#AKChickenChick – Scribbling For Fun

Researching Alaska-Yukon, part 3

“She is all nerve as she enters the room and surveys the waiting crowd…the dance hall girl is industrious. She is never vacillating or undecided, she is persevering. She does not flit about the room bestowing a smile here a caress there and again a pouting neglect. When she selects her victim, she stays with him. The more marked her favor, the greater is his triumph. He needs her to complete a spectacle of himself as a favored beau…” -1 pg. 56

My historical romance, A Drink of Darkness has been just as much fun to research as to write. Set in the Yukon Gold-rush boom-town of Dawson City in 1898, I have spent a lot of time gathering information about the setting and the people of Dawson.

My Saloon Girl Helena, and my vampire ladies of the night Eve, Bianca and Liz are complete works of fiction, but I drew my inspiration from reality. I used many sources for my writing, but one of my favorites was Lael Morgan’s Good Time Girls of the Alaska-Yukon Gold Rush.

This was one of the first books I picked up when I moved to Alaska 12 years ago, and it is a great resource on these women who were an integral part of pioneering what is still referred to as the last frontier. Her book follows the ladies through the entire rush. My post will stick to a specific location and time period for now. I decided to put together this short blog post to pay homage to this reference and to these unique, real ladies of Dawson City in 1898.

Here is a link to Lael Morgan’s fascinating book and where you can buy it on Amazon if you are interested

Ms. Morgan uses photo’s from the various archives and stories of these women’s lives to show how they shaped not only the Gold Rush, but Alaska and the Yukon Territory’s fate. It is a fascinating journey through an era where women were forbidden from: owning a Saloon, wearing bloomers, and in some areas prospecting or owning a claim. Prostitution was illegal in the Yukon and Alaska territory, but law enforcement looked the other way and often protected these ladies, seeing the services they provided as a necessary evil to keep the lusts of the men at bay, lest they take it out on “respectable women.” These women came north, often packing their gear themselves over the treacherous Chilkoot Pass or taking the 1600 mile all-steamer-route.

Federal Judge James Wickersham, who presided over Alaska during this time kept a collection of pictures of these ladies (which can be accessed via the Alaska Digital Archives). He spoke well of the “Good Time Girls.”

“The sporting women were of a more robust class than usual among their kind, hence there were fewer cases of venereal disease among them…The women were also younger, more vigorous and independent than those of the same class in the older more crowded communities in the states…” -1 pg. 19

He later went on to say:

“A goodly number of these women yielded to the persuasions of their favorite male customers, quit the life of the dance hall or the bawdy house, and calmly settled down to a quiet home life with their husbands…It quite frequently became my duty as judge to perform marriages for persons of that class and more often that not the marriages were successful.” 1-pg. 51

While this sounds really sweet and romantic, history (and Ms. Morgan’s book) paints a slightly different picture. The hardships and economics of the decisions could be very persuasive. The cost of living was high. Rent on a basic cabin or tent in Dawson could be $30 a month, not counting food. To stay single and in a “respectable job” (nurse, school teacher, secretary were a few of the limited options), these jobs only paid around $20-$30 a month, if that. They were literally skewed to force these women to marry-or to consider less than respectable options.

A saloon girl could make a base pay pouring whiskey of $40 a week, plus 50% of every drink or bottle she could sell, plus tips. Easily clearing hundreds of dollars a week if she could hustle and was pretty. Dance Hall, or “Hurdy-gurdy” girls made a dollar a dance or a drink plus tips—and the men tipped generously for the privilege. Girls managed to squeeze in over 100 short dances a night. The prostitutes (at least the attractive ones) could make upwards of $250 a night. Meanwhile marriage was a gamble. Mortality rates were high. There was no guarantee that a miner would find (and keep) a good claim. Even if he did, if he happened to die, she could lose the claim, not having the ability to work it herself.

This sounds cold and calculating, but in a town (and time) where men outnumbered the women by a landslide, these women didn’t come north to find husbands. They came north to make a fortune, just as the men did. And they did it the only way society would allow. I am not going to go into deep detail, if you want that, please read Ms. Morgan’s book, but here are a few of their pictures and stories.

**All of the pictures below courtesy of the Alaska Digital Archives. For permissions on usage of photos, please follow the instructions on their web page: https://vilda.alaska.edu/

Rose Blumkin, The Fairy of Dawson

She worked officially as a Dance Hall and ticket girl at the Monte Carlo theater (though she couldn’t dance or sing), but her love of fine jewels and ball gowns (and her police record) suggests she did a lot of work between the sheets to support her lavish spending. After her stint in Dawson she moved to Nome with the rush.

Golden Belt

Gold nugget belt made for Rose Blumkin.
Image UAF-1964-92-278
Selid-Bassoc Photograph Collection

A picture of a belt of gold nuggets commissioned by one of the “Kings of Dawson” to be made for Rose. From reading Ms. Morgan’s books, the men, coming into these insane fortunes had little to spend it on other than whiskey and women. To show their newfound prowess in finding gold, they lavished it on the good time girls—to the extreme. Their mindset was, if I need more, I can just dig it out of my claim.

Menawhile, one of my favorite quotes from Diamondtooth Gertie Lovejoy:

“The poor Ginks just gotta’ spend it…they’re scared they’ll die before they get it out of the ground.” 1-pg. 58

Babe Wallace

While arrested (and fined) for running a house of prostitution, Babe Wallace did well enough that she was able to import a piano to her establishment. She eventually left the Yukon, but died young in 1911.

The Oregon Mare

One of the things that I found highly amusing in my research was some of the creative nicknames of the ladies: the Swedish Queen, Nellie “the Pig” Lamore, Diamond Tooth Gertie, etc. I used this in my writing, creating my own nicknames for my working gals. This is a photograph of a lady known as the Oregon Mare, real name of Ethel Nellie. A popular prostitute in the early days of Dawson. She is even mentioned in a Robert Service poem. Considering he got to Dawson in 1908, long after the initial rush, Ethel would have moved on by then, he would have known her by legend only.

The Dutch Kid

This is a photo from Judge Wickersham’s collection. He withheld her real name, only noting that later she became a nurse. Often times when the ladies would leave the “profession” (and the region), they would do everything they could to conceal their past. Their husbands and families were often eager to assist. Some speculate that this lady was actually the first prostitute into the region.

The Gypsy Queen

As previously mentioned, not all the ladies were prostitutes. Here is a picture of the Gypsy Queen, Mrs. Curly Monroe, wife of a local Saloon owner.

Lucy Lovell

Lucy Lovell was a popular American actress who had toured the London stage and decided to give the north a try. She made her fortune in the Klondike. Unfortunately, she contracted tuberculosis during her tour of the territory. She retired to Arizona and passed away shortly thereafter.

May Stanley

May Stanley worked as a Dance Hall girl, selling whiskey and dances with men (which was legal). Morgan’s research indicates that since her name does not appear in any police reports linked with prostitution that she never worked as a call girl. My character Helena’s job is modeled after girls like her, trying to make a living without selling themselves.

Klondike Kate “The Belle of the Yukon, the Sweetheart of the Sourdoughs” 1-pg 157

Klondike Kate Rockwell, Queen of the Klondike
ASL-P-41-56
P. E. Larss Photograph Collection, 1898-1904. ASL-PCA-41

And of course, the most famous and bold of the Dawson girls. Born Eloisa Rockwell in 1876 in Kansas. Technically, she didn’t get to Dawson until 1900 (though she would have been in Seattle and Skagway at the time), so I can’t include her as part of my story, but I have to mention her. She made and lost a fortune as a Good-time girl. She was known for putting on quite a show. In one act, she would wear a skimpy leotard and roller skate around the stage (skimpy for the era). In her famous “Flame Dance”, she wore yards of sheer chiffon had fans blow it about her while she shimmed in front of red lights.

Ms. Morgan’s book and the Alaska Digital Archives have been a treasure trove of information on the period. I hope you have enjoyed my post about them and will check out her book and the archives! maybe someday A Drink of Darkness will see the light of day as well…only time will tell!

References

Morgan, Lael; Good Time Girls of the Alaska-Yukon Gold Rush. Epicenter Press, Inc, 1998.

The Dark Land, horror novella by DM Shepard — The Dark Land, Available on Amazon

Thanks for reading! My Alaska horror novella is currently available on Amazon:

The legend of Alaska’s Headless Ravine is steeped in blood. Its hunger for human flesh never sleeps-even in the deepest cold of winter. Courage, skill and love will be stretched to the limits in the isolated boundaries of The Dark Land

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As promised, a blog post about the interior of Alaska, the location of our cabin, and the inspiration for several of my stories. In particular, my horror novella, The Dark Land, inspired by the Legend of the Cet’aeni or the “People with Tails.”

Since the white man’s “discovery” of the land the Aleut’s call Alyeska, there has been an intense fascination with this broad expanse of wilderness. Most people who visit barely scratch the surface, never understanding the true scale and depth of Alaska’s land. They stick to the tour buses, enjoying the safety of what my husband and I call the “look, but don’t touch” Alaska. These tourists will never experience her harsh bite. They can’t comprehend that behind her glacial beauty, beats a cold and unyielding heart that has lured many to a premature end.

None understand this better than the native peoples who populated this vast land long before the Europeans set foot here. Many distinct tribes and cultures lived within Alaska’s varied terrain. The subject of the different tribes and languages could take up multiple blog posts and books. If you are ever visiting Anchorage, a great stop is the Alaska Native Heritage Center:

http://www.alaskanative.net/

They break down the enormous state into the 5 distinct regions of tribal peoples. It is a great place to get a better understanding of how these people lived and thrived in Alaska

As mentioned, most tourists see the southeast of Alaska. they take a cruise from Seattle or Vancouver up the inside passage. They see the land of the Haida and the Tlingit. Tall trees and totem poles. Calving glaciers and orcas.

They might head further north to Anchorage, or Los Anchorage as some of us who live here call it. Alaska’s largest city of roughly 300K people might seem paltry to outsiders, but it is a behemoth considering almost half the state’s population lives in one city. There’s another joke about Anchorage, “Alaska, 20 minutes from Anchorage.” Tourists who only come to Anchorage haven’t seen the real Alaska, they’ve just been brought here to spend money.

Some brave tourists venture into the interior, taking tours of Denali National Park and Fairbanks. Few tourists venture into the Eastern interior. Those who do might go visit Kennecott Mine, inside the boundaries of Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, the largest US National Park by area. A few more might make the drive up the Alcan, visiting the Canadian cities of Dawson or Whitehorse, then visiting Chicken and Eagle on the US side of the border, all remnants of the great Yukon/Klondike gold-rush. Gold is still actively mined in these regions to this day. For those of you who regularly follow my posts, you’ll know this is where the cabin is located, just outside of Chicken.

The interior is the land of the Athabascan. Most people would think that the North Slope/Arctic region would be the coldest, but that is not the case. Without the warming/cooling effects of the ocean, the interior experiences the extremes of weather. The Alaska interior holds the record low in Prospect Creek, AK at -80F (-62C for my friends on the Celsius scale). The record low in Chicken, AK is pretty close, at -76. The record high was at Ft. Yukon (north of Fairbanks) at 100F.

The native Athabascans adapted to their landscape and extreme environment and carved an existence out of the harsh beauty.

Mt. Sanford as viewed from the north boundary of Wrangell-St. Elias National Park

The fierce, tenacious tribes of Athabascans that inhabited this particular region of wild rivers and harsh extremes were the Ahtna and Tanana.

The first attempts by Europeans to navigate and chart the copper river were met by fierce resistance from the Ahtna and Tanana. The parties disappeared, never returning.

It wasn’t until 1885, Lt. Henry T Allen and two other men set off from Portland, OR with explicit orders to map and navigate the Copper and Tanana Rivers and bring back information on the peoples living in the region. A link to information on this expedition is below.

https://armyhistory.org/5102-2/

The Ahtna, like all people have myths and legends. Legends of the Gguux (pronounced gookh) that pull people into the water to drown. Stories of the “Hairy Man” much like the Bigfoot or Yeti of other cultures.

But the tale I will spin for you is based loosely on the legend of the Cet’eani or “People with tails.” My husband has done a great deal of hiking and skiing in the back country of the Copper Valley and Wrangell-St. Elias National Park while his brother had a homestead in Slana. This story is loosely based on some of his experiences.

There are multiple iterations of this tale, as it varies depending on location, tribe and dialect.

http://www.native-languages.org/ahtna-legends.htm

But first, I will relate the basic tale:

A young hunter set forth from the village in late winter to provide fresh meat for his family. When he did not return, a party went out searching. They tracked his steps some distance from the village to a valley that was seldom explored. It was whispered that evil spirits dwelled within, lurking in caves and trees. Creatures with tails.

The hunters entered with caution. Coming over a ridge in the dark, they saw a bonfire in front of a cave. Creatures with tails frolicked in the firelight, playing a game, kicking the young hunters head to and fro. The hunters waited until the creatures retreated to their cave for the night. They sealed the entrance with rocks and lit it on fire. They went back to the village and warned others of what they had seen.

Knowing they had not truly vanquished the Cet’aeni, they made the valley forbidden, calling it the “Dark Land.”

As I get ready to self-publish my horror/paranormal romance novel, the Dark Land, set in the back country of Wrangel St. Elias National Park, I’ll be doing more posts about this particular region of Alaska, and our plans for our cabin this summer!

Tag: #AKChickenChick

The REAL Ladies of the Night

The Dark Land