Date

4-7-2026

Department

College of Arts and Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy in History (PhD)

Chair

Rachel Love Monroy

Keywords

Women’s history, gender history, American West, Western United States, Colorado history, 19th century, early 20th century, women’s rights, women’s suffrage, feminist historiography, economic independence, professional legitimacy, legal reform vs lived reality, gender inequality, public vs private sphere, Cult of True Womanhood, gender roles, social norms, cultural perceptions, women in the workforce, Married Women’s Property Act, property rights, divorce law, coverture (feme covert), legal history, Colorado Supreme Court, bar admission (women), legal exclusion, women in law, Colorado, Denver, Leadville, American frontier, Rocky Mountain West, mining towns, Augusta Louise Tabor, Mary Elitch Long, Mary Florence Lathrop, women entrepreneurs, women lawyers, women business owners, women’s labor history, entrepreneurship, mining economy, frontier economy, wage-earning women, business ownership, financial autonomy, feminist theory, New Western history, historiography, primary sources, archival research, interdisciplinary analysis, social history, frontier thesis, westward expansion, gender and migration, social mobility, women and modernization, cultural resistance, identity formation, dissertation, doctoral research, Liberty University, U.S. history

Disciplines

Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations

Abstract

This dissertation examines the tension between legal reform and lived reality for women in Colorado during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Although Colorado became the second state to grant women suffrage in 1893 and was widely celebrated as a national leader in women’s rights, the experiences of three influential women—Augusta Louise Tabor, Mary Elitch Long, and Mary Florence Lathrop—demonstrate how legal progress often failed to translate into genuine social, economic, or professional equality. Using a multidisciplinary analysis of primary sources, including court records, newspapers, diaries, and legislative documents, this study explores the disconnect between written law, its application, and cultural perceptions of women who entered the public sphere. Augusta Tabor, an early mining entrepreneur, navigated divorce, financial hardship, and public scandal while operating successful businesses in Leadville and Denver despite restrictive property and marital laws. Mary Elitch Long, the first woman in the United States to own and manage a zoo, faced prolonged legal battles to retain property and business rights after her husband’s death, revealing the limitations of Colorado’s Married Women’s Property Act. Mary Florence Lathrop, one of Colorado’s earliest female attorneys, challenged professional exclusion and gendered stereotypes as she established a legal career within a male-dominated profession. Together, these women’s experiences reveal the broader social and cultural structures that shaped women’s opportunities in Colorado. Their stories highlight the persistence of Victorian gender ideals and the inconsistent implementation of laws intended to support female autonomy. This dissertation argues that while Colorado projected an image of progressivism, legal and cultural realities often limited women seeking economic independence and professional legitimacy.

Download

Share

COinS