Behind Brothel Doors: The Business of Prostitution in Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma (1860-1940)
Often overlooked, disregarded, or hidden from historical accounts due to its racy connotations, the prostitution industry was one of the most important factors in the development of the American West. The “oldest profession” fueled the economies of camps, towns, and cities as they grew.Sex workers, from common prostitutes to reigning madams such as Anna Wilson, Maggie Wood, and Big Ann Wynne, defied social norms to make sure their hometowns, and they themselves, were successful. Their reasons for entering the life varied, from women who could find no other way to make money to those who desired independence and wealth. In return they were ostracized, criticized, and subject to fines, jail, disease, drug addiction, violence, and unwanted pregnancies. While their success stories are many, others failed in their endeavors, their names buried with them when they died. Behind Brothel Doors chronicles the history of the nineteenth-century sex work industry in the Great Plains states of Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.
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Behind Brothel Doors: The Business of Prostitution in Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma (1860-1940)
Often overlooked, disregarded, or hidden from historical accounts due to its racy connotations, the prostitution industry was one of the most important factors in the development of the American West. The “oldest profession” fueled the economies of camps, towns, and cities as they grew.Sex workers, from common prostitutes to reigning madams such as Anna Wilson, Maggie Wood, and Big Ann Wynne, defied social norms to make sure their hometowns, and they themselves, were successful. Their reasons for entering the life varied, from women who could find no other way to make money to those who desired independence and wealth. In return they were ostracized, criticized, and subject to fines, jail, disease, drug addiction, violence, and unwanted pregnancies. While their success stories are many, others failed in their endeavors, their names buried with them when they died. Behind Brothel Doors chronicles the history of the nineteenth-century sex work industry in the Great Plains states of Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.
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Behind Brothel Doors: The Business of Prostitution in Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma (1860-1940)

Behind Brothel Doors: The Business of Prostitution in Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma (1860-1940)

by Jan MacKell Collins
Behind Brothel Doors: The Business of Prostitution in Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma (1860-1940)

Behind Brothel Doors: The Business of Prostitution in Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma (1860-1940)

by Jan MacKell Collins

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Overview

Often overlooked, disregarded, or hidden from historical accounts due to its racy connotations, the prostitution industry was one of the most important factors in the development of the American West. The “oldest profession” fueled the economies of camps, towns, and cities as they grew.Sex workers, from common prostitutes to reigning madams such as Anna Wilson, Maggie Wood, and Big Ann Wynne, defied social norms to make sure their hometowns, and they themselves, were successful. Their reasons for entering the life varied, from women who could find no other way to make money to those who desired independence and wealth. In return they were ostracized, criticized, and subject to fines, jail, disease, drug addiction, violence, and unwanted pregnancies. While their success stories are many, others failed in their endeavors, their names buried with them when they died. Behind Brothel Doors chronicles the history of the nineteenth-century sex work industry in the Great Plains states of Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781493066155
Publisher: Globe Pequot Publishing
Publication date: 12/01/2022
Pages: 264
Product dimensions: 6.10(w) x 8.55(h) x 0.54(d)

About the Author

Jan MacKell Collins has been a published author, speaker and presenter since 2003. Her focus has always been on western history, with an emphasis on historical prostitution. She has been featured on several radio programs in Arizona, California, and Colorado. She is also working as a historical consultant with a director in the feature film industry. Ms. Collins currently resides in Oregon, where she continues researching the history of prostitution.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 Concubines of Kansas 9

Chapter 2 Wicked Wichita 21

Chapter 3 Jezebels of Junction City 31

Chapter 4 Caldwell's Maggie Wood 37

Chapter 5 Dodge City's Demimonde 51

Chapter 6 Mattie Blaylock, Little Girl Lost 63

Chapter 7 The Story of Squirrel Tooth Alice 79

Chapter 8 Naughty Nebraska 87

Chapter 9 The Adventures of Octavia Reeves 99

Chapter 10 Ornery Omaha 107

Chapter 11 Anna Wilson, Queen of the Underworld 119

Chapter 12 Awful Annie Cook 129

Chapter 13 The Naughty Nymphs, of North Platte 137

Chapter 14 The Shady Ladies of Lincoln 149

Chapter 15 Outrageous Oklahoma 161

Chapter 16 Ardmore's Wild Women 171

Chapter 17 The Giddy Girls of Guthrie 175

Chapter 18 Hell's Half Acre in Oklahoma City 185

Chapter 19 Big Anne Wynn 197

Chapter 20 Pauline Lambert of Tulsa 207

Selected Bibliography 221

Notes 231

Index 249

About the Author 255

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