Baroness of Hobcaw: The Life of Belle W. Baruch

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments No biography is written without a great deal of help and cooperation, and I owe a great debt to many people who shared their memories of Belle Baruch. Without Ella Severin, resident trustee and director of long-range planning for the Belle W. Baruch Foundation, this book could not have been written. Miss Severin shared her memories, letters, and memorabilia of her fifteen years as Belle’s companion and opened the archives of the foundation as well as the doors of Bellefield Plantation and Hobcaw House. Belle’s younger sister, Renee Baruch Samstag, declined to be interviewed as such but shared her memories and admiration of her older sister, answered questions , verified facts, and did meet with me briefly in her New York apartment. The staff of the Belle W. Baruch Foundation were invaluable in sharing information and suggesting avenues of exploration. George Chastain, executive director of the foundation, and Lee Brockington, historian for the property, were especially generous in exchanging information and resources. Varvara Hasselbalch Heyd was endlessly patient and generous, speaking openly of her lifelong friendship with Belle Baruch, sharing letters, memorabilia , and invaluable insights. A professional photographer, Varvara also shared photographs of Belle, her family, and friends. My thanks to Robert Darthez, Christiane Daoudi, and Yvette Bozigian, the children of Jean Darthez, Belle’s French groom and dear friend, for their recollections of life at Bellefield Plantation. Lois Massey, now deceased, shared her diaries and letters and twenty-five years of memories, as did Nolan and Cynthia Taylor, Francena McCants, Prince Jenkins, and Elizabeth Navarro. James Bessinger Jr. helped me to see the lands and waters of Hobcaw Barony through the eyes of Belle Baruch and introduced me to his father, James Bessinger Sr., who spun tales of Belle and Hobcaw as it was many years ago. Thanks also owed to Paul Dollfus, Abe Fogle, Anne Johnston, Barbara Donohoe Jostes, Minnie Kennedy, Bill Landsman, Louise Milam, and Inez Alford Villafranca. This page intentionally left blank ...