100 years ago in Spokane: Woman famous for shutting down brothels dies of tuberculosis at 33

From our archives, 100 years ago

Marie Giroux, the sensational “woman sleuth” who helped shut down several Spokane’s brothels, died of tuberculosis at age 33.

“Miss Giroux for eight years led an adventurous life,” said her obituary in the Spokane Daily Chronicle. “She was engaged chiefly in the operations against the ‘white slave’ traffic, which the immigration service has conducted … in the underworld of Butte, the Coeur d’Alenes and Spokane.”

Most recently, she worked undercover in Spokane, gaining entrance into suspected brothels and observing their operations.

“One of her favorite methods of securing access to forbidden quarters was by the use of a messenger’s uniform, and on one occasion, she worked regularly for several days as a messenger,” she said.

After her Spokane undercover work, she addressed the City Federation of Women’s Organizations in Spokane and reported that enforcement was nonexistent. This sparked a “crusade” against some of the places she mentioned, which resulted in a series of raids on downtown lodging houses.

Giroux’s health took a turn for the worse shortly after she spoke to the federation, and she died at her Spokane home. She was born in Deer Lodge of French parents.