Look into Greenwich history and real estate and you may find stories of Hetty Green and her daughter Mrs Hetty Sylvia Howland Wilks Green. The Richest Woman in America: Hetty Green in the Gilded Age by Janet Wallach is a captivating biography of America's first female tycoon, Hetty Green, the iconoclast who forged one of the greatest fortunes of her time. At the time of her death in 1916, she was worth at least 100 million dollars, equal to more than 2 billion dollars today. A strong believer in women being financially independent, she offered valuable lessons for the present. Ms Wallach is the author of several books on nonfiction including NY Times Notable Book DESERT QUEEN: THE EXTRAORDINARY LIFE OF GERTRUDE BELL.