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The Tattooed Lady: A History
Living in a time when it was scandalous even to show a bit of ankle, a small number of courageous women covered their bodies in tattoos and traveled the country, performing nearly nude on carnival stages. These gutsy women spun amazing stories for captivated audiences about abductions and forced tattooing at the hands of savages, but little has been shared of their real lives. Though they spawned a cultural movement almost a quarter of Americans now have tattoos these women have largely faded into history. The Tattooed Lady uncovers the true stories behind these women, bringing them out of the sideshow realm and into their working class realities. Combining thorough research with more than a hundred historical photos, this updated second edition explores tattoo origins, women's history, circus lore, and includes even more personal and professional details from modern tattooed ladies. A fascinating read, The Tattooed Lady pays tribute to a group of unique and amazing women whose legacy lives on."
160 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
8 people are currently reading
636 people want to read
About the author
Amelia Klem Osterud
3 books17 followersAmelia Klem Osterud is a tattooed librarian and archivist in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, who writes and speaks on circus, sideshow and tattoo history. She is the author of The Tattooed Lady: A History, and is a regular contributor to Things & Ink and Z Tattoo Magazine. She holds master’s degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in History and Library Science. When she is not writing, knitting or playing hockey, she and her pocket watch-enthusiast husband can be found restoring old motorcycles and run-down houses and taking care of their two off-kilter cats.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
September 12, 2012
OK... nice pix... overall, enjoyable. Came off as as a not-terribly-scholarly casual research project cobbled together with a couple of other not-terribly-scholarly casual research projects, but if you treat this as light entertainment and a fun collection of photos, you won't be disappointed. Well, except by the bits on contemporary tattooed lady performers. Ugh, boring strippers with a few tattoos, big freaking deal; it would have been much more interesting to see and hear from some of today's more extensively and INTERESTINGLY tattooed ladies. Would like to see these topics explored further by really brilliant researchers and writers; hopefully that will be coming down the pike. I'll hold on to this for now.
April 7, 2019
A fascinating look into the history of tattooing and the career path of tattooed women throughout history. I loved the ancient history and learning how stereotypes have developed (and sometimes stayed) through decades and centuries.
My only negative statement was that some information was repeated, even three times sometimes. The author probably just thought she was reiterating or driving home a point, but it came across as a space filler and unnecessary.
My only negative statement was that some information was repeated, even three times sometimes. The author probably just thought she was reiterating or driving home a point, but it came across as a space filler and unnecessary.
October 7, 2013
During the late-19th and early 20th centuries, women chose tattooing to purposely attract a specific kind of attention. Whether it was at the behest of a spouse already in the carnival or to get out of the drudgery of a life of servitude, many young women chose to become The Tattooed Lady – a life explored by Amelia Klem Olmstead in her eponymous book.
While studying Native American women’s history, Olmstead’s research turned up information on 19th century tattooing and tattooed Native American men and women. However, when she tried to find further information about Western women and tattooing in the same period, very little was available. Usually mentioned in passing as part of articles about men or tattooing in general, the women whose names continued to come up turned out to be “tattooed lady” carnies.
Olmstead introduced her readers to the more famous tattooed ladies such as Irene Woodward, Nora Hildebrandt, Surita, Artoria Gibbons, Bertha Ritchie, and Emma de Burgh, plus many more unnamed women who were photographed on the sideshow circuit. She also touched briefly on the history of tattooing and the emergence of the tattooed lady.
Throughout the stories, Olmstead discussed how tattooed ladies came to prominence in the 1880s. Many of the women told various tales of how they came to be tattooed, the most common story of being captured by natives and tattooed under duress. Ultimately, as Olmstead concluded, women tattooed their bodies as a way to assert their independence and escape dreary lives. Little opportunity was available for women of the era and a life on the carnival circuit provided income and adventure.
Olmstead tied the Victorian tattooed lady to the modern sideshow and burlesque resurgences as she closed the book. Jumping straight to the 1992 rise of the Jim Rose Circus Sideshow on the Lollapalooza tour in the final chapter, she discussed how the tattooed lady has moved from a main attraction to a secondary characteristic of a performance. The last “tattooed lady,” Lorette Fulkerson, retired in 1995. Now, sideshow women are sword swallowers, fire-eaters, and burlesque dancers who also happened to be tattooed.
At one point, she briefly discussed the stereotypes imposed on tattooed women, from “bad girls” to being incapable of choosing the life of a tattooed lady themselves rather than having it imposed on them by the men in their lives. In the book’s conclusion, Olmstead asserts that the misconceptions of women with tattoos “mostly don’t hold anymore” thanks to these tattooed ladies and that tattoos are now something “women can do without much backlash.” Since most of the narrative focuses strictly on historic and modern sideshow women, these generalizations felt like a stretch from the content of the book.
Overall, Olmstead provided an excellent overview of the development of the tattooed lady as sideshow. The women she profiled are shown in historic and modern photographs. However, the drawback of the book is that the reader is left feeling as though there is more to the story.
This review originally appeared at Zen Dixie, http://www.zendixie.com/read.html
While studying Native American women’s history, Olmstead’s research turned up information on 19th century tattooing and tattooed Native American men and women. However, when she tried to find further information about Western women and tattooing in the same period, very little was available. Usually mentioned in passing as part of articles about men or tattooing in general, the women whose names continued to come up turned out to be “tattooed lady” carnies.
Olmstead introduced her readers to the more famous tattooed ladies such as Irene Woodward, Nora Hildebrandt, Surita, Artoria Gibbons, Bertha Ritchie, and Emma de Burgh, plus many more unnamed women who were photographed on the sideshow circuit. She also touched briefly on the history of tattooing and the emergence of the tattooed lady.
Throughout the stories, Olmstead discussed how tattooed ladies came to prominence in the 1880s. Many of the women told various tales of how they came to be tattooed, the most common story of being captured by natives and tattooed under duress. Ultimately, as Olmstead concluded, women tattooed their bodies as a way to assert their independence and escape dreary lives. Little opportunity was available for women of the era and a life on the carnival circuit provided income and adventure.
Olmstead tied the Victorian tattooed lady to the modern sideshow and burlesque resurgences as she closed the book. Jumping straight to the 1992 rise of the Jim Rose Circus Sideshow on the Lollapalooza tour in the final chapter, she discussed how the tattooed lady has moved from a main attraction to a secondary characteristic of a performance. The last “tattooed lady,” Lorette Fulkerson, retired in 1995. Now, sideshow women are sword swallowers, fire-eaters, and burlesque dancers who also happened to be tattooed.
At one point, she briefly discussed the stereotypes imposed on tattooed women, from “bad girls” to being incapable of choosing the life of a tattooed lady themselves rather than having it imposed on them by the men in their lives. In the book’s conclusion, Olmstead asserts that the misconceptions of women with tattoos “mostly don’t hold anymore” thanks to these tattooed ladies and that tattoos are now something “women can do without much backlash.” Since most of the narrative focuses strictly on historic and modern sideshow women, these generalizations felt like a stretch from the content of the book.
Overall, Olmstead provided an excellent overview of the development of the tattooed lady as sideshow. The women she profiled are shown in historic and modern photographs. However, the drawback of the book is that the reader is left feeling as though there is more to the story.
This review originally appeared at Zen Dixie, http://www.zendixie.com/read.html
June 7, 2010
A good looking book with wonderful pix, sources and index and even an attached ribbon bookmark. The writing could use some editing, information was frequently repeated from one chapter to the next and before I became accustomed to this flaw I found myself confused about maybe having lost my place; no matter how elegant or well employed, a bookmark won't help in that respect. I'd like to see more photos and less redundancies.
May 27, 2011
This book is highly entertaining for the first 40 pages, but suffers from poor editing. Much of the latter part of the text reads like an undergraduate research paper-- a paper that deserves an A but not full-length publication. The pictures are fascinating and from a librarian's point of view the captions provide excellent reference points for resources in this genre.
May 26, 2015
I wish this book had a better editor; a historian perhaps? The first two chapters were essentially the same, covering the same topics, women, and stories. Plus there were so many questions not explored. I understand there will be some limitations due to scant historical records, but I feel the writer could've covered a lot more than she did. Wonderful subject, disappointing research and writing.
February 1, 2017
An interesting look into the history of the tattooed lady as a circus attraction.
The lives of these women who chose to tattoo themselves and how they were perceived by society at the time.
With a wonderful collection of pictures to accompany the text, you really get a feeling for who these women were.
Grace
The lives of these women who chose to tattoo themselves and how they were perceived by society at the time.
With a wonderful collection of pictures to accompany the text, you really get a feeling for who these women were.
Grace
September 6, 2016
Very interesting and well researched book by an MPL colleague! Way to speak for all the forgotten ladies with ink, Amelia! As a tattooed library employee of over 15 years, I truly appreciated this book!
August 6, 2011
There were a few great nuggets of information but overall redundant and I remain disappointed.
May 1, 2017
“These tattooed ladies made a literal mark on future generations of women, and that mark is a reminder that difference is beautiful.”
I’ve always been fascinated with tattoos: I started talking about wanting one when I was about eight, I got my first when I was seventeen and well… now I have a lot. Not as much as some people I know, but I often am the most tattooed person in the room, especially at work (and yes, I really appreciate that my employers don’t mind – I know many work places are still very strict on visible ink). Despite tattoos having gone pretty mainstream (at least in Commonwealth and English-speaking countries; something like a quarter of Americans have at least one tattoo), as soon as the weather gets hot and I start wearing short sleeves and skirts, I get a lot of “OMG, an escaped circus freak!” looks (and that’s when they are not simply touching my arms without asking… seriously, who does that?), and I live in Montreal, which is not exactly a stuck up city.
I had been throwing the term “tattooed lady” around casually for years without really knowing anything about these women, besides the fact that they were a carnival and circus act at the turn of the century, where they would stand very scantily clad for the gawking pleasure of small town folks. But a recent burst of intellectual curiosity led me to dig a little deeper on the subject and I found this book.
My interest in tattooed ladies was greatly reinforced by this book, and I found their stories to be very inspirational. Most of these women were from working class or poor families and had very few prospects: the decision of getting extensively tattooed and making a living by showing off their body art (and often becoming tattooists themselves) drastically changed their lives, allowing them to travel extensively and often make better wages than they could have ever hoped for had they stayed at home. They were all clearly independent women, who embraced that idea of being different and used that to control their lives the way very few other women could in that day and age. They reclaimed ownership of their bodies in a completely unprecedented way; the idea of their tattoos as a tool of liberation and emancipation struck a deep chord with me and I am in awe of these women’s daring and dedication.
I do find it unfortunate that circuses and sideshow acts exploited their audience’s prejudices and gullibility by displaying people with various physical disabilities, but at the same time, it’s important to remember that there were so few opportunities for these people that a freak show was the only way for many of them to make an honest living. Pandering to people’s racism and erroneous ideas about aboriginals feels very wrong when we look at it through the historical rear-view mirror, but back then, no one would have hired these people for a “regular” job and I suppose that displaying themselves was a better way to live than to resort to crime or end up in asylums.
Tattooed ladies were different from what the book refers to as “born-freaks” because they chose to undergo this permanent body modification and their act consisted of showing off their tattooed skin and telling fanciful stories about how they came about to be tattooed. What I found very interesting was that they were always presented as refined ladies, with fancy hair-dos and beautiful jewelry – people who had visible tattoos at the turn of the century were usually sailors and criminals (more respectable people often had tiny ones, strategically placed so they could be hidden almost all the time), so this idea of a sophisticated and elegant high-class woman being covered and ink was a stark contrast to the accepted status of the average tattoo wearer. Their tattoos were also placed so that when they were dressed in the acceptable attire for women of that era, no one could have told what they did for a living. The sexism and exploitation of the tattooed ladies’ assumed sexuality (it was often assumed that women who would subject themselves to this kind of body modification would be sexual deviants) is also something that made me cringe, but again, in historical context, these women were making an informed choice when they decided to get tattooed and they played with people’s perceptions in order to make a living. I’m not excusing the objectification they endured, but they made the most of their situation and got people to think about women’s bodies, something that was kept out of sight at all costs for centuries.
The role these women had in body-art and body-modification culture is undeniable, as they still fascinate, intrigue and inspire us today. They paved the way for tattoo enthusiasts such as myself, and the amazing female tattoo artists working today. Of course, their success and influence was also their downfall, as the increased popularity of tattoos made them not-so exotic anymore, and a tattooed lady act no longer draws the same crowds it would have attracted in the 1920’s. But their legacy clearly endures despite lingering stereotypes about tattooed women.
Honestly, I wish “The Tattooed Lady; A History” was 1) bigger and 2) less repetitive. Sadly, about a quarter of it is information we have read before being repeated, which was frustrating. The author does a very good job of explaining the historical setting of the shows tattooed ladies worked in and giving us interesting biographies of the most famous ones, but she rehashes details ad nauseum. That being said, the information she provides is a fascinating glimpse into an underground sub-culture that we don’t hear about very often, and I can imagine that documentation about circuses, freak shows and carnies is not all that easy to come by. She also provides a lot of interesting background information on tattoo traditions through history and cultures, showing that the practice, while marginal, was always around in many different contexts. All of this is very interesting, and I learnt a lot, but I also felt like the overall work was too casually researched. I wanted to know more about everything : the historical setting, gender roles of the time, the actual tattooing techniques used, the policies of traveling circuses and sideshows, etc. It all felt like the author was scratching the surface and that there was a lot more to learn that was never really explored.
The final part of the book, featuring tattooed burlesque and circus performers was very disappointing. I really think that there are much more interesting tattooed ladies, whether we are talking about performers or actual tattoo artists, who illustrate the legacy of women like Artoria and Irene Woodward than the ones featured.
This is an entertaining, light read, filled with interesting trivia about turn-of-the-century carnivals and circuses, featuring lovely pictures of classic and famous tattooed ladies, and I enjoyed the read, but I feel like it painted an incomplete portrait of a very specific and complex part of women’s history. That being said, it did make me feel very proud of my own ink and definitely gave me the itch to get some more! I hope someone uses this work as a launching pad for a deeper study of a fascinating subject matter. 3 stars.
I’ve always been fascinated with tattoos: I started talking about wanting one when I was about eight, I got my first when I was seventeen and well… now I have a lot. Not as much as some people I know, but I often am the most tattooed person in the room, especially at work (and yes, I really appreciate that my employers don’t mind – I know many work places are still very strict on visible ink). Despite tattoos having gone pretty mainstream (at least in Commonwealth and English-speaking countries; something like a quarter of Americans have at least one tattoo), as soon as the weather gets hot and I start wearing short sleeves and skirts, I get a lot of “OMG, an escaped circus freak!” looks (and that’s when they are not simply touching my arms without asking… seriously, who does that?), and I live in Montreal, which is not exactly a stuck up city.
I had been throwing the term “tattooed lady” around casually for years without really knowing anything about these women, besides the fact that they were a carnival and circus act at the turn of the century, where they would stand very scantily clad for the gawking pleasure of small town folks. But a recent burst of intellectual curiosity led me to dig a little deeper on the subject and I found this book.
My interest in tattooed ladies was greatly reinforced by this book, and I found their stories to be very inspirational. Most of these women were from working class or poor families and had very few prospects: the decision of getting extensively tattooed and making a living by showing off their body art (and often becoming tattooists themselves) drastically changed their lives, allowing them to travel extensively and often make better wages than they could have ever hoped for had they stayed at home. They were all clearly independent women, who embraced that idea of being different and used that to control their lives the way very few other women could in that day and age. They reclaimed ownership of their bodies in a completely unprecedented way; the idea of their tattoos as a tool of liberation and emancipation struck a deep chord with me and I am in awe of these women’s daring and dedication.
I do find it unfortunate that circuses and sideshow acts exploited their audience’s prejudices and gullibility by displaying people with various physical disabilities, but at the same time, it’s important to remember that there were so few opportunities for these people that a freak show was the only way for many of them to make an honest living. Pandering to people’s racism and erroneous ideas about aboriginals feels very wrong when we look at it through the historical rear-view mirror, but back then, no one would have hired these people for a “regular” job and I suppose that displaying themselves was a better way to live than to resort to crime or end up in asylums.
Tattooed ladies were different from what the book refers to as “born-freaks” because they chose to undergo this permanent body modification and their act consisted of showing off their tattooed skin and telling fanciful stories about how they came about to be tattooed. What I found very interesting was that they were always presented as refined ladies, with fancy hair-dos and beautiful jewelry – people who had visible tattoos at the turn of the century were usually sailors and criminals (more respectable people often had tiny ones, strategically placed so they could be hidden almost all the time), so this idea of a sophisticated and elegant high-class woman being covered and ink was a stark contrast to the accepted status of the average tattoo wearer. Their tattoos were also placed so that when they were dressed in the acceptable attire for women of that era, no one could have told what they did for a living. The sexism and exploitation of the tattooed ladies’ assumed sexuality (it was often assumed that women who would subject themselves to this kind of body modification would be sexual deviants) is also something that made me cringe, but again, in historical context, these women were making an informed choice when they decided to get tattooed and they played with people’s perceptions in order to make a living. I’m not excusing the objectification they endured, but they made the most of their situation and got people to think about women’s bodies, something that was kept out of sight at all costs for centuries.
The role these women had in body-art and body-modification culture is undeniable, as they still fascinate, intrigue and inspire us today. They paved the way for tattoo enthusiasts such as myself, and the amazing female tattoo artists working today. Of course, their success and influence was also their downfall, as the increased popularity of tattoos made them not-so exotic anymore, and a tattooed lady act no longer draws the same crowds it would have attracted in the 1920’s. But their legacy clearly endures despite lingering stereotypes about tattooed women.
Honestly, I wish “The Tattooed Lady; A History” was 1) bigger and 2) less repetitive. Sadly, about a quarter of it is information we have read before being repeated, which was frustrating. The author does a very good job of explaining the historical setting of the shows tattooed ladies worked in and giving us interesting biographies of the most famous ones, but she rehashes details ad nauseum. That being said, the information she provides is a fascinating glimpse into an underground sub-culture that we don’t hear about very often, and I can imagine that documentation about circuses, freak shows and carnies is not all that easy to come by. She also provides a lot of interesting background information on tattoo traditions through history and cultures, showing that the practice, while marginal, was always around in many different contexts. All of this is very interesting, and I learnt a lot, but I also felt like the overall work was too casually researched. I wanted to know more about everything : the historical setting, gender roles of the time, the actual tattooing techniques used, the policies of traveling circuses and sideshows, etc. It all felt like the author was scratching the surface and that there was a lot more to learn that was never really explored.
The final part of the book, featuring tattooed burlesque and circus performers was very disappointing. I really think that there are much more interesting tattooed ladies, whether we are talking about performers or actual tattoo artists, who illustrate the legacy of women like Artoria and Irene Woodward than the ones featured.
This is an entertaining, light read, filled with interesting trivia about turn-of-the-century carnivals and circuses, featuring lovely pictures of classic and famous tattooed ladies, and I enjoyed the read, but I feel like it painted an incomplete portrait of a very specific and complex part of women’s history. That being said, it did make me feel very proud of my own ink and definitely gave me the itch to get some more! I hope someone uses this work as a launching pad for a deeper study of a fascinating subject matter. 3 stars.
December 19, 2021
Not bad but a tad boring... filled with few pages of unnecessary info in order probably for the book to be longer in order to be published. Not enough info on those tattooed ladies so much. 10 of them...hm...but ok informative to dome extent at least.
December 23, 2017
more about dime museum and sideshow ladies, but solid scholarship.
March 19, 2021
It’s a good look into North American history and its relationship with tattoos. I learned a lot and it encouraged me to explore other information about topics mentioned in the book.
September 22, 2023
Some interesting bits but in desperate need of an editor
March 13, 2013
Tattoos have always held intrigue for me (working in #8 this month!) and I was delighted to stumble across this gem, Academic librarian, Amelia Klem Osterud, pieces together a largely forgotten/overlooked past female tattoed performers and accompanies the text with beautiful photographs and illustrations.
Amelia does an excellent job describing the early tattooed beauties and their influence on women's rights, tattoos, and stereotypes in America's past and current culture. This collection is truly amazing and I enjoyed learning about some of the reasons why women covered themselves in ink and joined the circus and fled the "norm" female lifestyle. Many times it was for survival, being a tattooed woman allowed for a freer lifestyle and a relatively good income. Learning about the style and technique of tattooing was also quite fascinating (thankfully this has changed drastically).
The first generation of tattooed ladies (Nora Hildebrandt, Irene Woodward, Annie Howard - 1880's) and the second generation (Betty Broadbent, Lady Viola - 1920's) helped pave the way in how people see and understand tattoos and inspired women to rise above their status and lived in relative freedom compared to their female counterparts of the day. The author summed it up well, "These tattoed ladies made a literal mark on future generations of women, and that mark is a reminder that difference is beautiful."
Amelia does an excellent job describing the early tattooed beauties and their influence on women's rights, tattoos, and stereotypes in America's past and current culture. This collection is truly amazing and I enjoyed learning about some of the reasons why women covered themselves in ink and joined the circus and fled the "norm" female lifestyle. Many times it was for survival, being a tattooed woman allowed for a freer lifestyle and a relatively good income. Learning about the style and technique of tattooing was also quite fascinating (thankfully this has changed drastically).
The first generation of tattooed ladies (Nora Hildebrandt, Irene Woodward, Annie Howard - 1880's) and the second generation (Betty Broadbent, Lady Viola - 1920's) helped pave the way in how people see and understand tattoos and inspired women to rise above their status and lived in relative freedom compared to their female counterparts of the day. The author summed it up well, "These tattoed ladies made a literal mark on future generations of women, and that mark is a reminder that difference is beautiful."
September 26, 2014
Just what it says on the tin. A history starting in the 1880s when tattooed ladies started taking the limelight from the previously popular tattooed men, and continuing until the demise of traveling carnival sideshows. Nicely done, even though the author sometimes fails to distinguish between carnivals and circuses.
December 16, 2014
I just love to read about tattooed ladies from the past! Being a current-day tattooed lady, I like to know my history. The stories and pictures from a time when it was scandalous to even show one's legs in public make me feel way better about people ogling my tats now!
January 21, 2012
A really pretty book. Lots of amazing phots and a peek at life as an oddity. As a tattooed lady myself, I found it fascinating.
June 21, 2010
Great information about tattooed ladies, circuses and how they fit into American culture. Lots of interesting pictures and many life stories of the tattooed ladies.
August 23, 2010
A truly wonderful book about women making their own way in a time when there were so few choices for women.
May 24, 2011
great book. really inspired me to be proud of my tattoos. It was also interesting learning the femme history of tattoo ladies, and how brave they were.
November 10, 2012
I liked this one a lot more than bodies of subversion. Way less into the feminine thing and focused more on the actual women themselves. It also had a lot of really great photos.
November 11, 2014
Interesting history of tattooed ladies. I didn't realize that there were so many!
May 20, 2015
Pretty good popular history of tattooed ladies. Must have been fun to research. Lots of great photos. A little thin on content.
May 18, 2016
After a while I was looking at the pictures, and then it seemed they were all the same person. Freaks and freak shows.
February 15, 2011
Great pictures, but the writing could use some editing.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews