Sandwiched In with Ron Brown - Madame Restell: The Wickedest Woman in New York

During the mid-19th Century Madame Restell began a successful but quite controversial business offering services as a “Female Physician.” She built a lavish mansion on Fifth Avenue and aspired to be accepted as an equal with the many men and women who had amassed fortunes during the Civil War. Unfortunately, offering abortion and contraception services was not considered worthy of admission to New York’s high society. She was involved in countless legal battles resulting from her work helping pregnant women.  These legal battles were heavily documented in the sensationalistic news of the Gilded Age. Shunned by the Fifth Avenue elite she earned the name “The Wickedest Woman in New York.”  Join Professor Ron Brown as he continues his series about famous New Yorkers.