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Pearl
Fate had brought Victoria Pearl to live in West Texas, and in 1921, she opened Pearl’s Parlor; incorporating her experiences in Chicago along with the knowledge she had learned about men, business, and “making happy, satisfied customers.”
Victoria Pearl saw many changes in her lifetime but nothing as drastic as the changes for American women after World War I. For decades the Victorian Age dominated society in a formal, conservative fashion. In 1920, the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote, inspiring a culture soon to be known as The New Woman. Skirts and hairstyles became shorter, and the music of the Jazz Age promoted a new sensuous attitude of sexuality. The term “flapper” was created from the idea that women were becoming free to flap their wings and more and more women were graduating with a college education.
Before the 1920’s, only prostitutes smoked, drank liquor, revealed too much leg, and wore make-up. Until 1923 birth control and women wearing trousers had been against the law in America. Attitudes were changing, and condoms like the Merry Widow and Shiek (named after Rudy Valentino’s movie) were becoming available in drug stores everywhere. With the onset of prohibition, San Angelo, Texas had 63 pharmacies that sold booze by prescription. All you had to do was pick up your preference of liquor written on a piece of paper from a basket as you walked into the store and take it to the counter. The Roaring Twenties were on fire, and San Angelo was a fun place to be.
Victoria Pearl was a successful entrepreneur in San Angelo, Texas. She bought a mansion on the Concho River where she opened a business she called Miss Pearl’s Parlor. Everyone who patronized the Parlor knew her as “Miss Pearl.” The girls called her “Mother,” and San Angelo knew her as “Madame.” Like many women in her business, she liked to maintain a professional mystique; and name changing was common to accomplish just that. Miss Pearl was adamant that her girls be educated and current with the latest news in politics and trends. Her experience, working as a courtesan at the Everleigh House in Chicago, taught her well. She had learned from Ada and Minna Everleigh the importance of etiquette, knowledge, and how a woman should conduct herself in the most lady-like fashion. Life had taught her many lessons, and Pearl felt a strong need to pass the knowledge on to her girls.
In 1923, West Texas began prospering from oil exploration with San Angelo at the heart of the boom. It all began May 28, when the Santa Rita oil well finally began producing crude oil in the Permian Basin. San Angelo was ideally located and had already been established as a major trading center. With an elevation of 2300 feet above sea level, San Angelo boasted weather pleasant most of the year with an arid climate and bright, blue skies. The gentle flow of the Concho River’s teal green waters along serene riverbanks make a picturesque setting through the middle of town. Victoria Pearl had fallen in love with San Angelo and found it to be a perfect place to run her business.
Throughout the years several girls came and left Miss Pearl’s Parlor. Our story will focus on how in May of 1923, thirteen ladies, including Victoria Pearl, became part of Miss Pearl’s Parlor. Together they had learned how to prosper and survive in a time when there were very few job options for single women and one sexual experience put a girl in the category of “a fallen woman”.
Like the discovery of a lustrous pearl, when a woman is appreciated and adored she will open herself up to reveal the sacred treasures and gifts she holds deep within her heart.
Victoria Pearl saw many changes in her lifetime but nothing as drastic as the changes for American women after World War I. For decades the Victorian Age dominated society in a formal, conservative fashion. In 1920, the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote, inspiring a culture soon to be known as The New Woman. Skirts and hairstyles became shorter, and the music of the Jazz Age promoted a new sensuous attitude of sexuality. The term “flapper” was created from the idea that women were becoming free to flap their wings and more and more women were graduating with a college education.
Before the 1920’s, only prostitutes smoked, drank liquor, revealed too much leg, and wore make-up. Until 1923 birth control and women wearing trousers had been against the law in America. Attitudes were changing, and condoms like the Merry Widow and Shiek (named after Rudy Valentino’s movie) were becoming available in drug stores everywhere. With the onset of prohibition, San Angelo, Texas had 63 pharmacies that sold booze by prescription. All you had to do was pick up your preference of liquor written on a piece of paper from a basket as you walked into the store and take it to the counter. The Roaring Twenties were on fire, and San Angelo was a fun place to be.
Victoria Pearl was a successful entrepreneur in San Angelo, Texas. She bought a mansion on the Concho River where she opened a business she called Miss Pearl’s Parlor. Everyone who patronized the Parlor knew her as “Miss Pearl.” The girls called her “Mother,” and San Angelo knew her as “Madame.” Like many women in her business, she liked to maintain a professional mystique; and name changing was common to accomplish just that. Miss Pearl was adamant that her girls be educated and current with the latest news in politics and trends. Her experience, working as a courtesan at the Everleigh House in Chicago, taught her well. She had learned from Ada and Minna Everleigh the importance of etiquette, knowledge, and how a woman should conduct herself in the most lady-like fashion. Life had taught her many lessons, and Pearl felt a strong need to pass the knowledge on to her girls.
In 1923, West Texas began prospering from oil exploration with San Angelo at the heart of the boom. It all began May 28, when the Santa Rita oil well finally began producing crude oil in the Permian Basin. San Angelo was ideally located and had already been established as a major trading center. With an elevation of 2300 feet above sea level, San Angelo boasted weather pleasant most of the year with an arid climate and bright, blue skies. The gentle flow of the Concho River’s teal green waters along serene riverbanks make a picturesque setting through the middle of town. Victoria Pearl had fallen in love with San Angelo and found it to be a perfect place to run her business.
Throughout the years several girls came and left Miss Pearl’s Parlor. Our story will focus on how in May of 1923, thirteen ladies, including Victoria Pearl, became part of Miss Pearl’s Parlor. Together they had learned how to prosper and survive in a time when there were very few job options for single women and one sexual experience put a girl in the category of “a fallen woman”.
Like the discovery of a lustrous pearl, when a woman is appreciated and adored she will open herself up to reveal the sacred treasures and gifts she holds deep within her heart.
Unknown Binding
First published December 17, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 24, 2021
Makes me miss San Angelo
December 16, 2015
A historical novel by Cynthia Jordon. She wrote the hit song Jose Cuervo (you are a friend of mine). Pearl is her first novel theatrical musical. In 1923 San Angelo is an oil boom town. Miss Pearl's Parlor has thirteen women who have come to work there. These are their stories. Pearl is about oil, cowboys, and "Ladies of the Evening"
Want to Read
September 11, 2013Have not had a chance to read it yet. This book tells the story of the brothels in San Angelo, Texas.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews