marymenger.com

When Mary Menger's husband passed away in March, 1871, she launched into sole proprietorship with a gusto that quickly endears readers to her spirit and industry.  While she and her husband had run the hotel since its construction 12 years before, the manner in which she faced management of the sizable business demonstrates that in the rough and tumble male-dominated commercial climate of San Antonio in the 1870s, this woman not only could survive, but thrive.  Indeed, by 1877, she employed more workers in town than any other person!