Soapy Smith's Soap Box: January 2025

January 29, 2025

Soapy Smith's "STAR" notebook, 1883: Part #15 - page 15

Soapy STAR notebook
Page 15 - Original copy
1883
Courtesy of Geri Murphy

(Click image to enlarge)

OAPY SMITH IN DENVER, WISCONSIN AND MINNESOTA.

This is page 15, dated July-September 1883, the continuation of deciphering Soapy Smith's "star" notebook from the Geri Murphy's collection. A complete introduction to this notebook can be seen on page 1.

These notebook pages have never been published before! They continue to be of revealing interest. The picture that the pages draw is of young 22 year-old Jefferson pursuing "soap sales" over a very wide spread of territory and in a very tenacious, even driven, way.
The notebook(s) are in Soapy's handwriting, and often times pretty hard to decipher. A large part of this series of posts is to transcribe the pages, one-at-a-time, and receive help from readers on identifying words I am having trouble with, as well as correcting any of my deciphered words. My long time friend, and publisher, Art Petersen, has been a great help in deciphering and adding additional information.

I will include the original copy, an enhanced copy, and a negative copy of each page. Also included will be a copy with typed out text, as tools to aid in deciphering the notes.
There are a total of 24 pages. This means that there may be upwards of 24 individuals posts for this one notebook. Links to the past and future pages (pages 1, 2, 3, etc.) will be added at the bottom of each post for ease of research. When completed there will be a sourced partial record of Soapy's activities and whereabouts for 1882-1883.

Important to note that the pages of the notebook do not appear to be in chronological order, with Soapy making additional notes on a town and topic several pages later.

Page 15 appears to be two separate sections, one on the top and the other on the bottom, the bottom portion being upside down. they appear to be separate notes written on different days. the top being prize package soap sales in Denver, Colorado, showing two days of five sales in July (14th and 16th) for a profit of $153.00., the equivalent of $5,237.16 in 2025. It seems Soapy is not entrenched in Denver yet, still operating as a nomad moving from town to town.
The bottom section, lines 9 – 20, were written upside down, indicating that the top and bottom sections were not written at the same time, possibly not on the same day. This bottom section represents a list of possible future work trips as the dates are not in consecutive order and intertwine with one another. He appears to be just taking notes. At this time it is not known if he went to any of these towns, except for Denver in the top section.

Previous pages covered Soapy's operations in the far west, Oregon, Washington Territory, and California in 1882. Page #15 covers his possible journey further east in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Although the writing records the communication of twenty-one-year-old Soapy Smith with himself, the writing also communicates with us about him 142 years later (and potentially far beyond today).

Below are my attempts to attempts to make the writing easier to see and decipher.

Soapy STAR notebook
Page 15 - Enhanced copy
1883
Courtesy of Geri Murphy

(Click image to enlarge)

Soapy STAR notebook
Page 15 - Negative copy
1883
Courtesy of Geri Murphy

(Click image to enlarge)

Soapy STAR notebook
Page 15 - Deciphered copy
1883
Courtesy of Geri Murphy

(Click image to enlarge)

Page 15 - Top

Line 1: "Sales in Denver"
Line 2: "July 14" [1883]
Line 3: "1 sale $53⁰⁰"
Line 4: "2 '[sale] '21⁰⁰"
Line 5: "Monday July 16" [1883]
Line 6: "1st sale $38⁰⁰"
Line 7: "2 '[sale] 20⁰⁰"
Line 8: "3 '[sale] 21⁰⁰"

Page 15 - Bottom

Line 9: "State Fair Wis" [Wisconsin]"
Line 10: "at Madison from"
Line 11: "Sept. 10. to 15.-"
Line 12: "Chippewa Co Fair"
Line 13: "Sept. 11 to 14."
Line 14: "Rochester Minn" [Minnesota]
Line 15: "Fair Sept. 10 to 15-"
Line 16: "Preston Minnesota"
Line 17: "fair Sep 25. to 27."
Line 18: "Encampment at"
Line 19: "Ras?ons, Ros?ons, Pas?ons, Pos?ons, Passons or Rassons?"
Line 20: "to Aug 27, 1883."

In looking at the "deciphered copy" above you can see that there is only one issue in deciphering it. Line 19 appears to be the name of a town or county, but from which state or territory? It seems logical that it would be Minnesota as lines 14 through 17 deal with that state, but there is no town or county that looks similar. It looks sort of like "Ras?ons, Ros?ons, Pas?ons, Pos?ons, Passons or Rassons?" It does kind of look like "Roseau" [County] but the population in 1885 was only four settlers. The description of "Encampment at" [line 18] gives a clue. It could be a GAR (Grand Army of the Republic) "Encampment" or conclave, held every year. The one for 1883, the seventeenth, was held near Denver, but it was in June, not August. Smaller encampments occurred here and there, some recorded and probably some not. I could not find one event in 1883 that fit Soapy's dates of "Aug 21 to Aug 27, 1883." This was probably not a big public attended event for Soapy's games of no-chance so it's only a guess on whether he chose to attend and work it. It appears that the location will remain unknown--for now. Maybe you can help?

Visit the Soapy Smith Soap Box blog

STAR NOTEBOOK
April 24, 2017
Part #1
Part #2
Part #3
Part #4
Part #5
Part #6
Part #7
Part #8
Part #9
Part #10
Part #11
Part #12
Part #13
Part #14
Part #16

Part #17 (not published yet)
Part #18 (not published yet)
Part #19 (not published yet)

Part #20 (not published yet)
Part #21 (not published yet)
Part #22 (not published yet)

Part #23 (not published yet)
Part #24 (not published yet)

"Poker: the art of civilized bushwhacking."

—Nick Dandalos

January 12, 2025

"Soapy" Smith arrested in Leadville, Colorado, May 1886

A Busted Honeymoon
Soapy Smith is arrested in Leadville, Colorado
Carbonate Chronicle
May 17, 1886
Courtesy of Colorado Historic Newspapers

(Click image to enlarge)

ew information regarding Soapy Smith in Leadville, Colorado.

A friend, Don Hendershot, found the above newspaper article. Following is the text of that article.

Carbonate Chronicle
Leadville, Colorado
May 17, 1886

A Busted Honeymoon.

"Soapy" Smith is at loggerheads with valley peelers, and in default of $1,000 bonds was sent to the locky. “Soapy” is the most notorious of the many street fakers who “shouted their bazoo” on the corners in Leadville, and his stand was a veritable bonanza to him. Each day found a new crop of idiots and dupes gathered about his lay-out, and while it found immunity in the peddlers’ license that the ordinance provided, it was the worst and most cold-blooded brace ever presented to an unsuspecting tenderfoot. There are few who are not familiar with the miniature cake of soap that was wrapped in a blue piece of paper and then cast in an open grip sack with scores of blanks to tempt the sucker. By a peculiar legerdermain [sic] “Soapy” fooled the knowing ones, and his profits in a day, at a dollar a grab or a half dozen for five dollars, should have made him independent in his youth. One unfortunate circumstance about “Soapy’s” incarceration at this time is that a short time ago he came to this city, and claiming a hand that had long been reaching for him, packed it away to Denver. The honeymoon is busted higher than a kite by the grand Jury, and the Leadville bride is a widow pro tem.

This is an important find for five reasons.

It is provenance that Soapy operated the prize package soap sell racket in Leadville, which previously had only been mentioned in a newspaper article (1888) that stated Soapy was a regular visitor to Leadville.
According to Soapy's cousin, Edwin Smith, Soapy settled for a time in Leadville. Older biographies describe how he started his career there, but no documentary evidence puts him there for any length of time. The perception of Jeff’s having lived and worked in Leadville probably stems from a 1920 interview that Edwin gave to The Trail magazine. The following paragraph from that interview addresses Jeff’s shift from hawker of “cheap John” goods to sleight-of-hand games. Edwin writes,
The change came after he left Round Rock, and Leadville was the lure that carried him away. The license on itinerate merchants killed his business, and the whole country was vibrant with news of the wonderful strikes in Colorado’s great Carbonate camp. So, with a thousand dollars in his pocket, Jeff “hit the road” for the enticing Colorado mountains when about 17 years old. He tried hard to persuade his cousin to accompany him on this venture, volunteering to pay his way, but to no avail. The Trail, 01/1920.
It is known that Soapy was in Leadville on July 21, 1880 when he and a partner had their photographs taken, but there is very little information currently known of that visit.
just fifteen days short of two years later (05/02/1888), the Leadville Herald Democrat mentioned Soapy.
One of the slickest and best known rascals in the whole western country is reported … on his way to Leadville…. The gentleman … —Soapy Smith—is known to many people in Leadville, as he has been here frequently, and always with … a small valise filled with small cakes of soap in little boxes, and a very pretty Mrs. Smith, who travels with him.
The “very pretty Mrs. Smith” is Soapy's wife Mary. He was married on February 1, 1886, and she is known to have traveled with her husband for a time.
According to the Los Angeles Daily Herald, January 12, 1896, Soapy was reported swindling people in Leadville in December 1888.
The article mentions the purchase of a [city] peddlers’ license which most of the time protected Soapy from arrest and/or prosecution.

Sapolio Soap
With blue label
Jeff Smith collection
The description of wrapping the soap cakes "in a blue piece of paper," is believed to be the blue advertising band around the Sapolio brand soap, in which he only needed to "insert" the currency prizes under the band, instead of unwrapping the soap packages and rewrapping them, as described in older biographies. Note that I placed quote marks around "insert." I did this because Soapy never actually inserted a cash prize into the soap wrapper.
It has always been assumed that Soapy operated swindles in Leadville, and this is the earliest provenance I have found of him actually doing so.
This is the only mention of an arrest in Leadville.