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It is unusual that more women residents of
Alderson have attracted fame or attention than men. One reason is
that Alderson is the location of a famed woman’s prison. Elsewhere
in this history are recounted facts about Miss Emma Alderson, Dr.
Mary B. Harris, Tokyo Rose, Axis Sally, Edith Gurley Flynn, and
other women. The last three women named were prisoners and certainly
did not engage in any community activity but they lived here and had
Alderson in the headlines across the nation.
A woman who probably has known more
of the world's great over a longer period of time than anyone now living
is Ada Beatrice Queen Victoria Louisa Smith, better known as
"Bricktop"
Smith. She was born in Alderson and spent here childhood here. Her
step-father operated a barber shop located between the present Methodist
Church and the old Alderson National Bank building, and the Smith family
lived there. "Barber" Smith whose first name is not known was a
well-liked hunch-backed Negro. His wife, Hattie, an expert seamstress,
will be remembered by the older generation as she constantly went about
in her old age with a poodle dog, and was a woman of unusual appearance.
According to local information, when Barber Smith died Mrs. Smith took
little Ada to Chicago, where Mrs. Smith opened a boarding house
patronized by theatrical clientele. There
Ada, or "Bricktop" as she was nicknamed, learned some entertainment
lore.
Recently Robert C. Ruark,
nationally known columnist and author, wrote a lengthy article a bout
"Bricktop". Ruark says red-headed freckle-faced "Bricktop" was the
Queen of Paris in the roaring 20's, where in 1924 she opened a world
famous club in which she sang many songs in fractured French, smoked big
black cigars, and could drink all the brandy customers would buy her.
To her place came the world's great, the kings, the queens, the writers,
composers, poets, the politicians, the rich, the big business men. "Bricktop's"
place was chic and the place to go. Ruark said "Bricktop" told him she
judge the success of a night by the number of kings in the house. One
night she had five kings and the Prince of Wales.
In 1951 she left Paris for Rome and
there she became equally successful. To her place near Hotel Excelsior
came the resident Romans, the tourists, and the foreign colony. Ada
Smith has become a Catholic convert, and is devout. She has been very
active in charities for Italian orphans. The last three Popes knew
"Bricktop" and granted here semi-private audiences.
Ruark says that now "Bricktop's"
liver is going back on here, and she is tired of staying up all
night. She must be more that 75. Besides, kings and queens are getting
scarce, so "Bricktop" has closed up here Roman place. She plans to
return to the United States and open a small cocktail lounge in New Your
probably, or San Francisco, and go to bed early.
One of Alderson’s famous women was Mrs. Alex
McVeigh Miller. She had fine literary talent yet deliberately set
out to write the most "sensational" fiction of her time, solely for
money. She succeeded.
Mittie Frances Clark Point
was born in Virginia before the Civil War, in a family of ten
children. She was graduated from Richmond Female Institute at
nineteen, where she was considered talented in literary work. She
married Thomas Jefferson Davis and lived in Washington for a time.
There she began writing. Her first novel was Rosamond which
sold for $100.00. Her husband and little daughter died in
Washington. For a time Mrs. Davis earned $5.00 per week writing a
syndicated letter on the actions of Congress. This was hard work for
the money, so she returned to her father’s home.
In 1878 she married Alex McVeigh Miller. They
lived at Hawk’s Nest briefly and then tried farming in Nicholas
County. Then they returned to Miller’s parent’s home in Alderson
where their first daughter, Irene, was born. (Irene Miller Chainey
died recently and is buried in Alderson.)
After two years Alex was given ten acres of land
by his father on which they built a small house which they lacked
money to complete. Then Mrs. Miller decided she would return to
writing. No fine prose or poetry for her. She read the most
sensational stuff she could find until she had mastered the cheap
style. Her first "dime novel", actually sold for 15 cents, was Bride
of the Tomb. The first editor to whom she sent the story paid her
$20.00 for each installment. This put her in the serial story
business and soon she was under contract to three weekly papers: New
York Weekly, New York Family Story Paper, and New York Fireside
Companion. She had a long contract with New York Fireside Companion
for $1,200.00 per story and later $2,000.00. She wrote three novels
for F. M. Lupton Publications. Some of her poems and stories
appeared in The Greenbrier Independent. Mrs. Miller liked poetry but
there was not enough money in it.
She had two sons, McVeigh and Lawrence, and all
three of the children were graduated from West Virginia University
with honors.
Money was coming in. The small house was enlarged
and a beautiful home, The Cedars, was built. Mr. Miller took charge
of her money and his management was not always wise. Mrs. Miller
achieved her goal — money. She and her husband separated and never
lived together again. She and her daughter Irene, lived in Boston,
and later in Washington for years after the separation.
In all, Mrs. Alex McVeigh Miller wrote 80 novels,
more than 100 poems and numerous short stories. In the West Virginia
Department of Archives and History a shelf about five feet long
holds her work. It is not even catalogued. The lurid, sensational
stuff is not literature and no one knew it better than its author
who said after earning almost $100,000.00 with her pen, "The most
urgent of all incentives to a career is — poverty." Considering the
time in which Mrs. Miller wrote, with no income tax to pay, she
earned a large fortune. The most popular novel she wrote was The
Senator's Bride.
Ref: West Virginia Review, V. Vll, No. 2, April,
1930, p. 202, "A Weaver of Romances" by Ethel Clark Lewis. West
Virginia Archives, Charleston
Next:
Who's Who in America
The contents contained in this series is copyrighted
and the sole property of
The Greenbrier
Historical Society - Lewisburg, WV
Used by permission - November 18, 2008 |
