On This Day in History: January 9
From Brooklyn Girl to British Aristocracy
Jennie Jerome was born on Jan. 9, 1854, in the Cobble Hill section of Brooklyn. Jennie’s father was a wealthy financier who also fancied race horses, so much so that he built Jerome Park Racetrack in the Bronx, where the Belmont Stakes was originally held. It is believed that the Jeromes were parishioners of the historic Christ Church at the corner of Clinton and Kane streets.
Around 1860 the Jeromes moved to an attractive mansion in Manhattan at 41 Madison Ave., southeast corner of 26th Street. (In later years, this mansion became the Manhattan Club where it is said the Manhattan cocktail was invented.) Unfortunately, this historic mansion was demolished just before passage of the Landmarks Preservation Law.