Rosie Lee Reed (September 1868 – July 6, 1925), better known as Pearl Starr, was an American bordello owner and businesswoman in Arkansas, the first child of

Belle Starr Myra Maybelle Shirley Reed Starr (February 5, 1848 – February 3, 1889), better known as Belle Starr, was an American outlaw who gained national notoriety after her violent death. She associated with the James–Younger Gang and other outlaws ...

, the reputed "Bandit Queen" of the

American Old West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

. Her father was either Jim Reed, Belle's first husband, or

Cole Younger Thomas Coleman Younger (January 15, 1844 – March 21, 1916) was an American Confederate guerrilla during the American Civil War and later an outlaw leader with the James–Younger Gang. He was the elder brother of Jim, John and Bob Younger, w ...

, a famous outlaw associated with the

James–Younger Gang The James–Younger Gang was a notable 19th-century gang of United States, American outlaws that revolved around Jesse James and his brother Frank James. The gang was based in the state of Missouri, the home of most of the members. Membership f ...

Early life

Pearl Starr was born in Rich Hill, Missouri. As a small child, she moved often before her outlaw father died in a gunfight when she was six. Her mother then married a

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

named Sam Starr, and settled beside the

Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United St ...

at a place called Younger's Bend. Starr was 21 when her mother Belle Starr was murdered. Belle Starr claimed that Pearl was the daughter of the outlaw Cole Younger. While no official record exists, pictures of a young Pearl Starr show an uncanny resemblance to Cole Younger. Her parentage always may be in doubt. Most historical writers accept that Starr gave birth to an illegitimate daughter named Flossie in April 1887 when she was 18. Belle Starr sent her daughter to relatives to have her baby. In 1888, Pearl Starr's brother Edwin was found in possession of stolen property and was shot by his accomplice. What became of Starr's daughter is unknown, but in the summer of 1888, Pearl Starr returned alone to her mother's house at Younger's Bend to care for her brother.

Prostitution

Edwin's case went to trial in July 1889. He was found guilty and sent to prison. About this time, Starr married Will Harrison, but the couple were divorced in 1891. Capitalizing on the

dime novel The dime novel is a form of late 19th-century and early 20th-century U.S. popular fiction issued in series of inexpensive paperbound editions. The term ''dime novel'' has been used as a catchall term for several different but related forms, r ...

fame of Belle, Pearl Reed changed her name to Pearl Starr at this time. She became a prostitute in

Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party, he ...

, Arkansas ostensibly to make money for the purpose of getting her brother out of prison. She eventually put together a defense team that managed to secure a presidential pardon for Edwin in 1893. Starr moved to

Fort Smith, Arkansas Fort Smith is the third-largest city in Arkansas and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 89,142. It is the principal city of the Fort Smith, Arkansas–Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Are ...

and established her own

bordello A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

. Located on "the Row," Fort Smith's waterfront street of gambling halls, saloons and bordellos, the house was identified with a bright red star surrounded by lighted pearls. The parlor featured a talented piano player, good whiskey, and supposedly the "most beautiful girls west of the Mississippi." Business prospered, and Pearl purchased additional brothels as well as invested in saloons and other property. Starr had another illegitimate daughter in 1894 and named her Ruth. Starr married Arthur Erbach in 1897 and had a son with him in 1898. Her new husband and son died of

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

within a year's time. Both are buried in the Oak Cemetery in Fort Smith. By 1902, she was living with Dell Andrews and, though not married to him, had another daughter, Jennette, in November. The only time Starr was implicated in a crime was in 1911. After a burglary at a general merchandise store in Fort Smith, police found several stolen items hidden at Starr's Winslow home. She was found guilty of robbery and sentenced to a year in the

Arkansas State Penitentiary Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

. Posting $2,000 bail, Starr's attorneys appealed the case to the

Arkansas Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Arkansas is the highest court in the state judiciary of Arkansas. It has ultimate and largely discretionary appellate jurisdiction over all state court cases that involve a point of state law, and original jurisdiction o ...

, which overturned the verdict.

Last years

In 1916, the city of Fort Smith enacted ordinances making prostitution illegal. For some time, Starr's activities were overlooked, but she eventually was arrested. The charges were dropped on the understanding that Starr would leave the community. In 1921, at age 53, she left for

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals *Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking *Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil W ...

, Arizona. She died there on July 6, 1925 and was buried in Calvary Cemetery.

Flossie Starr's account

Starr's daughter Flossie was credited with writing a two-part article for the ''

Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ''Galvesto ...

'' Sunday editions on April 30 and May 7, 1933. According to these articles, Starr fully believed that her brother Edwin, always resentful of his mother's attention to Pearl Starr, was their mother's killer, but was never able to prove it.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Starr, Pearl 1868 births 1925 deaths People of the American Old West American brothel owners and madams American prostitutes Hatfield family People from Bates County, Missouri People from Van Buren, Arkansas People from Fort Smith, Arkansas