Ria Brodell

In 1889 Georgie Phillips was arrested in Denver, Colorado for wearing male clothing. They served sixty days in Jail.

Georgie Phillips had been cited or arrested numerous times over the past ten years for wearing male clothing. They were described as making, “a rather good looking seventeen year old boy” in a “new spring suit and cowboy hat.” Georgie was small, knock-kneed, and had short red hair, which made them a fairly recognizable target for Denver’s police force. On one occasion in 1887, Georgie and their girlfriend, described by the Denver Times as a “country maiden,” were looking for a room. Georgie knocked on the door to inquire about the rent, only to discover that the landlord was a detective they had encountered many times before. The two quickly turned and ran.



Sources:



“Women Who Wear Trousers.” Denver Times 13 July 1889.

Jameson, Elizabeth and Susan H. Armitage, ed. Writing the Range: Race, Class, and Culture in the Women's West. Norman; London: University of Oklahoma, 1997.

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