ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

In the course of this study I have received assistance from many individuals. Staff members at several libraries and archives were helpful as well as obliging in locating many sources. Especially important for this project were the New York Public Library, the county clerk's office in the Hall of Records, the New York State Library in Albany, and the Rockefeller Archives in Pocantico Hills. Individuals at other institutions also were very helpful: Robert Macdonald, director, and Marguerite Lavin and Terry Ariano of the Museum of the City of New York; Dale Neighbors, Patricia Paladines, and Diana Arecco of the New-York Historical Society; Evelyn Gonzalez and Kenneth Cobb of the New York Municipal Archives; and Calvin Otto, trustee, and Georgia Barn-hill of the American Antiquarian Society. Rose Anne Burstein, Char-ling Fagan, and the wonderful staff at the Sarah Lawrence Library offered not only assistance but also a place to work and support as my project progressed.

Other individuals have contributed to this study in measurable and immeasurable ways. Early in my research I met Christine Stansell at the Hall of Records. She shared with me chapters of the dissertation she was finishing and names of other scholars who might be helpful, and she told me about the rich resource in the House of Refuge records. I have found her generosity as well as her historical scholarship outstanding. I profited from comments by members of Nondescript, before whom I presented a portion of the manuscript. Diana Zentay spent many hours turning

poorly focused photographic negatives of crumbling newspapers into prints from which I could work. My nephew, Von Pilcher, took care of my children one summer while I did research. Dr. George Unis provided resource materials and advice on medical issues and also proofread one chapter of the study. The partners and staff of First Reserve Corporation generously and patiently shared work space as well as word-processing and photocopying equipment through several stages of my writing. Betty Dell'Orfano spent many days and many late hours typing and photocopying the various drafts of the manuscript and, with the help of Dorothy Mulcahy and Lisa Altomare, we finally produced a finished copy. Contributions of a more indirect nature came from several close friends and members of my family, who offered constant encouragement and were willing to forgo visits and vacations together while I did writing or research. In particular, I am grateful to my mother and father, Mary Mitchell Wood and the late Gordon Brannen Wood, for so many years and kinds of encouragement.

I have appreciated the comments of several individuals who read and criticized drafts of the manuscript: George Calcott, J. Kirkpatrick Flack, Claire Moses, and E. B. Smith. Claire Moses was especially helpful, with suggestions for reorganizing and rewriting some of the material. I also have profited from the assistance given by my editors at the University of California Press: Sheila Levine, Rose Vekony, Ellen Stein, and Monica McCormick. Paul Boller, as an undergraduate and graduate professor, shared his excitement for American history and his warm friendship. He has continued sharing both over many years and many miles, still offering sound advice and critiques of my writing.

The person most instrumental in causing this study to happen is my graduate adviser and mentor, David Grimsted. Beginning with his inspiring course on the middle period and continuing through years of guidance, criticism, encouragement, and patience, he has shown me, by his example, the true meaning of scholarship.

And finally, to Allison and Shannon who "grew up" with my study of prostitution, and to John who says he "grew old" with my study of prostitution, I dedicate this book. They did not know what home life or vacations were like without my project, but they never lost faith that someday it would be completed.