Riley, Glenda & Etulain, Richard W., eds. Wild women of the Old West.(Notable Westerners series). Fulcrum fulcrum: see lever. . 229p. illus. bibliog. index, c2003. 1-55591-295-8. $17.95. SA Mention names such as Calamity Jane Calamity Jane (kəlăm`ĭtē jān`), c.1852–1903, American frontier character, b. Princeton, Mo. Her real name was Martha Jane Canary, and the origin of her nickname is obscure. or Baby Doe and they might evoke today's romanticized images of 19th and early 20th century women in the West as portrayed in films and popular fiction. However, historians and researchers delving into letters, mementos, and legal documents present a very different picture of these women, often living on the wild side of law and social custom. This volume depicts a cast of vibrant characters: women as entertainers and rodeo riders (Lucille Mulhall Lucille Mulhall (October 21, 1885–December 21, 1940) was a well known cowgirl and Wild West performer. She was raised on her family's Mulhall Ranch in Oklahoma Territory, near what is now Mulhall, Oklahoma. and Bertha Blanchett), ranchers, mine owners and social climbers (Baby Doe), homesteaders and possible cattle thieves (Cattle Kate Ellen Liddy Watson (July 2, 1861-July 20, 1889) was a female pioneer of Wyoming who became better known as Cattle Kate, an outlaw of the Old West. The "outlaw" characterization is a dubious one, as she was not violent and was never charged with any crime. ), hard-working madams and risk-taking prostitutes, and women who inspired songs and legends (Yellow Rose of Texas and Polly Bemis Polly Bemis was a famous Chinese American pioneer woman who lived in the Pacific Northwest in the late Nineteenth and early Twentieth Century. Life Polly Bemis was born Lalu Nathoy in China in 1853. She was sold by her parents when she was still a child. ). These women's stories separate the myths from reality. They reveal a less than rosy picture of life for women who worked outside the ordinary mold of housewife and helpmate help·mate n. A helper and companion, especially a spouse. [Probably alteration of helpmeet (influenced by mate1). in the very proper Victorian and Edwardian eras. In most cases these are not women in fancy dresses living in luxury, but rather struggling women, living rough in small towns that sprang up as mines opened, land came up for grabs, and harsh frontier justice often swamped law and order. Even Baby Doe Tabor. for all her one-time high living, struggled against prejudice and hard times. In spite of these odds and the disdain with which the average citizen regarded them, these wild women wrestled to build a life for themselves. To read about their exploits from a historian's point of view tends to destroy many of the fanciful images that films and popular writings project about these women. Nevertheless. no one can take away the "true grit" and determination of such women, pioneers and wild ones. This is a useful addition to regional collections and women's studies. Mary T. Gerrity, Bel Air, MD |
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