AUGUSTA TABOR: HER SIDE OF THE SCANDAL

by Caroline Bancroft

For many years of her middle life Augusta was called “Leadville’s First Lady.” The nickname was spoken in affection and in admiration, and she was interviewed for the Leadville papers under that heading. Yes, she was a first lady in many ways, courageous and industrious and civic. The tragedy of her life lay in the fact that, although she was beloved of many, she lost the key to the only heart she wanted.

The millionaire Silver King, Horace A. W. Tabor, divorced Augusta in a great scandal, only to start up a bigger scandal when he remarried.

Paperback

First published June 1, 1955

About the author

A third-generation Coloradan, Caroline Bancroft was born into Colorado’s “upper-crust” society. Describing Denver’s history as “alive and kicking,” she was also describing herself. Known for her high-handedness and eccentricities, Bancroft spent time in the Ziegfield Follies and was once a cruise ship teacher before she wrote for the then-scandalous Denver Post. Her determination and interest in Colorado history led her to research and publish nine booklets on the topic. Armed with a master’s degree in history from the University of Denver, she focused primarily on Central City, Leadville, and the Tabor family. In her later years, Bancroft traveled to escape health problems. She was struck with cancer four times and tuberculosis three times and suffered blindness for one full year.

Bancroft is most famous for her original work on Colorado history, on which the opera The Ballad of Baby Doe and the musical The Unsinkable Molly Brown were based. Her works include Silver Queen: The Fabulous Story of Baby Doe Tabor (1950); Famous Aspen: Its Fabulous Past—Its Lively Present (1954); The Brown Place in Denver (1955); The Unsinkable Mrs. Brown: S.S. Titantic Heroine (1956); Gulch of Gold: A History of Central City (1958); Colorful Colorado (1959); Tabor’s Matchless Mines and Lusty Leadville (1960); Unique Ghost Towns and Mountain Spots (1961); Colorado’s Lost Gold Mine (with Mary B. Wills, 1965); The Unsinkable Molly Brown Cookbook (1966); Two Burros of Fairplay: Morsels of History for Young and Old (1968); and Trail Ridge Country: Estes Park and Grand Lake (1969). She also wrote a play for the television biographical series of the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, produced by the American Broadcasting Company network in 1956–1957. She wrote articles for the New York Evening Post, New York Herald Tribune, New York Times, Town and Country, Woman’s Home Companion, Western Folklore Quarterly, Colorado Westerner’s Brand Book , and other magazines and newspapers.

From Colorado Women's Hall of Fame:
http://www.cogreatwomen.org/bancroft.htm

Reviews

[Tweller83 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was quite surprised by how much I liked this little booklet. Being from Colorado and having visited Leadville many times and having heard the names obviously helps quite a bit. But this is a very readable and fun little booklet about a woman from Colorado's past and makes me want to read about Baby Doe Tabor now. I think we have that booklet too so I'll be getting that out to read, maybe even today. Nice little snippet of our state's history.

[Aurora · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good companion to Bancroft's other piece on Baby Doe. A very niche interest though.