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Did you know? Silver Heels Jessie nursed miners through a smallpox epidemic.
TakeawaysProstitutes were early arrivals in the American West.Many worked from small shacks called cribs in the line system of prostitution.Only the owners or madams profited from prostitution.Prostitutes are often neglected figures in the history of the American West. Such women are seldom included in historical works and the role prostitutes played in settling the West is too often underplayed. Yet, prostitutes were one of the major civilizing forces and deserve a place in history beside the pioneer mothers, the school marms, the cowboys, the miners, and the homesteaders.
Although Lewis and Clark first traveled the American West in the early 19th century, it was not until almost mid-century that mass waves of Americans began going West. The California Gold Rush of 1848 along with the discovery of both gold and silver in Nevada and Colorado lured thousands of men to seek their fortunes. The early arrivals dreamed of riches and the next wave of new arrivals were often the prostitutes. In most places, the sporting gals (as prostitutes were often known) were the ones who did become wealthy at a rate that far exceeded that of the miners.
In some of the most remote and crude mining camps, Native American women served as the first prostitutes, often against their will. Soon, however, as news of the gold and silver strikes spread eastward, prostitutes began arriving in large numbers. Most were Caucasian although some were African-American, Latino, and Chinese.
Because women of any social station and occupation were uncommon, prostitutes were valued as women as well as courtesans. Their presence was as much social as sexual. Many provided the only entertainment available for the lonely men and their presence tended to smooth some of the rough edges from the men.
In the absence of homes, the rough cribs and saloons provided a substitute for the men. Men who lived outdoors or in tents felt a nostalgic pull toward the parlors of bawdy houses, the rooms of harlots, and the saloon where they could socialize, enjoy a sexual encounter, and drink.
The so-called "bad women" also provided a sexual safety value that protected the "good women" from unwanted attentions of men. Young girls and women, schoolteachers, and missionary workers were seldom victim of rape because the prostitutes provided an outlet for the lonesome men.
Several systems of prostitution developed along the Western frontier. One was the crib system in which each prostitute lived in a single room or one-room shack that were often built in a line. This method was an adaptation of a similar system in New Orleans. Many of these ladies had their names painted on the doors so that return customers could find them again. Such cribs on a line gave rise to ballads with lines like,
"First came the miners to work in the mine,
Next came the ladies who lived on the line."
The girls who operated on the line were self-employed. Each kept her own proceeds. Services could cost from 25 cents up to $2. Factors such as age, beauty, and skill figured into pricing. A young, attractive woman with a talent for sexual pleasure could charge a higher price than an older or less appealing woman. One dollar was the average price. Few of the girls on the line made any lasting money. Most spent what they earned as fast as it came into their hands.
The more profitable - at least for the owners - parlor house or bordello system often closed down the cribs. In a parlor house (also known as a bawdy house or whorehouse), the owner (called the madam) received a percentage of all money earned by any of the ladies. This system of prostitution has its roots back many centuries in Europe. Other names for such an operation include house of ill repute, bad house, cat house, and gent's establishment.
In a parlor house, each lady of the evening had her own room where she entertained guests for a fee. Most also offered a bar where drinks could be bought. Some even provided meals. Madams often became quite wealthy but the women they employed seldom did.
Houses of ill repute or cribs on the line near railroad districts gave rise to the phrase "red light district" because railroad men who visited the ladies often hung their red or brakeman's lantern outside the door while engaged within.
Prostitution operations near military posts were often called "hog ranches" and it was not uncommon for washerwomen or laundresses to serve a dual purpose as prostitutes at many forts.
Nicknames for prostitutes are many and include fair but frail, sporting gals, ladies of the evening, soiled doves, and crib girls. Some of the ladies earned colorful nicknames that often incorporated "Queen" or "Rose" into their names. Texas Rose, Irish Queen, and Wild Rose were common pseudonyms. Others like Silver-Heels Jessie, Contrary Mary, Crazy Nellie, and Rocky Face Kate attempted to describe the lady in question.
Some prostitutes earned lasting fame in a shady fashion. Julia Bulette was the toast of the Nevada silver camps, a woman who rose from being a crib girl to becoming a successful madam and owner of Julia's Palace. At the height of her popularity, Julia commanded a thousand dollars per night. When she was murdered, the miners went into mourning. All mines and mills were closed in her honor on the day of her funeral and thousands attended her funeral. She counted many notable individuals as friends, among them Mark Twain.
Another memorable prostitute of the old West was Silver Heels, also known as Silver Heels Jessie. The name came from the solid silver heels she had made for her shoes. When a smallpox epidemic struck the mining camp where she operated, Jessie nursed the men until she herself was stricken with smallpox. Although she recovered, the disease scarred her face. The men collected $5,000 for Jessie who vanished, probably to return to a respectable life back East.
In St. Joseph, Missouri, the frontier town that launched the Pony Express, a madam named Lizzie King helped end false voter registrations in that city. At the time she played her civic role, she was past eighty and had operated a bordello or parlor house in that city for many years. She maintained a charge account at local department stores and many men were sent for a coat, overalls, or trousers courtesy of Lizzie.
Local legends keep alive the memory of a few other special women in many places. Western novels and movies often glamorize the life of the lowly prostitute but the reality was far from glamorous. Violent death was an occupational hazard. Many were murdered or killed during a brawl by accident. Others fell prey to drug addictions or became alcoholics. Large numbers of the fair but frail ladies attempted suicide and some succeeded.
There were some happy endings. Many a homesteader, cowboy, soldier, or miner settled down for life with a former prostitute. An old rhyme that dates back to the days of the California Gold Rush says,
The miners came in forty-nine
The whores in fifty-one,
They rolled upon the bar room floor
And made the native son.
In fact, the overwhelming majority of the prostitutes of the American west came from families. They were farmer's daughters, daughters of businessmen, and women sometimes left with no other way to make a living. Occupations for women were few along the frontier.
No matter what else they contributed, the prostitutes of the American West provided socialization, love, and a female hand to the male majority. |
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