by Enss, Chris
Madam Harriet
A Curious Criminal Case
Prostitutes, by nature of their profession, often find themselves in trouble with the law. It was not uncommon for a nineteenth-century harlot to be accused of blackmail, theft, or even murder. Such was the case of a soiled dove in Northern California. The curious criminal proceedings were held before Justice John Anderson in 1852, and an article in an August edition of the Union News attempted to unravel the mystery for its readers:
A public woman, popularly known as “Old Harriet,” kept a saloon on Broad Street, overlooking Deer Creek. She had a man who kept bar for her and did any necessary fighting. Opposite her establishment was a dance house. A man named Pat Berry was mining on the opposite side of Deer Creek at Gold Run. Owing to a recent freshet there were no bridges at the foot of the town, but a tree had been cleared of limbs and felled across it, over which foot passengers made their way. The stream was still high and raged among the naked boulders and logs which were then innocent of tailings.
On Saturday Berry came over to town, having made some money during the week, and rigged himself out with an entire new buckle. He spent the evening until late at the dance house and then went over to Old Harriet’s place, which was the last ever seen of him alive.
In the course of the night a man in the neighborhood heard what he took to be a cry of “murder,” but he may have been mistaken. Two or three days after, about six miles below Nevada, in an eddy in the creek, Berry’s body was found, completely naked. On the forehead was a large, extravagated wound, the blood discoloration proving that this wound was given while the person was alive. Finding him in this condition led to search for previous traces of him; and it was discovered that he had passed the evening at the dance house, and then gone to Old Harriet’s, where all further trace of him was lost.
Harriet and her fighting man were arrested and charged before the j
In some areas, prostitutes were required to buy and post licenses.
Author’s collection
ustice with murder. McConnell prosecuted and Sawyer defended. The examination lasted several days. The prosecution proved that Berry had money, traced his movements the night of his death, as herein stated, showed that the wound on his head must have been given while he was alive, and that it was made with some round, blunt weapon; that there was a pair of scales on Old Harriet’s counter, and a large weight, which would produce such a wound; the condition of the body, with a new, strong suit of clothes entirely missing; which, it was contended it was impossible could be torn off by the stream, or at least, without greatly marring the body, which was intact, except the death wound on the head. The cry of murder was also proven, leaving a close knitted theory by the prosecution, well-sustained before the drowning. As to the missing clothes it was argued, though with less confidence, that they had been stripped off by the water, rocks and logs.
The case was so puzzling that the justice took it under advisement for several days. While he was considering it, two men walked the log in company, when one of them pitched off and disappeared. Everybody turned out to find the body, but the search was unsuccessful for several days, when it was found in the eddy below the town from which Berry’s body was taken. The head of the new victim was marked with the same kind of extravagated wound as that of the first one, but there were no other wounds on the body, and all his clothes were gone except his shirt, which was turned inside out and hung at the wrist. The case was at once reopened and this evidence of what might happen was submitted. When she heard the new testimony Old Harriet exclaimed: “The Lord has intervened to save an innocent woman!” Of course the accused went free.
Minnie Smith
A Violent Hand
“Luck never gives; it only lends.”
Ancient proverb
A tall, hump-shouldered man with gray, bushy hair and a hangdog look on his long, lumpy face pulled a stack of chips from the middle of the poker table toward him. Minnie Smith, the gambler who had dealt the winning hand, scowled at the player as he collected his earnings. “You’re sure packin’ a heavy load of luck, friend,” Minnie said in a low, clipped tone.
“Luck had nothing to do with it,” the man replied.
“You may be right at that,” Minnie snapped back. She pushed back from the table a bit and eyed the bullwhip curled in her lap.
The man gave her a sly grin, “You’re not sore about losing?” he asked.
“No,” Minnie responded calmly. “I get mighty sore about cheating though.” A tense silence filled the air as Minnie and the gambler stared down each other.
In the split second it took the man to jump up and reach for his gun, Minnie had snapped her whip and disarmed him. As the weapon toppled out of his hand, a breastplate holdout that had been tucked inside his jacket sleeve dropped onto the floor.
The man looked on in horror as the face cards attached to the hidden pocket scattered around him.
“I hate a cheat,” Minnie snarled. All eyes were on the dealer as she reared back and let the whip fly. After a few painful strikes, the man dropped to his knees and desperately tried to find cover from the continued beating. Minnie was relentless and finally had to be subdued by the other card players around her. The gambler was helped off the floor and escorted to the town doctor.
That kind of violent exchange wasn’t unusual in the rowdy railroad town of Colorado City, Colorado, in 1887. What made the event unique, however, was that a woman was the aggressor. The public display further enhanced the quick-temper reputation of the madam and sometimes gambler Minnie Smith. There were very few in and around the area that hadn’t heard of her.
Almost nothing is known about Minnie’s formative years. The first historical recording of the hotheaded Smith occurred in 1886 in Colorado City. She was recognized throughout Colorado not only as Minnie Smith but also as Lou Eaton and Dirty Alice. She used different pseudonyms in the various locations across the state where she owned bordellos and saloons. Like many madams, Minnie felt the alternate handles gave her a sense of mystery that ultimately brought in business.
Customers who frequented her two-story parlor house on the south side of Colorado City were impressed with her card-playing skills and the way she ran the establishment. She always managed to hire the most exotic beauties to work for her and kept patrons entertained dealing cards in between visits with her employees. Minnie herself was reportedly unattractive. Residents described her as a “slender woman, not good looking and a vixen when aroused.”
The numerous run-ins she had with the law could have been avoided if she’d been able to control her fiery temper. Her career was mired in arrests for disorderly conduct and assault. She took on anyone who crossed her, male or female. She nearly beat an attorney to death with the butt of a gun for the disparaging remarks he made about her profession.
On January 24, 1891, Minnie traveled to Denver to recruit ladies to work at her new brothel in Creede. While visiting the booming metropolis, she stopped into a tavern for a drink. As the evening wore on, she continued to consume more alcohol. By the early hours of the following morning, Minnie was drunk. In addition to that, she was loud and belligerent to the other customers, which prompted the bartender to contact the sheriff. Minnie’s disposition had not changed by the time the authorities arrived. She was arrested for intoxication and later released on the condition that she would return to pay a fine. The moment she was let out of jail, she fled the area and refused to make financial restitution.
Flanked on either side by attractive women, these poker players were certain to return to the gambling dens even if they lost a hand or two. Lady gamblers did more than shuffle cards and deal—they boosted a man’s confidence as he played five-card stud, encouraging him to continue laying bets down until he won or was out of money.
Searls Historical Library
Minnie stuck with he
r plan to set up a sporting house in Creede, and it paid off. Customers flocked to the bordello. She hoped to duplicate her success with a third business in Cripple Creek. Such places were legally restricted there, but Minnie found a way around the situation by calling the bordello a “rooming house.”
Competition for business was fierce in the gold mining camp. The other madams operating houses in Cripple Creek and Creede were considerably younger than Minnie and able to attract a regular clientele. By that time, Minnie was forty-five and few took notice of her. In late 1893, after falling into a deep depression, she decided to take her own life. She committed suicide by swallowing a large dose of morphine.
Minnie Smith’s body was laid to rest at the Evergreen Cemetery in Colorado Springs. She left a substantial amount of money and property behind, but no one knows what became of her estate.
Jessie Hayman
The San Francisco Favorite
“She had the face and figure of an empress, and the poise and manner of one as well.”
The Grand Duke of Russia’s description of Jessie Hayman, 1908
Jessie Hayman turned the flame down in the gas lamp sitting on a giant fireplace mantle in the parlor of her well-known brothel. Apart from the lit, red lantern hanging off the porch, the room was blanketed in darkness. It was approaching four in the morning, and all of the home’s boarders were settled in their rooms with their overnight guests. Madam Hayman’s palatial bordello was one of the most popular businesses in San Francisco in 1906. Thirty attractive women of various ages and nationalities worked for Jessie. The income earned from the stable of employees was more than $4,000 a night. Consequently, Jessie was one of the wealthiest madams in the city.
As Jessie went about the routine of closing up shop, a heavy knock on the front door startled her. It was too late for callers but not out of the realm of possibility. As she made her way to the foyer, she removed a pistol from a pocket on her dress. She cocked the gun just as she opened the door and raised it even with the face of a portly man standing opposite her. The stunned man threw his hands up and took a step back. “If you’re a gentleman caller who got a late start, please forgive me,” Jessie stated firmly. “But if you’ve come to rob the place, you’ve got to get past me first.”
After apologizing for the intrusion and assuring Jessie that he was merely interested in the company of one of her ladies, the frazzled man stepped inside. Before Jessie had an opportunity to ask about his preferences, he hurried off up the stairs. He seemed to know exactly where he was going. “Guess he’s been here before,” she said aloud to herself. “Wouldn’t do to shoot a regular,” she added playfully.
Once she made sure all the doors and windows were locked, she retired to her enormous bedroom. Eight hours later she would open the house again and greet patrons with an enthusiastic smile, a hearty handshake, and a pistol in her pocket. “I keep my customers close and my gun closer,” she told friends and family. “It’s helped me settle many an argument.”
Jessie Hayman was born in 1867 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Her parents, Thad and Constance Wyant, named her Annie May. Very little is known of her childhood. Scholars at the California Historical Library speculate that her family headed west when Annie was a young girl. Her parents died of cholera while en route to the Gold Country, and the orphan eventually turned to prostitution in desperation.
For years she traveled about the various mining camps and cow towns, working as a public woman. Census records indicate that Annie arrived in San Francisco in 1891. By then she was known as Jessie Mellon.
Jessie was the most sought-after boarder of the resorts on Ellis and Post Streets. Nina Hayman was the madam of one of those houses, and she became Jessie’s mentor. Nina was kind and patient with her and treated her like a daughter. Jessie was a tall, slender woman with red hair and a bottom men said was “something to watch.” She also had a good head for business. Nina encouraged her protégé’s talents and promised to help Jessie establish her own house. In 1898 Nina left the trade and married a wealthy lumber dealer. As a parting gift she made good on her promise and turned the brothel over to Jessie. Out of gratitude for her mentor’s actions, the thirty-one-year-old Jessie took her madam’s last name as her own.
The new Madam Hayman retained the sophisticated air of the three-story home but enhanced the champagne concession in the ballroom. A larger variety of imported, high-priced wines were offered and then served in fine diamond-cut crystal. The much talked-about stemware earned her the nickname “Diamond Jessie.”
Jessie’s gilded palace was frequented by commoner and royalty alike. A few princes, czars, and dukes from visiting countries paid visits to the resort. In 1899 the Grand Duke of the Imperial Russian Empire spent time with the lovely Madam Hayman and a few of her employees. He was reportedly so enthralled by Jessie’s beauty that he invited her to return with him to his homeland. Jessie declined the gracious offer. He then commissioned a life-size painting to be done of her before he left American soil. The twelve to twenty women initially in Jessie’s employ thought highly of her. Most paid $5 a day for room and board. Clients were charged $5 to be entertained. Women who were popular, young (fourteen or under), or possessed a special ability charged more for their services and consequently paid more for food and shelter. The average workday hours were from noon to four in the morning. Before the girls retired they bathed in lavender salts and were treated to a massage by the house maids.
The chorus of girls in Jessie’s care considered her to be the best madam in the business. She was kind and fair but strict and honest in all her business dealings. One of the house favorites boasted that “Jessie was the tops and when you worked for her you were tops in the business.”
Jessie’s reputation for being a good madam attracted many girls to her parlor house. She always had more applicants than available positions. Many wanted to work for her because they heard how generous she was to her staff. If more than average amounts of alcohol were consumed during special parties and celebrations, Jessie paid her girls a 5 percent commission from the profits. The girls were allowed to keep any tips they made when they served clients a meal cooked at the house.
Jessie gave a lot to her boarders, and she expected much in return. Her girls were required to act ladylike at all times, to keep themselves clean and neat, and to wear clothing that reflected the high quality of the house. A boarder’s wardrobe had to be approved by Jessie before she went to work for her. If her clothing did not fit the ideal the madam had in mind, the boarder had to buy new garments. Jessie advanced her girls money to purchase the gowns needed to entertain. The wardrobe for each girl consisted of a number of expensive items:
1 fox fur for suits: $300
4 tailored suits: $100 each
4 street dresses: $75 each
8 hats for street: $15 each
2 dress coats: $250 each
12 pair street shoes: $18 each
4½ dozen hose: $5 pair
6 pocketbooks: $10 each
2 evening bags: $10 each
½ dozen day gloves: $8 pair
½ dozen evening gloves: $12.50 pair
7 evening gowns: $100 each
7 negligees: $75 each
12 teddy slips: $18 each
24 nightgowns: $20 each
6 pair mules: $15 each
2 evening wraps: $750 each
7 pair evening shoes: $15 each
9 dozen handkerchiefs: $11.50 dozen
6 blouses: $10 each
TOTAL: $6,088.50
In addition to payments for the clothing, deductions were taken from the women’s earnings to pay the mistress for maintaining the business and to pay for three full-time maids. A portion of a prostitute’s salary also went to pay for doctor’s examinations, weekly laundry services, and police payoffs. Jessie was a meticulous bookkeeper and provided her ladies with a weekly account of their
finances.
Madam Hayman’s attention to detail made her resort the San Francisco favorite. Customers enjoyed the company of the lovely staff and the services that followed the evening. When they arose they found their clothes cleaned and pressed, shoes shined, and an appetizing breakfast awaiting them. Jessie used the money she made from the house and the extras she provided to purchase numerous parcels of land throughout the city.
Enticing photographs were often hung in the parlors of brothels to tempt clients.
Author’s collection
On April 18, 1906, Jessie and her boarders were shaken from their beds at five in the morning by a violent earthquake. Her home on Post Street was ruined, but apart from the chimney that had toppled over, the parlor house on Ellis Street suffered little damage. The same could not be said for the majority of the city, however. San Francisco was in ruins, not only from the quakes but also from the subsequent fires. Twenty-eight thousand structures were destroyed over 490 blocks. A quarter of a million people were left homeless, and 450 were dead.
Madam Hayman and many other brothel owners and their employees took it upon themselves to help care for the injured and dying. They helped feed and clothe thousands of homeless who gathered at Golden Gate Park with no other place to go.
Very few parlor houses were left standing after the “great earthquake.” Jessie quickly recognized the inherent business opportunity and rebuilt her Post Street house, adding a new wing to her bordello and hiring ten more girls. Neighbors in the area complained to city officials about the late-night activity at Madam Hayman’s. The level of tolerance for such an establishment had decreased once the city began the aggressive procedure of rebuilding. Politicians were pressured to crack down on the police who accepted payoffs to overlook prostitution. In the fall of 1905, district attorney William L. Langdon waged war against the brothel patrons and their owners. Langdon was specifically interested in apprehending the wealthiest madam in the business. He issued a warrant for Jessie and put the profession on notice that her arrest was only the beginning.
