An Adventurous Spirit

by Laura Strickland


The women of the West were no ordinary women. Ordinary women stayed at home, back East. They got married, had children and kept a house. A few of the more stubborn among them might opt for a career in medicine or, more likely, midwifery. A widow could open her house to boarders, and an unmarried woman might hold a position in a shop.

It’s my firm opinion that the ladies who came West wanted something more. Whether they came in search of freedom and independence, maybe to fulfill talents or desires denied to them at home, or they acted to escape some terrible fate, they were among the more daring of our forebears. The women willing to take a chance. To break the mold—and the chains their sisters wore.

It took guts to hop aboard a Conestoga, a stage coach or a train, and head off into the unknown.  But the West offered them opportunities they would never have back home. While life was hard for many, like the wives of miners, loggers, and especially homesteaders, rules and mores were a bit looser. As also happened for many men and for people of color, lines between what was acceptable and unacceptable blurred. Through necessity, a woman might run a ranch on her own. She could ride a horse as well as any cowboy; she could become a photographer, a surveyor, an outlaw. She could open a brothel and still command a measure of respect.

I believe the women who populate our town of Wylder in the Wylder West Series are no exception. Although they are diverse and their reasons for coming to Wylder differ, be they young or old, pretty or what used to be called “handsome,” they share one important attribute. Strength. They have known adversity, or are caught up in it now, and are willing to battle their way out. They refuse to lie down, and they refuse to accept the word, “No.”

Come meet the ladies of Wylder, Wyoming. You may find you share one quality fundamental to all of them, an adventurous spirit.




 

Comments

  1. Sarita LeoneMarch 8, 2021 at 6:36 AM

    Laura, I love this! Yes, I agree--the women who populated the wild west were strong, intelligent adventurers!

    ReplyDelete

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