Includes bibliographical references.

"The Barbizon tells the story of New York's most glamorous women-only hotel, and the women--both famous and ordinary--who passed through its doors. World War I had liberated women. Arriving in New York, they did not want to stay in uncomfortabler boarding houses; they wanted what men already had--exclusive residential hotels. The Barbizon would become the most famous of them all, welcoming everyone from aspiring actresses, dancers, and fashion models to seamstresses, secretaries, and nurses--all arriving with hope. It gave women a chance to remake themselves as they pleased. No place had existed like it before or has since.