Anne Seagraves

This slim volume packs a lot of interesting-- and fun-- information about actresses who charmed audiences throughout the western United States from the 1800s and on to the turn of the twentieth century.

Nine legendary actresses from the likes of Lillian Russell, Sarah Bernhardt, Adah Isaacs Menken, and Lillie Langtry grace this entertaining book in photographs and text. For the most part, I already knew much about such performers as Russell, Bernhardt, and Langtry, but I still enjoyed being show more reminded of their talents and their exploits. Reading about those who are even less well known made me want to begin research on them as soon as I finished the book.

If you like discovering tidbits such as which actress was the world's first superstar... or which actress had the first red carpet rolled out for her, this is definitely the book for you. It may be a light version of women's history, but with the bibliography in the back, it won't be difficult to learn even more about them if you're so inclined. I know I am! show less

"Soiled Doves: Prostitution in the Early West," by Anne Seagraves, purports to tell the stories of individual prostitutes in the Western USA from about the 1850s or so, complete with early photographs of some of the women and contemporary accounts in local newspapers, etc. But, well, I couldn’t begin to get through it, simply because of totally incorrect statements, starting with the Forward: “Queen Victoria’s strict morality temporarily put a halt to prostitution in England in the show more 1800s.” Um, no, prostitution was thriving throughout Victoria’s reign, and women in the profession were exceptionally vulnerable because of “strict morality” laws, which gave them no protection against, well, anybody. Then, in the Introduction, consider this description of women in 1800s America who moved West: “Many of these women came from other countries to escape poverty. They usually had no funds and the majority were uneducated and did not speak English.” Um, no, many women moved West with their families, and most of them weren’t prostitutes. Later, “the soiled doves were good for the western economy and helped support the community. They spent their money locally, buying fancy clothing, expensive wines and ornamental jewelry.” Well, um, those commodities weren’t made in the community, they were imported and the locals by no means got the lion’s share of the profits….Well, this is all before Chapter One, and I was just done. I looked at the photos, which might be of interest in the future, but there’s no list of photography supplying their province, no notes, a rather skimpy bibliography and, for no reason I can fathom, a glossary of terms. Very disappointing. show less

There may be quite a few books on prostitution in the Old West, but most of them are twaddle. The only academic book I can recommend is Anne Butler's "Daughters of Joy, Sisters of Misery" --but it requires quite a bit of time as it's a dense read. For those who don't really want to know 'that much' about The Profession, I would recommend "Soiled Doves".

Not only was it a quick, pleasurable read, but Ms. Seagraves seems to have done her homework; I found nothing factually in disagreement with show more Butler's research.

What I liked about the book, besides the many interesting historic photographs, was that the author was intent on not portraying all prostitutes as utterly powerless victims --something which Ms. Butler does relentlessly. Instead Ms. Seagraves offers the reader some examples of women, usually madams, who succeeded in making money for themselves, or who managed in one way or another to meaningfully contribute to their communities. And her writing about the interiors and décor of the various bawdy houses – from skanky crib to fancy establishment -- guided me in better understanding the general conditions in which these women worked.

Summary ::: I found that I like this book, and that it made a fine companion piece to Dr. Butler's more academic take on the subject of the prostitution in the Old West. Ms. Seagraves seems well aware of the academic literature on this topic as is shown by her bibliography, but has chosen to write a more populist book, sans footnotes.

http://www.pageinhistory.com/2008/04/soiled-doves-by-anne-seagraves.html show less

First Line: The heyday of prostitution, in America, occurred during the turbulent years of the early West when women were at a premium.

In the early years of the West, the average was two women for every one hundred men. Women were definitely at a premium, and I can imagine that what few men managed to have their wives and daughters with them kept a very close eye on them. Most men came west to make their fortunes. It was back-breaking work, and few realized their dreams. But whether they show more made their fortunes or not, when they took a day off, they wanted to spend their hard-earned cash on some comfort, and much of that comfort came from prostitutes.

Seagraves gives an overview of prostitution in this era, and it was a very stratified society: from the courtesans at the very top, all the way down to the illiterate and desperate women in the cribs. Most of the book is told in vignettes of different women who, for whatever reason, chose this way of life and made a name for themselves. Although Seagraves does mention famous women like Lola Montez and Calamity Jane, she's at her best when telling us about the lives of the less famous like Mattie Silks of Holladay Street in Denver and Julia Bulette of Virginia City, Nevada. Interspersed with photographs and articles from newspapers of the day, Soiled Doves is fascinating and often poignant reading. Although I found the transitions from general history to personal stories a bit choppy, the information I learned from the book more than made up for any slight awkwardness. My mind--ever the collector of bits of trivia--has already stored away two tidbits: (1) what the railroad has to do with areas of prostitution being known as the "red light district", and (2) so many prostitutes owned poodles as pets that no "decent" woman would have one.

I have to admit that, as I read this book, my mind kept going to one old mining town in particular: Jerome, Arizona. You see, I've walked through the cribs there, seen an old bordello that's now a restaurant, and seen a sign that made me wonder just who Belgian Jennie was. Prostitutes performed vital functions in the Old West, and not just the one of which you always think. Some of them left the profession and married well. Most didn't. Some of them lived in comfort to a ripe old age. Most didn't. However their lives ended, they were an important part of the fabric of the Old West. show less