| James Van | Alen | A widow. |
| Jules | Allard | One of the most notable interior decorators. |
| Marie | Antoinette | The last Queen of France before the French Revolution. |
| Miss | Archer | Osmond's wife. |
| Samuel | Ashe | Governor of North Carolina. |
| Caroline S. | Astor | An American socialite. |
| Carrie | Astor | Caroline Astor's daughter. |
| Emily | Astor | Mrs. Astor's older daughter. |
| Miss | Astor | Florence's friend. |
| William | Astor | Mrs. Astor's husband. |
| William | Astor | Caroline's nephew. |
| John Jacob | Astor III | A philanthropist and a prominent member of the Astor family. |
| Mrs. | Aubrey | One of the speakers. |
| Jane | Austen | A novelist. |
| Mr. | Barnum | An American showman, politician, and businessman. |
| P.T. | Barnum | An American showman. |
| Annalisa | Beekman | President of a Society for the Betterment of Working Children, |
| Oliver | Belmont | W.K.'s friend. |
| Elizabeth | Bennett | Fictional character in the novel Pride and Prejudice. |
| Gordon | Bennett | A yacht's owner. |
| Hadley | Berg | Lydia Roosevelt's friend. |
| William | Blake | An English poet, painter, and printmaker. |
| Anne | Boleyn | Queen of England. |
| Hallett | Borrowe | One of the best known Rough riders. |
| Emily | Bronte | English novelist and poet. |
| Harry | Brook | Lydia Roosevelt's husband. |
| William | Bryan | Former United States Secretary of State. |
| Mrs. | Buchanan | A dressmaker. |
| Dr. | Bull | One of Oliver's physician. |
| Alexandre | Cabanel | A French painter. |
| Andrew | Carnegie | An American industrialist, and philanthropist. |
| Mr. | Carnegie. | An impressive
Scotsman. |
| Carrie | Catt | One of the panelists. |
| Mr. | Chaplin | An artist. |
| Joseph | Choate | Alva's attorney. |
| Charles | Churchill | 9th Duke of Marlborough. |
| Clementine | Churchill | Winston Churchill's wife. Aka: Lady Churchill. |
| John | Churchill | The first Duke of Marlborough. |
| Lady Alberta | Churchill | Lady Lansdowne's sister. |
| Rando[ph | Churchill | A British journalist, writer. |
| Winston | Churchill | Former British Prime Minister. |
| Samuel | Clemens | American writer known by his pen name Mark Twain. |
| Grover | Cleveland | 22nd U.S. President. |
| Mrs. | Coleman | An agency owner. |
| Mrs. | Cooper | One of Caroline Astor's friends. |
| Mabel | Crane | A new member of the society. |
| Mr. | Darcy | One of the two central characters in Jane Austen's novel. |
| Laura | Davies | Mamie Fish's friend. |
| Marie Claire | de Cro y | Duchess of Havre. |
| Joseph B. | de La Mole | A French nobleman. |
| Jose | de Madrazo | A Spanish painter and engraver. |
| Catherine | de Medici | Queen consort of France. |
| Helene | de Pourtales | An American who became a Swiss sailor. |
| Melanie | de Pourtales | A French salonniére and courtier. |
| Elisabeth | de Rothschild | A baroness. A member by marriage of the Rothschild family. |
| Marguerite | de Valois | Queen of Navarre. |
| Dr. | Deems | Commodore's friend. |
| Madame | Denis | Alva's favorite teacher. |
| Miss | Donovan | A young talented seamstress. |
| James | Drayton | Charlotte's husband. |
| Mrs. | Dresser | One of Caroline Astor's friends. |
| Mr. | Drew | A musical artist. |
| Mr. | Edison | Electrical wiring expert. |
| Mary | Ellen | One of the speakers. |
| Mr. | Fair | Theresa Fair's father. |
| Mrs. | Fair | Theresa Fair's mother. |
| Theresa | Fair | American socialite. Aka: Tessie. |
| Mamie | Fish | Alva's friend. |
| Stuyvesant | Fish | Mamie's husband. Aka: Stuyvie. |
| Charles de | Fontenilliat | Julia's husband. |
| Sir Francis | Galton | The scientist who advocates purposeful breeding. |
| Jason | Gould | American railroad executive. |
| Ulysses S. | Grant | 18th U.S. President. |
| Nevile Martin | Gwynne | A British writer. |
| Alexander | Hamilton | One of the Founding Fathers of the United States. |
| Mrs. | Harmon | Lydia Roosevelt's acquaintance. |
| Miss | Harper | The governess. |
| Oliver | Hazard Perry | Oliver Belmont's great-uncle. |
| Catherine | Hunt | Richard Hunt's wife. |
| Esther | Hunt | Richard Hunt's daughter. |
| Richard | Hunt | An architect. |
| Henry | James | An American-British author. |
| Colonel | Jay | Alva's acquaintance. |
| Lucy | Jay | Colonel Jay's wife. |
| Thomas | Jefferson | 3rd U.S. President. |
| Cornelius | Jeremiah | Mr. McAllister's old friend. |
| Jennie | Jerome | An American-born British socialite. |
| Edith | Jones | Mary Mason Jones' niece. |
| Mrs. | Jones | The Vanderbilt's acquaintance. |
| Mrs. | Keillor | A baker. |
| Mr. | Klunder | A florist. |
| Dr. | Lanehart | One of Oliver's physician. |
| Vicereine | Lansdowne | Viceroy's wife. The Lady Lansdowne. |
| Viceroy | Lansdowne | The governor general, a marquess. |
| Frederick | Law Olmsted | The father of American landscape architecture. |
| Harry | Lehr | A pianist, singer. |
| Abraham | Lincoln | 16th U.S. President. |
| Dr. | Linsly | The Commodore's physician. |
| Pierre J. | Lorillard IV | An American tobacco manufacturer. |
| Kitty | Mackay | Consuelo's school friend. |
| Colonel | Mann | An opportunist. |
| Mary | Mason Jones | An aficionado of French architecture. |
| Ward | McAllister | An attorney. |
| Dr. | McCosh | One of Oliver's physician. |
| William | McKinley | 25th U.S. President. |
| Alice | Montagu | Lady C's daughter. |
| George | Montagu | 8th Duke of Manchester. Known as Viscount Mandeville. |
| May Alva | Montagu | Lady C's daughter. |
| William | Montagu | George and Consuelo's son. Aka: Kim. |
| Mrs. | Morgan | Pierpont Morgan's mistress. |
| Pierpont | Morgan | An American financier and banker. |
| Captain | Morrison | A crewman. |
| Nellie | Neustretter | Alleged mistress of W.K. Vanderbilt. |
| Herman | Oelrichs | Miss Theresa Fair's husband. |
| Fred | Olmsted | An American landscape architect. |
| Gilbert | Osmond | An American expatriate living in Italy. |
| Vess | Ossman | A recording artist. |
| Lady | Paget | Alva's friend. |
| Christabel | Pankhurst | Co-founder of the Women's Social and Political Union. |
| Emmeline | Pankhurst | British activist. |
| Matthew | Perry | American naval officer. |
| Matthew C. | Perry | An American naval officer. |
| Madame de | Pompadour | The official chief mistress of Louis XV. |
| Lillian | Price | A New York millionaire's widow. |
| Josephine | Redding | Vogue magazine's editor in chief. |
| Madame | Restell | A notorious abortionist. |
| Cardinal | Richelieu | A French clergyman and statesman. |
| Mr. | Rochester | A controversial but key character in Jane Eyre. |
| Matthew | Rock | A tailor. |
| John | Rockefeller | An American business magnate and philanthropist. |
| John D. | Rockefeller | An American business magnate and philantropist. |
| Alice | Roosevelt | Teddy Roosevelt's wife. |
| Cornelia | Roosevelt | Isaac Roosevelt's daughter. |
| Isaac | Roosevelt | American merchant and Federalist politician. |
| Lydia | Roosevelt | A relative of one of the charity group founders. |
| Theodore | Roosevelt | 26th U.S. President. Aka: Teddy. |
| Mr. | Rosa | An art teacher. |
| Winthrop | Rutherfurd | An American socialite. Aka: Winty. |
| Mr. | Sargent | A portraitist. |
| Mrs. | Shaffer | A housekeeper. |
| William | Shakespeare | An English poet. |
| Margaret | Shepard | W.K.'s oldest sister. |
| William T. | Sherman | An American soldier, businessman, educator and author. |
| Alva | Smith | An American socialite. |
| Armide | Smith | Alva's older sister. |
| Jenny | Smith | Alva's sister. |
| Murray | Smith | Alva's father. |
| Phoebe | Smith | Alva's mother. |
| Minnie | Stevens | Alva's acquaintance. |
| Alexander T. | Stewart | American entrepreneur. |
| Mrs. | Stewart | Alexander Stewart's wife. |
| Ida | Tarbell | One of the panelists. |
| Caleb | Taylor | An attorney. Mary's husband. |
| Dr. George | Terry | Uncle C.J.'s friend. |
| Mrs. | Tufts | The Commodore's friend. |
| Anthony | van Dyck | A Flemish Baroque artist. |
| Alice | Vanderbilt | Corneil's wife. |
| Billy | Vanderbilt | W.K.'s father. |
| Consuelo | Vanderbilt | Alva and W.K.'s daughter. |
| Cornelius | Vanderbilt | W.K.'s grandfather. A commodore. |
| Cornelius Jeremiah— | Vanderbilt | W.K.'s uncle. Aka: C J. |
| Emily | Vanderbilt | W.K.'s younger sister. |
| Florence | Vanderbilt | W.K.'s sister. |
| George | Vanderbilt | W.K.'s brother. |
| Mrs. | Vanderbilt | W.K.'s mother. |
| Reggie | Vanderbilt | Alice's son. |
| William K. | Vanderbilt | Consuelo's acquaintance.aka: W.K. |
| Marie Louise | Vassey | Ward's acquaintance. |
| Calvert | Vaux | American architect. |
| Jules Gabriel | Verne | A French novelist |
| Hohann | von Goethe | A German writer and statesman. |
| Mrs. | Washburn | The Reverend's wife. |
| | Washburn | A Reverend. |
| Martha | Washington | Former First Lady of the United States. |
| Jean-Antoine | Watteau | A French painter. |
| Edith | Wharton | An American novelist. |
| Madame | Whitaker | Alva's neighbor in Paris. |
| Stanford | White | An American architect. |
| Sallie | Whiting | Miss Astor's good friend. |
| Harry | Whitney | Gertrude's new fiance. |
| Monsieur | Widor | An organist. |
| Mr. | Wilde | A writer. |
| Grace | Wilson | A young woman who had once been attached to Bill. |
| Orme | Wilson | Miss Astor's fiance. |
| Victoria | Woodhull | An American leader of the women's suffrage movement. |
| William | Wordsworth | An English Romantic poet. |
| William | Wordsworth | An English Romantic poet. |
| Monsieur | Worth | A dress shop owner. |
| Consuelo | Yznaga | Alva's closest friend since their childhood. |
| Mr. | Yznaga | Consuelo's father. |
| Albert | | Prince of Wales, Queen Victoria's eldest son. Aka: Bertie. |
| Alice Eleanor | | Lady C's daughter. |
| August | | Oliver's brother. |
| Azar | | Oliver's manservant. |
| Beatrice | | A member of the British royal family. |
| Birdie | | Tessie Oelrichs's youngest sister. |
| Bridget | | A housemaid. |
| Bryn | | One of the nurses. |
| Caitlyn | | Lady C's maid. |
| Catherine ll | | Empress of Russia known as Catherine the Great. |
| Charlotte | | An Astor girl who had a flaming love with Hallet Borowe. |
| Cimabue | | An Italian painter and designer of mosaics from Florence. |
| Cleopatra | | The last active ruler of the Ptolemaic Kindom of Egypt. |
| Cook | | A maid. |
| Corneil | | W.K.'s older brother. |
| Cornelius lll | | Alice and Corneil's younger boy. Aka: Neily. |
| Ellen | | One of the nurses. |
| Eugenie | | The last Empress of the French. |
| Eric | | Alva's footman. |
| Evelyn | | Alva's housekeeper. |
| Ferdinand | | A member of the British royal family. |
| Fernando | | Lady C.'s brother. |
| Francis Joseph | | A Prince considered for the throne of Bulgaria. |
| Frank | | The Commodore Vanderbilt's second wife. |
| Frederick | | W.K.'s brother. Aka: Fred. |
| Gertrude | | Alice and Corneil's newest child. |
| Glady | | Alice's youngest daughter. |
| Harold | | Alva's new baby. |
| Jacqueline | | Alice Eleanor Louise's twin sister. |
| Jane | | One of the Vanderbilt's relatives. |
| Julia | | Alva's youngest sister. |
| Katharine | | Duchess of Kent. |
| Katie | | A little girl whose mother was found dead. |
| King Francis I | | King of France. |
| King Henry VIII | | Former King of England. |
| Lila | | W.K.'s sister. |
| Little Alice | | Alice's daughter. |
| Littlejohn | | A Bishop. |
| Lord Henry | | Lady Lansdowne's son. |
| Louis XV | | King of France. |
| Louis XVI | | King of France. |
| Louise | | Mrs. Belmont's maid. |
| Lulu | | A seamstress. |
| Mary | | Lulu's daughter. |
| Maxwell | | William's valet. |
| Mohammed VI | | The King of Morocco. |
| Moses | | A prophet. |
| Muhammad | | Religious leader. |
| Napoleon III | | The first President of France. Aka: Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte. |
| Neily | | Alice and Corneil's first born. |
| Queen Anne | | Queen of Great Britain. |
| Queen Claude | | Queen of France. |
| Queen Victoria | | Former Queen of the United Kingdom. |
| Ranhofer | | A Chef . |
| Rembrandt | | A Dutch painter. |
| Sarah | | Ward McAllister's wife. |
| Sophia | | Gertrude's great-grandmother. |
| Titian | | An Italian painter |
| William Henry II | | Alice and Corneil's oldest son. Aka: Bill. |
| Willie | | Alva's son. |
| Winston | | Jennie's son. |
