After a 12-part series consisting of lengthy blog posts covering many (but far from all) scams reported in Nineteenth Century Mail-Order Bride situations, is it possible to believe anyone found success in such a venture?
It’s true! While happiness might not garner front-page news stories, happy mail-order bride marriages did occur–more often than they ended in disaster. This article contains six historically documented SUCCESS stories!
Frederick Henry Harvey recognized a need along the railway lines–good quality food, comfortable accommodations, and sterling service. He’d worked as a mail clerk on the railroad and discovering the unmet needs of travelers, opened his restaurant business in the 1870’s. By 1883, he replaced male waiters with young ladies whose impeccable appearance and gracious service increased Harvey’s business from local men. Courtships ensued (restricted to the “courting parlor” in the women’s dormitories), marriage occurred–but not until the minimum of one year of service to the company was met. Fred Harvey is credited with much more than quality food and entrepreneurship in the Southwest, he single-handedly brought about the civilizing of the west by importing more “brides” than any other “agency”.
Colorado has a rich and varied mining history. The influx of miners contributed significantly to the settling of Colorado. Many different minerals and precious metals were mined from Colorado’s mountains. Leadville, Colorado, a real town rich with silver mining history, plays a minor role in my novel The Bride Lottery–the nearest town with a railway spur. This article covers the history of Colorado mining in a nutshell, showcasing the fact behind my fiction.
Prosperity, Colorado, is a mining community I completely made up. It’s fiction. Yet it’s mirrored on an actual area of Colorado, historically accurate mining camps, and Colorado’s rich mining history.
New Series: Prosperity’s Mail Order Brides. Book number one in this series: The Bride Lottery.
