The Murder of Cherry de St Maurice, Queen of the Underworld
Murdered in 1913, Californa’s wealthiest madam’s true identity is now lost to time
California’s capital, Sacramento, was an early 19th-century hotbed for prostitution. There weren’t many women on the frontier. Gold Rushers often found themselves reaching the end of their prospects on the west coast where many willing women waited, palms outstretched, in the demi-monde.
Between 3rd Street and the riverfront, Sacramento’s redlight district boasted some of the most eager, unfortunate women. Some walked the streets, but ladies who worked the brothels made the most money.
By 1913, reporters called Cherry de St Maurice “Queen of the Tenderloin,” and she was in the prime of her reign. Her death would have vigilantes calling for the end of legalized, or rather blind-eyed, sex work.
The Woman with no Past
Cherry had always been a woman of mystery. She first arrived on the scene in 1903. Legend holds, she worked as a chorus girl with the traveling production of the musical comedy, Florodora, and told everyone she came from Chicago but was born at sea in 1888 to French parents. No one asked her to elaborate.
