Everleigh Club
Notorious Chicago | Eastland | Iroquois | Streeterville | Haymarket | Everleigh | Lady Elgin
The term “red light district” has several origins. Some say the origin of the red light comes from the red lanterns carried by railway workers, which were left outside brothels when the workers entered, so that they could be quickly located for any needed train movement. Others speculate that the origin comes from the red paper lanterns that were hung outside brothels in ancient China to identify them as such. It was said that the lights were thought to be sensual.
Nevertheless, every major city had some kind of red light district. For example, New Orleans had its Storyville District which operated from 1897 till 1917 just two blocks away from the French Quarters. The Tenderloin, located in what is now called Chelsea in Manhattan, had its run from 1890 to 1914 before the services moved to Harlem.
Minna (1866-1948) and Ada (1865-1960) Everleigh, arrived in Chicago in 1899 from Omaha and opened what soon became the most famous brothel in America. Lavish rooms made their services seem respectable to many including the press. Regular patrons included Marshall Field, Jr., poet Edgar Lee Masters, author Theodore Dreiser, columnist Ring Lardner, industrialist John Warne Gates, boxer Jack Johnson, actor John Barrymore and Prince Heinrich of Prussia. Their corporate headquarters was located in the heart of the Levee District at 2131-2133 S. Dearborn Street (shown on left).
The Everleigh Club had several parlors, each with a different theme: Japanese Throne Room, Rose Parlor, Silver Parlor, Copper Room, Mirror Room and the Turkish Room were some. The Gold Room was aptly named with its $15,000 gold-leafed piano, gold-rimmed fishbowls, and gilt furniture. Each room had a solid gold cuspidor. And, of course, tapestries, fresh flowers, perfume fountains, and live music from a piano and strings added to the ambiance.
The sisters had very high standards for their employees:
To become an “Everleigh butterfly”, a girl must have a pretty face and figure, be in perfect health and look well in evening clothes.
Be polite and forget what you are here for. Gentlemen are only gentlemen when properly introduced…. The Everleigh Club is not for the rough element, the clerk on a holiday or a man without a check book.
Their employees had to come to the house of their own free will; the Everleigh sisters would not deal with pimps, panderers, white slavers, or parents eager to sell off their daughters.
The girls were required to be graceful, well-read and able to converse on many subjects.
Girls needed to prove they were 18 years old and undergo regular exams by a doctor.
Drug use was grounds for terminating a girl’s employment.
This provided a very safe and desirable environment for the girls. A typical visit at the Everleigh Club could cost close to $200 which was considerable since $6.00 a week was considered a good wage.
The murder of Marshall Field Jr caused competitor madames to try and frame the Everleigh sisters for this high profile crime in order to destroy their dominating business.
On 24 October 1910, by orders of Mayor Carter Harrison, Jr., the Everleigh Club was closed. The sisters retired with over a million dollars and traveled in Europe before settling in New York.
The building was demolished in 1933 and was a vacant lot till the 1970’s.
A new book that describes in vivid detail has been written by Karen Abbot called Sin in the Second City.
-
A Word From Our Sponsors
