The Wild Woman Philanthropist & Angel of the Mining Camps

By Jacqui Nelson

In mining camps—where gold fever and greed ran rampant—an angel appeared. Meet the wild woman philanthropist who used her business sense, her strong work ethic, and her unstoppable determination to earn money for charitable causes and save lives.

Ellen “Nellie” Cashman

~ Aka the Angel of the Mining Camps ~

( born 1845 in Midleton, County Cork, Ireland ) 

 Nellie Cashman
San Francisco - 1874

Nellie was a businesswoman, boardinghouse owner, restaurateur, nurse, gold prospector, and philanthropist who also became known nationally as a frontierswoman.

In 1850, Nellie’s mother brought her and her sister to the United States to escape the poverty of Ireland’s Great Famine. As an adolescent, Nellie worked as a bellhop in a Boston hotel.

In 1865, her family moved to San Francisco.

In 1874, she struck out on her own and set up a boardinghouse for miners at Telegraph Creek, British Columbia, Canada. She asked for donations for the Sisters of St. Ann’s St. Joseph’s Hospital in return for the services at her boardinghouse.

Sisters of St. Ann, British Columbia, Canada

While delivering a $500 donation to the Sisters of St. Ann (in Victoria, British Columbia), she heard that miners had been stranded by a snowstorm and were starving in the Cassiar Mountains. She led a rescue party that hauled 1,500 pounds of food and supplies. It took 77 days to find the miners but her efforts saved 75 souls.

Cassiar Gold Rush, British Columbia 

In 1880, she moved to Tombstone, Arizona, where she raised money to build the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, did charitable work, and became a nurse. In 1883 when her sister died, she assumed the role of raising her five nieces and nephews.

In the late 1880s, she set up several restaurants and boardinghouses in Arizona. Legend says that a client once complained about Nellie's cooking. Fellow diner Doc Holliday drew his pistol and told the customer to repeat what he'd said. The man replied, "Best I ever ate."

Nellie Cashman

From 1898 to 1905, Nellie took up prospecting in the Yukon’s Klondike Gold Rush. She also opened a store in Dawson Creek. She used her earnings to help fund a new hospital in Fairbanks.

In 1925 when Nellie developed pneumonia, friends took her to the Sisters of St. Ann and the hospital that she’d raised donations to help build half a century earlier. When she died, she was buried in Victoria's Ross Bay Cemetery.

St. Joseph's Hospital, Victoria - past

St. Joseph's Hospital, Victoria - present (June 2019)

Nellie Cashman - 1924, Arizona Historical Society

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I live only a 5-minute walk from St. Joseph's hospital (which is now an apartment for seniors). On the other side of the street is the Sisters of St. Ann's Academy and Orchard (which still has its apple trees but is also a lovely public park). I walk along this footpath worn into the field every time I go to visit my sister and nephew.

St. Ann's Academy and Orchard, Victoria - June 2019

Only a few weeks ago I sat on the steps of Victoria's Parliament Building alongside Danni Roan (my fellow Cowboy Kisses blogger) and listened to Nellie Cashman and Queen Victoria reenactors talk about their part in British Columbia's history.

Nellie Cashman & Queen Victoria reenactors - June 2019

It often catches me by surprise that I live so close to all this adventurous history. As my mom used to say, it's in our backyard. All I have to do is pause for a moment and look for it. I think I'm going to pause and look more often :)

Do you have an interesting historical tale from your "backyard"? I'd love to hear about it. Leave a comment below. 

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