Lola came to the goldfields of Australia and my hometown of Ballarat. From the Australian Dictionary of Biography: “She opened at Ballarat on 16 February [1856] in a series of sketches; greeted by packed houses she invited miners to shower nuggets at her feet as she danced. The Ballarat Times attacked her notoriety; Lola retaliated by publicly horsewhipping the editor, Henry Seekamp, at the United States Hotel. On 21 February he published another critical article; she swore a warrant for his arrest on a charge of criminal libel but failed to appear when the case came up for trial. She had meanwhile been assaulted by the wife of her goldfields impresario and took a full month to recover. From 1 April Lola successfully toured Bendigo, Castlemaine and other Victorian towns, then sailed with Folland for San Francisco. Near Fiji on the night of 8 July he was lost overboard: no official investigation seems to have followed.” Michael Cannon, 'Montez, Lola (1821–1861)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/montez-lola-4226/text6815, published first in hardcopy 1974, accessed online 12 November 2024.
Love this, Aryn! I have to say that a scandal, overlooked by my genealogical ancestors has fueled my research since day one. Great tips here for research—plus a terrific story! Thank you 😊
The last chapter of Lola’s life is also interesting. She settled in New York, where she helped poor women. She’s buried in Greenwood cemetery in Brooklyn. I encourage everyone to see the 1955 Max Ophuls film about her life, starring Martin Carol and Peter Ustinov.
I will definitely seek it out. I have a list of films/books about her I want to read. She is such an interesting woman. Thank you for mentioning where she was buried as well!
Great work in telling Lola’s story and reminding us all to maybe take a second or third look at our ancestors whose records suggest something a wee bit different might have been going on. Your ideas on where to dig was great, as well!
Lola came to the goldfields of Australia and my hometown of Ballarat. From the Australian Dictionary of Biography: “She opened at Ballarat on 16 February [1856] in a series of sketches; greeted by packed houses she invited miners to shower nuggets at her feet as she danced. The Ballarat Times attacked her notoriety; Lola retaliated by publicly horsewhipping the editor, Henry Seekamp, at the United States Hotel. On 21 February he published another critical article; she swore a warrant for his arrest on a charge of criminal libel but failed to appear when the case came up for trial. She had meanwhile been assaulted by the wife of her goldfields impresario and took a full month to recover. From 1 April Lola successfully toured Bendigo, Castlemaine and other Victorian towns, then sailed with Folland for San Francisco. Near Fiji on the night of 8 July he was lost overboard: no official investigation seems to have followed.” Michael Cannon, 'Montez, Lola (1821–1861)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/montez-lola-4226/text6815, published first in hardcopy 1974, accessed online 12 November 2024.
Her story is much more epic than what I wrote about, but I try to keep these posts short (for now). Her time
In NYC was also crazy, but I assume that was just in the nature of how she lived her life.
I will look up the book you mentioned! Thank you for all the added details and the source. 💙
Love this, Aryn! I have to say that a scandal, overlooked by my genealogical ancestors has fueled my research since day one. Great tips here for research—plus a terrific story! Thank you 😊
Thank you for reading, Barbara! And I totally agree with you. The scandals are some of the best stories.
The last chapter of Lola’s life is also interesting. She settled in New York, where she helped poor women. She’s buried in Greenwood cemetery in Brooklyn. I encourage everyone to see the 1955 Max Ophuls film about her life, starring Martin Carol and Peter Ustinov.
I will definitely seek it out. I have a list of films/books about her I want to read. She is such an interesting woman. Thank you for mentioning where she was buried as well!
Great work in telling Lola’s story and reminding us all to maybe take a second or third look at our ancestors whose records suggest something a wee bit different might have been going on. Your ideas on where to dig was great, as well!