When the role of Colleen Cooper was recast with Jessica Bowman midway through the third season of the CBS Western, audiences vocalized their anger over the replacement of the much-adored Erika Flores.

Some fans even went to the length of writing to CBS requesting an explanation for the sudden change. There were rumors that Flores and/or her father demanded she get paid more, but Flores reportedly asserted she left the show simply for personal reasons.

https://tvline.com/lists/recast-tv-roles-explained/dr-quinn-medicine-woman-colleen/

Its weird to watch the change. I have the DVD set and once its one then the other Colleen. They sure changed the type/style of Colleen when they got the chance.

The original Colleen had a special kind of endearing quality, I'm sure any replacement would have fallen short in matching it. I thought the children on the series gave it a really nice dimension, reminiscent of Little House on the Prairie.

When it comes to young characters in dramas, I could always relate much more closely with the male ones, having no sisters or other young female relatives close-by when I was growing up. So when LHoP began, I was smitten with Laura Ingalls, but I better understood Willie Oleson.

I will say though that I find the storyline of Colleen's crush on Sully interesting. When I was very young, I was always interested strictly in the girls (classmates) in my age group, but at age 10 I did have a big crush on a student teacher who came to my class from St. Mary's (by ND) -- she must have been 20 or so. Nearly 5 decades later, I still have a vague memory of her face and long dark hair -- even her voice...!