From early mining camps and railroad towns to latter-day cities, Montana’s red light districts cultivated a special strain of entrepreneur.
With painstaking original research and rare historical photographs, Montana Madams uncovers the complex lives of twenty-three women who managed the skin trade under the Big Sky from the 1860s into the 1980s. Here are the bawdy exploits of Madame Moustache, Chicago Joe, Big Dorothy, and Mary Gleim, but also the unsung sagas of Mattie Lee, Louisa Couselle, Betty Rogers, Etta Feeley, and more.
“A successful madam understood the psychology of her employees, clients, and community. … She used her common sense, balancing … a keen business know-how with her ability to bat her eyes and drop a punchline, winning the hearts of those around her. She could even, on occasion, throw a left hook to get her point across.”
Nann Parrett, Author
Foreword Indies 2016 Book Awards Winner—Honorable mention for Women’s Studies.