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Fall 1892
Parsonage Dining Room, Clear Creek, Kansas
“When the town was first established, there were more men than women. But now, it’s the opposite,” Kaitlyn opened the meeting as she walked around the table, pouring coffee in the china cups in front of her friends.
“I never thought the opposite would be true today,” Millie replied as she sliced her burnt sugar cake and placed generous slices on plates to pass around the table.
“That’s why Cate and I called this meeting today,” Kaitlyn informed the group. “The Peashooter Society, as the young folks call us, is going to do something about this situation.”
“Kaitlyn, I thought Pastor made you take your peashooter out of your reticule year ago when you shot my assailant in the arm,” Lorna bemoaned.
Kaitlyn bit her lip before replying. “Well, I did for a while, but I don’t feel safe without the weight of the thing in my bag.”
“At least you can still aim the thing. Holly Clancy was just telling me the other day she had to hide Grandma Edna’s pistol in a new spot because she was afraid the old woman would shoot someone,” Lorna informed the group.
“Edna may be in her eighties, but I still count her as one of this group. She helped capture Darcie’s murderous husband years ago,” Kaitlyn nodded at Lorna.
“Oh, my word! I hadn’t thought of that day in years,” Millie sighed. “Cate, I can still see you jumping up during Pastor's sermon, wildly waving your arms above your head shouting, ‘There’s a wasp in here!’ when Tate saw his father slink in the back of the church and told us. Every woman in the church immediately jumped up, screaming similar things about wasps, while pushing out of the pews and literally swarming to the back of the church.”
“The men and children were ducking down—as was the preacher—looking for a swarm of wasps in the air while we women ran down the center and side aisles to the back,” Cate reminisced. “We had the man surrounded, our hands in our reticules, ready to shoot if he bolted.”
“Marshal Adam was shocked and upset we didn’t tell him our plans, but we had our own safeguard plan in effect if harm came to little Tate,” Kaitlyn said as she sat down in her chair at the end of the table.
“This plan isn’t for the safety of one of our citizens, as past ones have been, but it still needs to be kept a secret until the plan is implemented. Does everyone agree?” Kaitlyn asked as she looked around the table at her friends.
Everyone’s murmur of agreement pleased Kaitlyn.
“How many grooms are we looking for?” Lorna asked, acting as the group’s secretary, ready to write down the details.
“We thought we’d start with five or six men first, mainly for the jobs that are available in town,” Kaitlyn started the conversation.
“Kiowa Jones wants to sell or rent his blacksmith shop, now that he and Mary are living in their new home and he’s keeping busy with his silversmithing. And he owns the barbershop, which needs a barber now that the Tolberts left town.”
“Thank goodness,” Lorna muttered. “He was a bigoted man, and Lyle said he didn’t give the best haircuts anyway.”
“Plus, the fact Tolbert’s son started two fires in town,” Darcie reminded them of the near tragedies.
“It’s not official yet, but widower Lucas Boyle wants to retire from his livery business. His daughter wants him to live with them in Kansas City,” Kaitlyn added, and Lorna wrote it down.
“That’s three jobs. What else do we have in town for employment opportunities?” Darcie asked.
“The Taylors want to divide their mercantile, move the housewares to the empty building downtown and have someone take over the grocery segment of the business. They’re close to retirement age and want to move into a smaller space,” Kaitlyn touched her ring finger to indicate the fourth job.
“My son Mack would also like to hire a full-time carpenter to help him,” Kaitlyn continued.
“That would be five positions in town. Maybe the bank could use another teller?” Lorna mused.
“I’ll ask Ethan if we could hire someone. Our night manager is of the age he’s ready to retire if we’d find a replacement,” Helen added, “especially since I have Avalee to marry off.”
“Since Avalee works as Dr. Pansy Reagan’s assistant, do you think she wants to eventually go into medicine herself?” Darcie asked.
“No, I don’t think so. She likes working alongside Dr. Pansy. She’s a homebody, and I can’t see her leaving home to start a practice elsewhere after attending medical school.”
“Let’s talk about the girls we want to match, at least this first round. We have Avalee Paulson, and maybe your Nadine too, Helen?” Lorna asked as she jotted down names.
“Nadine might be interested. She’s eighteen and in charge of housekeeping in the hotel,” Helen mused. Her oldest daughter Iva Mae married Gabe Shepard, Darcie’s adopted son. Her second daughter, Maridell, married Frank Dolecek and ran a boarding house in nearby Wilson.
“Well, I’m looking for my granddaughters, Maggie, Molly, and Maisie,” Cate piped up. “They are leaving the ranch to take over Mary Jones’ dress shop. Right now, they will live upstairs, but eventually, that apartment would be the living quarters for one couple.”
“Yes, the blacksmith shop, barbershop, and mercantile would all provide housing for the new couples. And Lucas Boyle’s house would be for sale when he leaves,” Kaitlyn observed. “Although I bet that house could use some repair first.”
“Any other young women in town or outlying areas to consider finding a mate for?” Lorna asked, looking down at her notes.
“How about Amelia, Darcie? She works alongside her father and brothers in the saddlery. You think she’d like a husband and family? She’s the same age as the others, and I don’t want her to feel left out on our matching.” Cate asked.
Darcie sighed. “It’s so hard to tell with that girl. She’s all tomboy, but I think she’s a tad jealous about her brother Tate, and Luella’s upcoming marriage.”
“My daughter, Luella, has been planning her wedding since...her sister Iva Mae’s marriage five years ago. Luella and Tate will marry when they’re ready.”
Lorna looked down at her paper.
“We have Avalee, and possibly Nadine Paulson, Maggie, Molly, and Maisie Brenner and Amelia Shepard. And five for sure employments in town for men, and possibly more,” Lorna confirmed her notes to the group.
“Now, how do we find these men?” Lorna asked. As the lawyer’s wife, she was always thinking of the legal procedures to their projects.
“We replied to advertisements in the Matrimonial News, Lorna,” Helen grinned.
“And we know how that turned out, both marrying the same man,” Lorna chortled back.
“You have a point though,” Kaitlyn said. “We have to advertise that the town has employment and brides, maybe as a package deal? Otherwise married men could buy the businesses, and that wouldn’t serve the purpose of our project.”
“Put together an advertisement in something like the Matrimonial News, stating employment and housing comes with a bride?” Darcie asked.
“I think my daughters might be offended being part of a ‘package.’ How are we going to match our girls without them knowing it?” Helen asked.
“Growing up on an isolated ranch, my granddaughters are approaching their old maid status, at least Maggie and Molly anyway at twenty-five and twenty-four. I think they’d like the help to find husbands,” Cate concluded.
“Darcie, how about Amelia?”
“I think she’d prefer to skip the husband and take over the blacksmith shop herself. Amelia is fascinated with working with metals.”
“I propose we post an advertisement in one newspaper first, to see what reaction we get,” Cate suggested. “Have the possible candidates write back to us with their employment skills, at least two letters of references, and any other background information they want us to know to be considered. We can choose the best men to come to tour the town and go from there.”
“Which newspaper would you suggest we send it to? Large or small newspaper?” Lorna asked.
“We don’t know if we’d get two or two hundred responses,” Darcie mused.
“Free wife, job, and house? Too many bums and freeloaders will answer our advertisement, “Millie warned the group, thinking like her lawman husband. “We need to add something that only the best and most serious candidates will respond to.”
The group sat silent, trying to think about what they should add to the wording.
“Also, add ‘must be single men, between the ages of twenty to thirty,’” Darcie thought out loud.
“One letter of reference must be from their clergy and Patrick can follow up if he thinks the letter is forged,” Kaitlyn added.
“How will we know if reference letters are forged?” Helen asked.
“We won’t. Are we taking a risk by bringing men into town like this?” Lorna asked since she’d been scammed with her groom.
The women sipped their coffee and ate their cake thinking about Lorna’s important question.
“If we have any questions on the letters we receive we could ask Pastor and Isaac to look them over,” Lorna suggested.
Kaitlyn caught Cate’s glance and raised an eyebrow to question her. Cate shook her head.
“We’d prefer our husbands don’t know about our project. Please keep all this planning between the six of us only.
“Kiowa is the only man who knows, and he’s doing it to help us, besides filling his businesses. We all know the man can keep a secret.”
Turns out Kiowa Jones was a wealthy jewelry maker, using his blacksmith business as a front to keep his profession, and jewels, safe. Oh, and he was also married to Mary, Darcie’s daughter, without Mary’s parents knowing it.
“I suggest we send one advertisement to the Kansas City Star newspaper. Kansas City is only a day’s ride from here and would have a pool of prospects from its population,” Kaitlyn suggested. “All who agree, raise your hands.”
Kaitlyn looked around the room noting everyone had raised a hand.
“Good. Let’s draft the advertisement and get our mail-order bride project started. Kiowa would like his businesses filled, and we have young women needing men.”