Virginia City's Silent Sisters

Public women in mining camps like Virginia City, Montana, were notorious, yet what do we really know of them? Interpreting prostitution is a challenge because reputable citizens did not usually discuss the business and the women themselves are almost always anonymous. Lack of information fosters speculation and fuels myths. However, by utilizing primary research tools—census records, Sanborn maps, newspapers, and archaeological discoveries—real facts about these ubiquitous yet silent women begin to emerge. MHS Interpretive Historian Dr. Ellen Baumler sorts out this history from the 1860s to the 1930s, to provide a glimpse into a little-understood aspect of Virginia City’s storied past. Presence of the Past program series, January 14, 2016