate dinner jacket; his stock collar and old-fashioned black satin stock ties made by Charvet from the same pattern as his master's" During
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, the Walls stayed in France and put all their social connections to use. For their fundraising efforts on behalf of wounded servicemen, each of the Walls was awarded the French
Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...
medal. Wall wrote his memoirs in his late seventies, and they were published after his death in 1940; his wife had died in 1936. In ''Neither Pest Nor Puritan'', Wall ascribed his longevity to the fact he never saw physicians and always drank champagne instead of water, claiming that "There are more old drunkards than there are old doctors." He noted that, "I keep reminding myself as I draw nearer my last great duty, the obligation upon me to thank the God I believe in for the gift of life." When he died, he left only $12,608, having "squandered nearly every cent on pleasure."


See also

*
Beau Brummel George Bryan "Beau" Brummell (7 June 1778 – 30 March 1840) was an important figure in Regency England, and for many years he was the arbiter of British men's fashion. At one time, he was a close friend of the Prince Regent, the future King ...
*
Dandy A dandy is a man who places particular importance upon physical appearance and personal grooming, refined language and leisurely hobbies. A dandy could be a self-made man both in person and ''persona'', who emulated the aristocratic style of l ...


Sources

* Jeffers, H.P. (2001) ''Diamond Jim Brady: Prince of the Gilded Age'', John Wiley and Sons: New York. . * Watkin, D. (1984) ''Grand hotel: the Golden age of palace hotels: an architectural and social history'', Vendome Press: New York. .


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wall, Evander Berry 1861 births 1940 deaths American socialites Socialites from New York City Ladew family Belle Époque American expatriates in France