WOMEN OF THE CRIPPLE CREEK MINING DISTRICT #PrairieRosePublications, @PrairieRosePub

Headframe-Cripple Creek Mining District (c) Doris McCraw

We hear a lot about what the men did in the early days of the settling of the West, and they did a great deal. However, as many of you know, I focus not only on Colorado History, but Women’s History. For this post I thought I’d share a bit about the women who made the Cripple Creek Mining District home during its start up and heyday years.

To make it a bit easier I’ve broken these women into groups for ease of understanding where they were in relation to what was happening. Ladies of the Evening, Business Women, High Society and Creative Women.

Ladies of the Evening

Probably the most well known lady of the evening was Pearl DeVere. She was the madam of The Homestead House, Cripple Creek’s most elegant and expensive ‘parlor house’. She died in 1897 of what the doctor said was an accidental morphine overdose. An anonymous donor sent $1,000 for her funeral, as she was reported to be broke. Pearl might have been forgotten to time, if the story of her funeral had not been immortalized in the book “Cripple Creek Days” by Mabel Barbee Lee.

Pearl DeVere headstone, Mt.Pisgah Cemetery (c) Doris McCraw

One Lady of the Evening that has almost been forgotten is Blanche Burton. Blanche arrived in Cripple Creek in 1891, at the beginning of the boom. She had her place of business on the main street, probably above a saloon. Blanche could be considered the first madam in the district. She ‘retired’ back to Colorado City, just to the west of Colorado Springs after leaving the district. Her last listed occupation prior to her death was seamstress.

Business Women

Of all the business women in the district, the one that fascinates me the most is Mollie O’Brien (O'Bryan). Mollie was the first women on a mining exchange in the United States. The following quote about Mollie was printed in the “Mining Investor” published in 1909, Miss Mollie O’Brien is a successful operator in mines, both in Cripple Creek and Nevada and has been very successful in financing some of the largest properties of the Cripple Creek and Goldfield. She was the secretary/treasurer of the Trilby Mines company.

Mollie O'Bryan headstone, Mt. Pisgah Cemetery (c) Doris McCraw

Dr. Catherine Polly was active in the Cripple Creek District Medical Society. By 1905 Dr. Polly and other women doctors of the Women’s Medical Society of Denver, created a polyclinic in December of that year. Dr. Polly along with Dr. Love were in charge of surgery. She was also involved with helping to set standards for public instruction in the state of Colorado. Her husband, was also a medical doctor.

High Society Women

Ethel Frizzell-Carlton, wife of Cripple Creek millionaire Albert E. Carlton. Ethel was the daughter of one of the early lawyers in Cripple Creek and caught the eye of banker, investor Albert Carlton. The two of them were some of the elite of the Cripple Creek District.

Creative Women

Julia Skolas was one of the most successful photographers in Cripple Creek. She moved to Cripple Creek in 1907 from Colorado Springs. She was known for her landscape and portraits. Her Skolas Madonna and waterfall photos are still available for viewing in various areas and online.

These are just a few of the women who were instrumental in helping the Cripple Creek mining district become the greatest gold camp in Colorado.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Member of National League of American Pen Women,

Women Writing the West,

Pikes Peak Posse of the Westerners

Angela Raines - author: Where Love & History Meet

For a list of Angela Raines Books: Here 

Photo and Poem: Click Here 

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