Volume #1: The Life and Times of Cerro Gordo’s
Lola Travis; Noted Conductress of a Bawdy Dance House
The story of Lola Travis, from a penniless 13-year-old Mexican immigrant to one of the richest single women
in Inyo County in the 1870’s.
Volume #2: Murder, Mayhem and Martha Camp and Other Stories from Old Panamint City and Darwin
The story of Martha Camp, who played a pivotal role in the capture of the
murderer of Virginia City’s Julia Bulette, then moved on to Death Valley’s Panamint City to become a notorious
madam there. This volume also contains the story of the murder of Nancy ‘Featherlegs’ Williams in Darwin and a
look at the life of Chinese prostitutes in the camp of Darwin in the 1870’s.
Volume #3: The Life and Times of Death Valley’s Diamond Tooth Lil; The Most
Reckless Girl That Ever Was The true life story of Evelyn Hildegard,
AKA Diamond Tooth Lil, one of the most enduring and glamorous Death Valley legends. This volume also contains a collection
of memories from old timers who worked as messengers or delivery people in the red light district as children and a look at
Death Valley Junction in its early days.
Volume #4: The Life and Death of Mona Bell in Rhyolite
The short life story of Sadie Isabel Heskett, AKA Mona Bell, who was
murdered in Rhyolite in 1908. Includes a court transcript in which Mona talks about a typical night at work for her and also
an in-depth look at the Rhyolite tenderloin.
Volume #5: The Devil and Mrs. Davis; and Other
Stories
from the Tonopah and Goldfield Tenderloins
This collection of three stories includes ‘The Devil and Mrs. Davis’, regarding the trial of
Ruth Davis for the murder of her husband George; ‘Gold Tooth Bess and the Deputy District Attorney’, regarding
the farcical trial of a Goldfield lawyer accused of shooting his prostitute girlfriend, and ‘Dolly Franquelin’s
Decision’, regarding one Tonopah madam’s struggle to keep her brothel open despite efforts by the town government to shut her down.
The Death Valley Red Light Chronicles bring to light the real, never before
told stories of the lives of several women who made the difficult choice to become prostitutes in the mining boom days. These
stories are based on years of painstaking research in many California and Nevada archives and each volume contains rare
photos, contemporary newspaper articles and other illustrations.
