Tragedy and Vice in the Wild West #619: Monte Grover’s Scrapbook

Published August 4, 2026 at 6:00 AM MDT

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The estate of Christy Finlayson, John Grover’s first wife, enabled Grover to open a saloon on the corner of Second and Ivinson Avenue. Despite some dislike of “Laramie’s most notorious pimp,” Grover’s liquor license payments helped fill the city coffers. Photo File: Wyoming – Laramie, 1908, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

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A photograph of the corner of Third Street and Grand Avenue in Laramie, where Christy Grover’s brothel was located, 1900. Box 1, Fee and Murphy Family Collection, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

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The first column of an article bemoaning Laramie’s vice district, May 26, 1887, from Monte Grover’s scrapbook, Toppan Rare Book Library, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

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A poem from Monte Grover’s scrapbook, Toppan Rare Book Library, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

The Toppan Rare Book Library at UW’s American Heritage Center houses an unusual scrapbook. It was created by Monte Grover and provides a glimpse into Laramie's vice district and its role in the town's economic development.

In 1883, Monte married John Grover, Laramie's prolific saloon keeper and pimp. Grover’s
first wife, Christy Finlayson, died under mysterious circumstances.

Monte became the madam of a brothel called "Grover's Institute," but her mental state deteriorated, and she died in 1895. There were suspicions of foul play also surrounding her death.

Despite these tragedies, Laramie's prostitute population thrived until 1954, when a magazine article prompted city officials to close the red-light district.

Monte Grover's scrapbook, a rare surviving artifact of Laramie's brothel history, tells a rich but tragic story. It also raises questions about the sinister role her husband may have played in the deaths of both of his wives.