Silver Dollar: The Story of the Tabors

by David Karsner

H. A. W. Tabor and his Yankee bride left the stone quarries of New England for the free soil of Kansas, thence pursuing their search for riches to the Colorado Mountains. They witnessed (and aided in) the birth of Denver; they kept store in mining camps; Augusta saved the pennies while "Haw" made friends and grubstaked itinerant adventurers; finally, out of a stake of $64.75 to a couple of Germans, Haw secured a one-third interest in the Little Pittsburgh Mine, which a few months later he sold for $1,000,000.

The rise to wealth and the wholly incredible way of life of this latter-day Croesus are one of the major fables of the West. Tabor became lieutenant governor, U.S. senator, politician, capitalist, patron of the arts, and empire builder on a grand scale. He divorced his school-marm wife and married a dazzling divorcee of the mining camps. He astonished even the Gilded Age with his prodigality, and died a pauper when the gold-standard men of the East toppled the Western silver kings from their thrones.

Three women are the mirrors of his fantastic career--Augusta, who shared his struggles; Baby Doe, who helped spread his wealth; and his daughter, Silver Dollar (so christened by William Jennings Bryan), who met a violent death in Chicago's Tenderloin. In this saga of a vanished frontier, Mr. Karsner has extracted with admirable judgment the bizarre truth that lay hidden under a mountain of apocrypha.

354 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1932

Reviews

[Roberta Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was published in 1932 and I read it as research for my next novel. I have to say I found the book fascinating. It is really more about Horace Tabor than Silver Dollar (his daughter) and very little about Baby Doe (his second wife). Although the author claims solid research, he pretty much follows the legend of the Tabors to the letter. Having read Judy Nolte Temple's "Baby Doe Tabor - The Madwoman in the Cabin", I know his portrait of this family has inaccuracies. Still, I gained a lot of understanding of how Horace earned and lost his fortune. I think the author, Karsner, captured what Horace was about. This American pioneer had a great lust for life. Everything he did, he did in a big way.

I found the practical first wife, Augusta, very likable. She was only the eleventh woman to live in Denver! Having heard the legend of Baby Doe as a child in Denver which, of course, was a big modern city then, I found this fact intriguing.

What I didn't like about his book was Karsner's judgmental commentary. Silver Dollar is a tragic character and although what I learned made me sympathetic toward her and filled me with understanding, I didn't get a sympathetic vibe from the author.

He gave absolutely no depth to Baby Doe. Even though he met with her in her cabin, he didn't ask her pointed questions. He says "I attempt no interview with Baby Doe. It would have been folly to do so. The story had been told to me many times by numerous people, probably with more clarity and authenticity than she could remember it and piece it together . . ." This made me think Karsner was a bit of a jerk. I got the feeling he (remember this book was released in 1932) didn't relate to women. Their personalities and actions are limited and shallow.

Still, the author was able to bring a tear to my eye. I like how he writes and I'm glad I read this book.

[Amie Comeau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun biography, its was the perfect book prior to traveling through Denver.

[Wendy]

Found a 1932 edition in a junk store in Utah for .25 and it is one of the best books I've read

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tabor is a major player in early Colorado history, and his wife Baby Doe is colorful.