Many myths surround Elizabeth McCourt “Baby Doe” Tabor – that she was a gold digger, an adulterer, an eccentric woman who spent her last days penniless, holding tight to the deed of the dwindling Matchless Mine in Leadville. But at least one piece of her famous story is true: She married a millionaire politician wearing a wedding gown so unique and lavish that its existence still captivates Coloradans today.
In 2024, History Colorado hosted a special campaign to raise money for the restoration of the wedding dress, which was worn by the Leadville damsel in 1883 when she wed Horace Tabor, one of the richest men in the country at the time. It allegedly cost more than $7,000 -- which would be equal to nearly $250,000 in today's money!
Amid a series of bad business decisions, the Tabors eventually lost all of their money when the price of silver crashed in 1893, leading them to sell off their expensive possessions. Yet Baby Doe still held onto the dress, carting it around in an old trunk through boarding house stays and eventually to her home and final resting place, a tiny shack next to the Matchless Mine in Leadville. After her death, the gown was on display for decades at History Colorado but unfortunately, the lack of climate control led the fabric to deteriorate. An effort to conserve the dress in the 1980s helped a little, but the silk and lace masterpiece now remains in storage to keep it from any more damage.
So why is this dress, of everything in the museum's massive collection, being restored? Turns out Baby Doe is one of the most asked about figures in our state's history, a woman with a complex backstory who has been painted in an unfair light over the years. The gown's restoration is part of a reclamation process -- the museum hopes to tell a more accurate story of Baby Doe’s life, among other misunderstood women in our history, at an upcoming exhibition at the Center for Colorado Women’s History.
If you're interested in learning more about Baby Doe and her infamous dress, visit History Colorado. Special thanks to Shaun Boyd, curator of archives at History Colorado, for her expertise on Baby Doe Tabor and her dress.
