| Comstock Women: The Making of a Mining Community Contributor(s): James, Ronald M. (Editor), Raymond, C. Elizabeth (Editor) |
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ISBN: 0874172977 ISBN-13: 9780874172973 Publisher: University of Nevada Press OUR PRICE: $22.46 Product Type: Paperback Published: December 1997 Annotation: The conventional view of Virginia City as a ramshackle mining camp populated largely by miners and the businesses - saloons, hotels, brothels- that served their needs obscures a significant and fascinating aspect of its history: it was home to large numbers of women and children. In this provocative and path-breaking collection of essays, noted scholars from several disciplines examine the lives of the women, from all social classes and many ethnicities, who settled on the Comstock Lode and struggled to create a stable community in that transient boomtown setting. The contributors to Comstock Women consider the complexity of women's experiences on the Comstock Lode, combining traditional historical research with demography, ethnic studies, architectural history, material culture, and literary studies, using as many tools as possible to arrive at insights not addressed by earlier histories and the limited primary records. Their conclusions change the way we view the position of Chinese women, the history of prostitution in the district, the economic roles played by women in the mining West, the wide-ranging social impact of such anodynes as opium, and the idea of community in a boomtown environment. A final essay on gender archaeology suggests yet another way to examine the lives of women who left few written records of their lives. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - History | United States - 19th Century - History | United States - State & Local - West (ak, Ca, Co, Hi, Id, Mt, Nv, Ut, Wy) - Social Science | Women's Studies |
| Dewey: 979.356 |
| LCCN: 97011958 |
| Series: Shepperson History Humanities |
| Physical Information: 0.99" H x 6.27" W x 9.22" (1.35 lbs) 408 pages |
| Themes: - Chronological Period - 19th Century - Cultural Region - Western U.S. - Geographic Orientation - Nevada - Sex & Gender - Feminine |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: When it comes to Nevada history, men get most of the ink. Comstock Women is a collection of 14 historical studies that helps to rectify that reality. The authors of these essays, who include some of Nevada's most prominent historians, demographers, and archaeologists, explore such topics as women and politics, jobs, and ethnic groups. Their work goes far in refuting the exaggerated popular images of women in early mining towns as dance hall girls or prostitutes. Relying primarily on newspapers, court decisions, census records, as well as sparse personal diaries and records left by the woman, the essayists have resurrected the lives of the women who lived on the Comstock during the boom years. |