march 2012 - Miner`s Delight Inn

A Cowgirl Wit h...
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T H E COWG I R L S o f t h e W E S T M O N T H LY N E WS L E T T E R
The Tenderfoot Editor
Why, in 1872, would Nellie Cashman leave the sophisticated
comforts of San Francisco and move to a remote desert town
in Nevada? Why, in 1871, would Calamity Jane leave all of the
bustling saloons in Cheyenne for a tiny town in the Wind River
Mountains that no long exists? And why would this Cowgirl
member spend some of her summer weekends digging in the dirt
and mud along Rock Creek outside of Wyoming’s South Pass City?
F o r t h e s a m e r e a s o n s a m a n w o u l d...G O L D !
And a number of women did brave places like South Pass City,
Atlantic City, and Miner’s Delight, during Wyoming’s South Pass
gold rush in the 1860’s and 1870’s. They came as wives and
daughters, politicians and prospectors, store-keepers and innkeepers, most of them coming to answer the tempting lure of gold.
When the boom ended in the mid 1880s, it has been estimated
that $12 million dollars ($785 million in today’s dollars!) came out
of the South Pass mines. Just because the South Pass mining
boom ended nearly 130 years ago, don’t let anybody tell you that
all the gold is gone...Even in 2012, there are still a few small mines
operating in the area. And now that the price of gold is hovering
near $2,000 an once, Ben and I joined a gold prospecting club that
operates a claim site, called the Carol Claim outside of South Pass
City. As club members, we receive a mining permit and we are
allowed to keep all the gold that we find on the site. Although we
haven’t discovered a lot of the elusive metal, one thing that we
have discovered is that there was something worth more than
gold that came out of South Pass City... Most of us know that
America’s 1st voting rights bill for women was passed in Cheyenne
in 1869. But did you know that the bill had its origins at a tea
party in South Pass City that was hosted by Esther Morris? In
this newsletter we are featuring some of the history & sites of
the South Pass Mining District and the role that Esther Morris
played in American history. Although it is not known just how
many women prospectors left their claims with great riches, we do
know that Calamity went on to Deadwood to “mine-the-miners,”
and we know that Nellie Cashman (page #8) became a highly
respected mining entrepreneur. And as for me... I’m still digging!
Susan Jennelly
C o w g i r l
C a l e n d a r
March 5
Board Meeting
5:30, Little America
March 9
Reservation deadline For
The March Luncheon
March 12
Monthly Luncheon
11:30, Little America...
Amanda Cabot, A New York
Times Best Selling Author
April 2
Board Meeting
5:30, Little America
April 6
Reservation deadline For
The April Luncheon
April 9
Monthly Luncheon
11:30, Little America...
April 24
Brunch Planning Meeting
11:30, Avanti’s Restaurant
Cowgirls Annual April Spring Fling...
All the pertinent details will be in the
April edition of the Cowgirl Up-Date
Board Meetings are open to all members;
If you would like to attend, let Sally Hunter or
Stacey Gierisch know so seating can be reserved.
If you have items for the newsletter, please get
them to us by the 20th each month. E-mail items to;
sjennelly@tetonwest.com
Or you can mail newsletter items to us at;
265 Pine Tree Road, Cheyenne, WY 82009
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N e x t L u n c h e o n
March 12 at 11:30
Little America
Sally Hunter
(307) 532-5303
Stacey Gierisch
Marcia Dale
635-0383
634-8667
Nancy Prosser
Beverly Schwieger
632-6068
638-8220
Sharon Russell
632-6589
Mary Weppner
632-5674
Pat Swan, Bob Cotanch, Pat Moore,
Chris Ryan, Jan Taylor,
Janice Torrance, Diane Hogerty,
Kathy Gilmartin, Susie McHenry
Sylvia Eisele, Harriet Mullen,
Glenna Hirsig, Lorraine Grigsby,
Velma Kreuzer,
Gerrie Bishop, Carol Barnett
Stacey Gierisch
635-0383
Susan Jennelly & Ben Hilsen 632-7858
Amanda Cabot...
New York Times Best Selling Author
“Glamour & Grit: The Life Of An Author”
LUNCHEON RESERVATIONS...Just a reminder to make your
luncheon reservations by 10 a.m. on the Friday prior to each
luncheon. If you have reserved and can not attend, please call
before the Monday Luncheon to cancel the reservation. If you
need to cancel on the Luncheon day, call Stacey Gierisch on
her cell # by 8:00 a.m. Reservations that aren’t canceled by
8 a.m. will need to be paid for at $16.00 as we are charged by
Little America. Attendees to the Luncheon Program do need
to purchase a lunch as we are charged by Little America for all
attendees. Reminder to Board Members; We automatically
reserve seating for board members for the Luncheons and
if you’re not able to attend, please let Stacey know.
Luncheon Reservations... Stacey Gierisch
Home: 307-635-0383
Cell: 307-421-2062
sradams@bresnan.net
Cowgirl Cares & Prayers
To our members & friends who have
recently lost a family member…
To Cowgirl Phyllis Duncan and her family on the
loss of her husband Jim. To the Moxley family on
the loss of our Cowgirls friend Marlene Moxley.
To Members & friends who have had
or are recovering from an illness…
Mary Green, Marcia Dale, Arlene Kensinger, Sally
Hunter, Dean Varney, Phyllis Duncan, Bob Grant,
Michael Worthington, and Virginia Brinkerhoff.
Thank you for your donations to the
M e m o r i a l S c h o l a r s h i p F u n d ...
To Nancy & Ed Prosser, Jeannie Schroeder, and
Robbie Larson in memory of Steve Jeffords.
Congratulations…
To Rita Meyer, Cowgirls member and our former
State Auditor, who was recently named as the Vice
President of Rocky Mountain Power for Wyoming.
“The Smallest Act Of Kindness Is Worth More Than
The Grandest Intentions…”
I would like to extend a heartfelt thanks to all of the Cowgirls of the West for their love and
support on the passing of my boyfriend - Steve Jeffords. Steve loved all you gals and he
loved attending the Style Show and Brunch and other activities that you put on. You all have
been a wonderful help during this time of need...Thanks again for everything.
Jeannie Schroeder
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A Heartfelt Welcome To Our Newest Cowgirls Members !
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We all look forward to socializing with you at one of our fabulous function s …
P a t K u r k o w s k i , 1192 Granite Springs Rd #70 , Cheyenne, W Y 82009 (307) 632 -3556
D i a n n e G u d a h l , 3600 Carey Ave , Cheyenne, W Y 82001 (307) 631 -6102
“AROUND THE COWGIRL CORRAL”
Sally Hunter
Happy Saint Patrick's Day and Happy belated Valentine’s Day to our Cowgirl and Cowpoke friends...
Saint Patrick's Day always marks the coming of spring and I know everyone is as excited about that as I am.
We had a wonderful luncheon in February with Mary Beach as our speaker giving the history of her family
involvement in the Johnson County Cattle War. We had a record 112 guests at the luncheon making for a full
house, and also a tribute to what a great speaker we had.
As you know by this date we have had two brunch meetings trying to get the preliminary work done on setting the
committees and trying to get a lot of people involved. Also other exciting decisions that are made in those early
meetings are choosing our honoree. Well I am very happy to announce...Velma Kreuzer as our 2012 Honoree for
our 2012 Brunch and Fashion Show. We are very pleased to be able to honor her at our big event. I want to
encourage anyone that would love to give a helping hand for this event, to please contact myself, Gerrie Bishop,
Sharon Russell or anyone on the Board, so that we can get you involved with one of the Brunch Committees.
We will not be having another brunch meeting until April 24th, so be sure and get involved.
More news that we are excited to share with everyone is the awarding of a grant from the Union Pacific Foundation
that our Grant Committee worked very hard on...We were awarded $4, 200 that will be used for educational
purposes in the Cowgirls Museum. We are very excited to get the ball rolling on our plans for upgrades. A sincere
thank you to Cowgirls Pat Moore, Susan Jennelly, and Pam Cooper, and of course...The Union Pacific Foundation.
We are looking forward to setting a date for our Spring Fling, it will be in April so please keep your calendars
open! It will be a fun event and we hope to be able to announce the date in the next Cowgirls newsletter.
As Cowgirls, we need to tip our hats to Robbie Larson for stepping forward and volunteering to fill Marcia Dale’s
cowgirl boots as our Recording Secretary during Marcia’s illness...Thank you to all the members of the
Cowgirls of the West that make this wonderful organization such a fun and exciting group to be a part of...
We look forward to seeing you all at our next luncheon or out and about in Wyoming.
Stay grounded and don't blow away with all this spring wind we are having recently and always...
Lov e, Lau gh an d Li ve l i f e t o t h e fu l l est i n " H i gh , Wi d e an d Wi n d y W yom i n g" .
.
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S o M a r ch Ha s A r ri ved …C a n J ul y B e Tha t F a r Aw a y? ? ?
Not if you are among the hard-working Cowgirls who are working on our 2012 Cowgirls of the West Brunch &
Fashion Show! Our team of dedicated Brunch-planners met at Avanti’s on February 21st to continue dreamin’
and schemin’ to whip up another fabulous Brunch & Fashion show. Here is a list of members who are signed up
to serve on the various committees; they still need plenty more help so if you’re wanting to work on a committee,
please let one of the General Chairs, or the chair of a committee you’d like to work on, know. We’re all very
excited for our honoree, Velma Kreuzer...Velma, we send to you a big round-up of Cowgirl Congratulations
for being chosen for this special honor and there will be many of your fellow Cowgirls who will be working very
hard to make this event so very special for you and your family, and all of our guests!
General Chairs: Gerrie Bishop, Sharon Russell, and Sally Hunter
Theme: W I L L O W C R E E K C O U N T R Y C O W G I R L
Place: Grand Ballroom, Little America Resort Hotel, Monday, July 23rd, 2012
Master of Ceremonies: Gerrie Bishop
Fashions: Just Dandy, and Cheryl Mapus Hair Fashions.
Model & Dressing Room Helpers: Pat Swan, Marilyn Pettit, and Nadine Raffelson. (We need 2 more helpers)
Vendors: Little America Gift Shop and Trader Barb.
Publicity: Sharon Russell & Leslie Green co-chairs; Diane Hogerty
Reservations: Nancy Prosser
Programs and Invitations: General Chairs and Nancy Prosser
Silent Auction: Nancy Prosser, Sharon Russell, Beverly Schwieger, co-chairs; Pat Swan,
Linda Farner, Nadine Raffelson, and Jan Schaad.
Check Out Helpers for the Silent Auction: Nancy Prosser, Sally Hunter, Bob Cotanch,
Janice Torrance, Sharon Russell, Pam Cooper, and Susie McHenry
Raffle: Sally Hunter, Chair; Mary Ann Marek and Dianna Skiba, co-chairs;
Jeanne Helgeson, Ann Thomas, Lisa Skinner.
(The raffle will be for a beautiful pin-up Cowgirl red and black quilt!)
Decorations: Chris Ryan and Pat Swan, co-chairs
Table Favors: Nancy Prosser
Hostesses: Lorraine Grigsby, Chair, assisted by Kathy Gilmartin, Ardys Lutter, and Bonnie Reider
Rodeo Queens: Pam Cooper, Chair; and Esther Moore
Parades: Pam and Jerry Cooper, Beverly and Paul Schwieger, Sylvia Eisele, and Pat Swan
Photographer: Christine Kronz
Pianist: Janet Bliss
Cookbook Sales: Cindy LoPorto and Dave Jarvis
Models: Gerrie Bishop and Stacey Gierisch, co-chairs
We will be looking for Cowgirl members to be fashion models...So here’s your chance for runway fame!
Please let Gerrie or Stacey know if you’d like to Walk the Walk on the runway at Little America this July!
(Next Brunch Planning Meeting: Tuesday, April 24th at Avanti’s Restaurant at 11:30 a.m.)
Red & Gol d Rhinesto ne Tee -Shirts...
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For those of you who were unable to pick up your
pre-ordered Cowgirls of the West Tee-Shirts at the
February Luncheon, call Beverly Schwieger at;
(307) 638-8220 and she will bring them to the
March Luncheon. Also, for anybody who has not
ordered a Tee Shirt, and would like one, call
Beverly with your sizes as she has some extra tee
shirts that are still available. The cost is $22.
www.cowgirlsofthewestmuseum.com
The Cowgirls of the West New & Improved
Web Site Celebrates Its First Birthday
What a difference a year makes! In the beginning, February through June of last year, and as a stand alone web
site, we averaged 760 monthly site visits. Once we became linked to the official Wyoming State Tourism and
Visit Cheyenne web sites last July, we are now averaging nearly 3,000 site visits per month! The increase in our
museum visitors from 2010 to 2011 can be directly attributed to our web site. Now that our web site is entering
its second year, along with the upcoming 2012 tourist season, our Museum & Emporium visitor numbers should
increase substantially! We need to acknowledge and thank Dave Lerner from Wyoming Network (our web site
administrator) for all of his expertise and technical advice in helping to make our web site...A Work of Art!
C a l l i n g A l l O f Y o u C o w g i r l S c a v e n g e r H u n t e r s…
The Cowgirls Museum is in desperate need of an Edwardian Style formal hat and a pair of white gloves to
accessorize the beautiful Edwardian formal skirt, blouse & vest that was donated to our museum by Chris Ryan.
We hope that by the time our museum opens in May, you will search your attic, your mother’s attic, and your grand
mother’s attic for these accessories. This wonderful example of Edwardian formal wear will be a beautiful
enhancement to our historical clothing exhibit at the Cowgirls Museum. Call Sue Jennelly if you have any luck!
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S o u t h P a s s C i t y ... Birthplace Of Something Greater Tha n G o l d
The Carissa Mine complex near South
Pass City is open for summer tours.
Cowgirl Sue Jennelly
tours downtown
South Pass City…
It has been said that
this site is the best
preserved ghost town
in North America!
South Pass City was designated
as a State Historic Site in 1966 and
the 30 remaining buildings are all
listed on the National Historic
Register. This area is so rich
in history and natural beauty
that a person could easily
spend a week exploring the
old mine sites, numerous ghost
towns, walking the Oregon Trail,
or simply relaxing with a glass
of wine at sunset
from the deck at
the historic
Miner’s Delight
Bed &
Breakfast!
South Pass Historic
Mining District lies
at the southern tip
of the Wind River
Mountains, on WY
Hwy #28, 35 miles
SW of Lander.
Calamity Jane
was a dancehall
girl, dishwasher
and prospector
in the town of
Miner’s Delight
Above…
A black-bearded
This fort was built
in 1870 by the
2nd Cavalry and it
was abandoned
In 1878
gon
O r e- -
- - -
il
Tra -
- -
“Sourdough Sue”
entertains Cowpoke
Dave Jarvis at the
Miner’s Delight
Bed & Breakfast
in Atlantic City.
Left…
A Cowgirl miner at
the Carol Claim…
The Oregon Trail
is visible over
Sue’s left shoulder.
Miner’s Delight Bed & Breakfast
Atlantic City
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Members Ben Hilsen & Sue Jennelly pan for gold on the “Carol Claim” near South Pass City
South Pass City’s Esther Morris Hosts A Tea Party
As South Pass City legend has it…In the booming mining town of
2,000 people, Esther Morris hosted a tea party in September 1869...
Being interested in the upcoming elections for the first Territorial
Legislature, Esther invited two candidates...William Bright and H. G.
Nickerson. Nickerson remembered that Mrs. Morris at one point stood
and said..."One of these men is sure to be elected...and we would
desire...a public pledge that whichever is elected will introduce and
work for passage of a bill granting the right to vote to all women in the
territory." Both men pledged themselves to the applause of the 40
people present. The winning candidate, William Bright, was as good as
his word...When he got to Cheyenne he introduced a bill to grant
women the right to vote and to hold office. Although his bill was
widely ridiculed, it passed! It became law when Governor John
Campbell signed the bill on December 10, 1869. The legislators rose to
the occasion with the world's most gracious toast… "Lovely ladies, once
our superiors, now our equals." Thus, in 1869, Wyoming, not even a
state then, barely known east of the Mississippi River, with a total
population estimated to be only 10,000, became the first government in
A Memorial
America to grant females the right to vote. Telegrams from all over the
Statue Of
country flooded South Pass City, and Esther Morris became a national
Esther Morris
heroine. Then on February 17, 1870, the acting Territorial Governor of
Standing
Wyoming appointed Esther Hobart Morris as a Territorial Justice.
In Front
Governor Edward Lee’s very courageous, but very controversial
Of The
appointment, also insured Esther’s place in the history books as...The
Wyoming
first female justice in the United States. Esther Morris came to South
State
Pass City, Wyoming in early 1869 by way of New York and Illinois.
Capitol
She had a long history of standing up for the rights of the downtrodden.
In fact, before the Civil War Esther had been a dedicated abolitionist in
Illinois. The passage of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
in 1866 gave the right to vote to `all men` in the United States...And to
Wyoming’s Esther Morris, it seemed odd that women still could not
vote! It has been speculated that her judicial appointment was perhaps
to reward her efforts on behalf of the women’s voting movement in the
Wyoming Territory, and her support for John Campbell, the first
Territorial Governor, and an acknowledged Suffrage advocate. Despite
Esther’s lack of formal legal training, acting Governor Edward Lee
commissioned her as the Justice of the Peace for South Pass City, the
booming mining town in Carter County. (Today’s Sweetwater County.)
“Esther had a very commanding presence and a mind that was
well-stored with knowledge and the experiences of life,” said one of her
many supporters. During her tenure as a Territorial Justice…Not one of
the more than fifty cases that she presided over was ever overturned by
a higher court. On July 10, 1890, Wyoming was granted statehood and
Esther was given the honor to present the first official U.S. Flag with 44
stars to Francis E. Warren, Wyoming’s first state governor. In her later
years, Esther remained quietly at her home in Cheyenne, however, she
often cautioned over-zealous suffragettes…”That women must work
with men, and not against them, for their rights." Esther was 90 years
old when she died on April 2, 1902 and was buried in Cheyenne’s
Lakewood Cemetery. One of Wyoming’s two representative statues
Esther Morris Interpretive Center
in Statuary Hall in Washington D.C. is Esther Hobart Morris.
in South Pass City, Wyoming
In 2006, Esther was inducted into the Cowgirl Hall of Fame.
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COWGIRLS
Of the
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Cheyenne, Wy 82003
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THE BACK PAGE...DISTINCTIVE and HISTORICAL WESTERN WOMEN
N e l l i e c a s h m a n ... The Miner’s “Angel Of Mercy”
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Nellie Cashman was one of the most famous Western women of her day... She was one of the few nonconforming women who won immediate
and universal acceptance in spite of her unladylike career as a mining prospector. The reason for her universal popularity is evident in many
of the appellations she earned for herself during the 50 adventurous years that she trekked all over the West, from Mexico to Alaska, from
Arizona to British Columbia, in her quest to find gold-bearing pay dirt. She was called the Frontier
Angel, the Angel of Tombstone, the Miner’s Angel and the Saint of the Sourdoughs. These admiring
accolades were given to her because her thirst for adventure was coupled with a strong, merciful
compassion that never let her pass by another human being that was in need of assistance.
Nellie Cashman was born in Ireland in 1845. When she was 5 years old, Nellie, along with her
younger sister Fanny and their widowed mother, arrived in America as refugees from Ireland’s
devastating potato famine. After living in Boston for a dozen years, the Cashman’s moved to San
Francisco where Irish immigrants were numerous and influential. In 1872, Nellie and her mother
moved to the mining town of Pioche, Nevada and opened a boarding house and restaurant for miners.
The move to a mining town in Nevada is where Nellie came down with life-long case of Gold Fever.
Nellie would make a lot of money in all of her endeavors and she was very good at it; several rich gold
strikes and operating several restaurants in western mining towns earned her over a dozen fortunes.
However, most of everything that she acquired in her life, she gave away to those who were less
fortunate or to those who were unable to take care of themselves. She donated huge sums to
western hospitals and church missions, and she personally fed, housed, nursed and grubstaked
numerous hard-luck miners. In the winter of 1875, Nellie’s reputation as an Angel of Mercy, for which
she is best known today, was born...While on a trip to Victoria, British Columbia, she heard that a
severe storm had trapped her fellow miners on the Stikine River in Alaska. Nellie purchased supplies
and sleds, hired 6 men, sailed to Wrangell, and headed inland through heavy snow storms. Her
success at reaching the stranded miners with needed food and medicines became the talk of the
West, and hundreds of miners considered Nellie as the Miner’s Savior. Late in 1924, while mining in
Alaska’s Koyukuk District, Nellie realized that she had health problems. Gradually she worked her way to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Victoria, a
hospital that she had founded over 40 years earlier. At the age of 79, Nellie died of pneumonia on January 4, 1925. On March 16, 2006,
Nellie was inducted into the Alaska Mining Hall of Fame. And in 2007, Nellie was inducted into the Cowgirl Hall of Fame.