Andrew James Peters 42nd Mayor of Boston — Credit: Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons. (Original text: The Municipal Register for 1918, Boston, MA: The City of Boston, 1918, p 2.) · Public domain
Starr Faithfull, born Marian Starr Wyman in 1906, was an American socialite and model whose death by drowning in June 1931 became a major tabloid story. She was found dead on the beach at Long Beach, New York, on the morning of June 8, 1931. An autopsy determined she had drowned but also found numerous bruises consistent with beating or rough handling, along with a large dose of a sedative, initially identified as Veronal, in her system.
Faithfull had a documented history of alleged childhood sexual abuse by Andrew James Peters, a wealthy former mayor of Boston (1918–1922) and a relative of her mother's family, beginning when Faithfull was about 11 years old. Faithfull's stepfather, Stanley Faithfull, had negotiated a settlement with Peters in 1927 in exchange for keeping the abuse secret; the family reportedly received substantial additional payments from Peters over the following years, and letters showed the family had contacted him seeking more money shortly before and during Starr's disappearance.
Investigators initially treated the death as a homicide, theorizing that Faithfull had been pushed or forcibly held underwater, possibly near the shore where sand was found in her lungs. Stanley Faithfull publicly accused Peters of having his stepdaughter murdered to prevent disclosure of the abuse. However, letters Faithfull had written in the days before her death, addressed to a ship's doctor with whom she was infatuated, described detailed suicidal intentions and caused investigators, including Nassau County Inspector Harold King, to increasingly favor a suicide theory. Nassau County District Attorney Elvin Edwards and Assistant DA Martin Littleton Jr. continued to investigate the case as a possible homicide into December 1931 but were unable to gather sufficient evidence for an indictment.
A grand jury convened to examine the case returned no indictments, and a final inquest held in December 1931 lasted fifteen minutes and reached no conclusion. Nassau County Coroner Edward Neu stated that any decision would only be "a matter of opinion." Peters was formally questioned by investigators but was never charged in connection with Faithfull's death; he continued in public roles in Massachusetts in the following years and died in 1938.
The case has since been the subject of multiple non-fiction true crime books, including Fred J. Cook's The Girl on the Lonely Beach (1956) and Jonathan Goodman's The Passing of Starr Faithfull (1990), which won the Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger Award for Non-Fiction. Later researchers, including Goodman and author Jay Robert Nash, have proposed differing alternative theories involving organized-crime figures or an unidentified assailant, but no definitive resolution has been reached. The case also inspired John O'Hara's 1935 novel BUtterfield 8, later adapted into a 1960 film.
Marian Starr Wyman (later known as Starr Faithfull) is born in Evanston, Illinois.
1926-06
Faithfull tells her mother that Andrew James Peters had sexually abused her for years, beginning when she was 11.
1927
Stanley Faithfull negotiates a settlement in which Peters pays the family $20,000 to keep the alleged abuse secret.
1931-03
Faithfull is briefly committed to Bellevue Hospital after being found drunk, naked, and beaten in a New York hotel room.
1931-05-29
Faithfull attends a party aboard the RMS Franconia, is later forcibly removed from the ship after it departs the dock.
1931-06-04
Faithfull is seen intoxicated by a taxi driver and later reportedly attends a party; spends the evening with an acquaintance.
1931-06-05
Faithfull is last seen alive leaving her family's apartment; spends the day and evening visiting ocean liners and gets into a taxi near Pier 56 after 10:00 pm.
1931-06-06
A woman matching Faithfull's description is reportedly seen at a hotel near Long Beach, New York; her family reports her missing to the NYPD.
1931-06-08
Faithfull's body is found on the beach at Long Beach, New York; she is identified by her stepfather that evening.
1931-06-22
The New York Times begins publishing the text of letters Faithfull wrote before her death suggesting suicidal intent.
1931-07-25
Stanley Faithfull publicly accuses Andrew James Peters of having been involved in his stepdaughter's alleged abuse and death.
1931-12
A final fifteen-minute inquest into Faithfull's death is held; the jury reaches no conclusion.
1938
Andrew James Peters dies.
Best coverage
Titles and descriptions are the creators’ own and may not reflect current legal status; see the dossier above for sourced case facts.
VIDEO
Brooke Makenna / 24 min
"STARR" CROSSED - The Starr Faithfull Case | Collab with Mollie Westbrook
People
Starr Faithfull
VICTIM
American socialite and model found drowned at Long Beach, New York, in June 1931; cause of death (homicide, suicide, or accident) never conclusively determined.
Andrew James Peters
CHARGED
Former mayor of Boston accused by Faithfull and her stepfather of childhood sexual abuse and suspected by the family of involvement in her death; formally questioned by investigators but never charged with any crime related to her death.
Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.
Archival records
archival location
12 St. Luke's Place, Greenwich Village, NYC, USA, March 2016
1931 advertisement for reward from Nassau County (New York) Police Department
Credit: Nassau County Police, Mineola, Long Island, New York · Public domain · Source
portrait public figure
Andrew James Peters 42nd Mayor of Boston
Credit: Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons. (Original text: The Municipal Register for 1918, Boston, MA: The City of Boston, 1918, p 2.) · Public domain · Source
unclassified
Henry Otto Schultze (1867-1934) obituary in the Daily News of New York City, New York on July 5, 1934
Credit: AnonymousUnknown author · Public domain · Source
unclassified
Marian Starr Wyman (1906-1931) circa 1930
Credit: AnonymousUnknown author · Public domain · Source
In 1931, 25-year-old New York socialite Starr Faithfull was found drowned on a Long Island beach with unexplained bruises and a sedative in her system. Investigators could not determine whether her death was homicide, suicide, or an accident, and the case remains unsolved.
