Marian Brook's family comes from old money, but after her father dies, she is informed that once his debts are paid, she will be impoverished.

Marian's relatives are members of New York's "old money" families. She and her friend, Peggy Scott, move to New York City to live with her estranged aunts.

Actress Louisa Jacobson plays Marian Brook in the HBO series The Gilded Age.