Using property records, census data, newspapers, and archival sources, this episode traces the history of Joan’s apartment and the women who lived there before her. What begins as a celebrity ghost story quickly turns into an archival investigation and an examination of how easily real people can slip into legend. As always, the goal isn’t to debunk for debunking’s sake... it’s to uncover the hidden truths of history and bring them to light.
Sources & Archival Materials (full bibliography can be found on the podcast shownotes or the podcast website):
U.S. Census & Vital Records
1920 U.S. Federal Census – Edith Spencer (AncestryLibrary)
1940 U.S. Federal Census – Natalie C. Spencer (AncestryLibrary)
1950 U.S. Census – New York City (FamilySearch)
Social Security Death Index (AncestryLibrary)
New York Marriage Index, 1866–1937 (AncestryLibrary)
Passenger & Crew Lists, 1820–1957 (AncestryLibrary)
Genealogy & Family Records
Edith Spencer Scrapbook (New York Public Library Archives)
Find a Grave: Vivian Spencer; Eleanor Morgan Satterlee
Colonial Families of the USA, 1607–1775 (AncestryLibrary)
Junius Spencer Morgan III family records (AncestryLibrary)
Newspapers & Periodicals
The New York Times (1906, 1907, 1927, 1967)
New York American (1909)
New Pittsburgh Courier (1928)
The Evening World (1906)
New York Post (1984)
Newspapers.com archival clippings (1922, 1927)
Der Tog (Yiddish newspaper), November 6, 1944
Property & Architectural Records
ACRIS NYC Property Records
HPD Online Building Overview
Zillow & Corcoran Group listings for 1 E. 62nd Street
CityRealty: The Spencer Condominium
Daytonian in Manhattan: John R. Drexel House
1940s NYC Street Photography Project
Secondary Sources & Media
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work (2010), dir. Zoe Pauliks
Celebrity Ghost Stories: Joan Rivers episode (LMN)
HauntedCuriosities.com – “J.P. Morgan’s Niece Mrs. Spencer”
Mansions of the Gilded Age (Facebook archival group)
Historical Records, & Misc.
Annual Report of the Tennessee Railroad Company (1972)
Natalie Clews Spencer Foundation, Inc. records
Wikipedia: John R. Drexel (revision dated Sept. 10, 2025)
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