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Famous American Gamblers
Poker Alice "Alice Ivers"
Deadwood's Luckiest Gambler
"Poker Alice," born Alice Ivers on February 17, 1853 in Devonshire, England, has become a Deadwood legend. A gambler, bootlegger, and madam, Alice is still represented in Deadwood's "Days of '76" parade. Her abnormal luck, her acumen as a taro dealer, her spending sprees in New York City, her easy companionship and the flush of her youthful beauty won her numerous admirers.
Alice's three husbands were also gamblers. Poker Alice's first husband and love, Frank Duffield, an engineer killed in a mining accident in Leadville, Colorado, taught her poker. His death destroyed her contentment and sent her searching for a means of support. Alice turned to gambling, hoping for the luck she had displayed in occasional card games with Duffield.
She met her long-term husband, Warren G. Tubbs, while gambling. Tubbs and Alice were often adversaries at the gaming table. Tubbs never had much luck, and Alice usually beat him, but he supported his habit through painting. Alice's beauty, however, won his heart. Through her luck, she was enabled to support their full family of four boys and three girls. Her winnings could total as much as $6,000 on a good night. There were times she gloated, and challenged all comers. As a dealer she attracted men looking for a challenge. Her impersonal facial expressions gave her great advantages. Alice always defended Tubbs, sometimes with violence, although his card playing annoyed her. She eventually prevailed upon him to quit. Alice always carried a .38 revolver, and sometimes used it. Alice became Tubbs' caretaker during his last years, which were marred by tuberculosis acquired while painting. After he passed away, the gambler moved from Deadwood through Rapid City to Sturgis. Once there, Alice engaged George Huckert, an admirer, in a brief marriage, but few people came to know her as anything other than "Poker Alice". Huckert soon died; for the third time Alice was widowed.
Poker Alice's later years were tough and sometimes despairing. The passing years had tired her. The clothing she had amassed had lost its charm. She adopted a khaki skirt, a man's shirt, and a frayed hat. Money became scarce as the games became stale. The thrill of winning now seemed more ephemeral. She had witnessed the passing of her beautiful and exciting youth, an ambiance described by Mildred Fiedler as "aristocratic." She bootlegged alcohol to support herself until prohibition put the lid on the bottle and her plan. Alice then catered to the soldiers stationed at Fort Meade by running a house of ill repute in Sturgis. A few other appointments as a dealer followed, such as one at the Diamond Jubilee in Omaha. A lifetime of cigar smoking, however, had taken its toll.
Poker Alice's fame, or notoriety, followed her beyond her waning years. She passed away on February 27, 1930 in a Rapid City hospital and is buried at St. Aloysius Cemetery in the Black Hills.
Information taken from "Poker Alice," by Mildred Fielder.
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