Soapy Smith's Soap Box: Soapy Smith runs the soap racket in Tombstone, Arizona, 1882

February 25, 2021

Soapy Smith runs the soap racket in Tombstone, Arizona, 1882

Soapy Smith - "street fakir"
The Daily Nugget
January 28, 1882
Tombstone, Arizona

STREET FAKIR WAS WORKING THE 'SOAP RACKET'"

It's been a number of years that we've known that Soapy Smith went to Tombstone, Arizona. I knew that he operated swindles there, likely the prize package soap sell racket, but never had any solid provenance, until now. Good friend, author, and Tombstone historian, Peter Brand came across a report in The Daily Nugget and sent it to me. Below is the entire page he sent.

The Daily Nugget
January 28, 1882
Tombstone, Arizona
Article is in 1st col, 8 par

(Click image to enlarge)

The notice states that a "fakir" operated the "soap racket" on the corner of "Allen and Fourth streets" on January 27, 1882. This is one day after Soapy signed the register at the Cosmopolitan Hotel, so there is hardly a doubt that the "fakir" was Soapy. He also signed the register of the same hotel on January 31st and February 16th. There may be more newspaper stories waiting to be discovered.
I have xerox copies of one of Soapy's personal notebooks. Soapy returned to Tombstone and sold his prize package soap beginning on December 17, 1883. In his own handwriting, he wrote up a week's tally.

Sales in Tombstone.
A.T. Dec. 1883
Dec 17th Mon. .......$65.00
Dec 18th T [Tue] ....$58.00
Dec 19th W [Wed] ..$53.00
Dec 20th T [Thur] ...$57.00
Dec 21st F [Fri] .......$23.00
Dec 22nd Sat ...........$58.50
_______________________
................................$314.50

$314.50 is the equivalent of $8,808.09 in 2020 dollars, for five days of work! Not a bad haul for selling soap!
In looking at the map below we see that the corner of Allen and Fourth is just steps away from the Cosmopolitan Hotel. It is also the same distance from the Grand Hotel, where the "cow-boys," the Earp enemies, were registered. It is easy to imagine Soapy swindling one of the cowboys made famous via movies, such as "Tombstone."

Tombstone, Arizona
Red circle show the corner Soapy worked

(Click image to enlarge)

Tombstone, Arizona - 1886
Sanborn map
Red circle show the corner Soapy worked

(Click image to enlarge)

Numerous times I have walked this corner, not realizing how close to unholy ground I was.I always get a photo taken in front of the wooden fence where the Cosmopolitan Hotel stood, and now I will do the same at Allen and Fourth Streets. I need to run the prize package soap sell racket there!