Smart Girls Read Romance -- so do the bestselling and award-winning Authors who write this blog.
Join them as they dish about Books, Romance, Love, and Life.






Thursday, June 4, 2020


What Happened in Silver City, Idaho
145 Years Ago?

In case you don't know about my obsessions with Silver City, Idaho...well, that's where many of my books are set.  The Hearts of Owyhee series is set in Owyhee County where I grew up, and of course that's where Silver City is located.  Silver was a thriving mining town on the top of a mountain but petered out during World War I for several reasons.  It was the county seat clear until 1934 when the Owyhee voters elected to move the county seat to Murphy.



Because I'm gearing up for my readers' event at the Idaho Hotel in Silver (Idaho is in Phase 3 so gatherings 50 and under are allowed), I thought it would be fun to read a few 1875 newspapers to see what was happening there at this time of year 145 years ago.  And it was fun.  Yes, I'll share.

First of all, newspapers had a different tone and writing style in the 1870s.  And they definitely had a better sense of humor.

The Owyhee Avalanche: May 22, 1875
The citizens of Silver City liked to have a good time, and the best of the good times were at the horse races.
The Owyhee Avalanche: June 19, 1875
A sad bit of news was Hill Beachy's death.  Beachy was quite a character and did everything from blaze new trails, round up dangerous outlaws, and as this article points out, "explore the stage route from Winnemucca to this place."  He was widely respected and mourned by many.

The Owyhee Avalanche: May 22, 1875
One thing that always interests me, especially as a writer, are the prices of the time.  Running onto this article was a real stroke of luck.


The Idaho Hotel, where my readers' event is held, was 12 years old when these prices were in effect.

I'm with Honey Beaulieu at the historic Idaho Hotel
Yes, we wear costumes.  Some of us are very serious about them, some of us wear hokey costumes, and some of us are just glad to get there wearing shorts and flipflops.  It's how we roll. LOL.

I hope you'll be able to attend the event July 17-19.  We'd love to see you!

Until then, happy reading!

If you're on Snapchat, friend me!  My handle is jacquierogers.  You can get videos of Sassy's latest updates there.  And goofy pictures of her scribe.

Keep up with Jacquie Rogers' latest news at the

Posted by at
Labels: , , , ,

2 comments:

  1. HurricaneReadsJune 5, 2020 at 8:40 PM

    Wow, wouldn't you like some of those prices now?
    I cannot wait for the reader event, as well as some Silver City onion soup and JeriBerry pie.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Judy Ann DavisJune 6, 2020 at 10:24 PM

    Enjoyed your post. The prices of goods always interest me. Flour @ $10.00 a pound! It was as dear and pricey then as it was scarce here when our pandemic here started in March. Best of luck with your writing.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for commenting on Smart Girls Read Romance. We love readers and love their comments. We apologize that due to a few unethical spammers we've had to institute comment moderation. Please be patient with us... we DO want your genuine comments!

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)