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The legend of Poker Alice |
One of the most memorable wild women of the old west, Poker Alice moved to Colorado from England in the 1860s and eventually married a mining engineer who played cards at local gambling parlors. Alice accompanied her husband, learned the games and began playing for a living after her spouse died.
She earned the name Poker Alice and quite a reputation to boot. By the end of the gold rush, Alice had made over $5,000 (an enormous amount for those days) and moved to New York to retire. In her lifetime, the wild woman shot two men, killing one, and eventually opened an establishment which was a combination of a card room and a brothel.
Cool Fact: Despite her wild ways, Alice refused to play or deal cards on Sunday, and chose to teach Sunday school lessons to her fellow ladies. |
