Mathilde “Ruby” Scott (1885 - 1974)
Ruby Scott ran the last brothel operating in Dawson, from 1935 to 1962. She was originally from Strausberg and travelled to Paris at the turn of the century. Her brothel there was shut down by the French Government in 1925. She moved to San Francisco and Hawaii and then to Keno in 1932 and Dawson in 1935. She employed six to eight girls, with an average of three on staff at all times. The girls were thought to be from Quebec. Some stayed only for the summer, some stayed for a year or two. During the Second World War, Ruby sent packages to Dawsonites serving overseas.1)
Scott ran the brothel until a federal decision on prostitution forced her to close.2) She turned the brothel into a boarding house in 1962 and there was only one girl employed at that time. Two married local men and third moved to Whitehorse.3) Scott became a pillar of the community. Her generosity was legend as were her skills as a cook and a hostess.4)
In 1969, at the age of 84 she moved into the Sunset Lodge in Dawson. In 1974, she fell and broke her hip and died during surgery in Whitehorse.5) Ruby Scott is buried in the New Catholic Cemetery in Dawson.6) Ruby’s home and place of business was recognized as an historic building in the Dawson Historic Complex National Historic Site of Canada in 1989. It was listed on the Canadian Register of Historic Places in 2008. It is a Recognized Heritage Building because of its history, its architecture, and its environmental values.7)