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Friday, Nov 21, 2008
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Part One: Sexy, sinful and seductive Skagway! |
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| Part One: Sexy, sinful and seductive Skagway! | ||
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Saloons and brothels; history that's not in school textbooks by Rev. Barbara Allen, CMP - SGN Contributing Writer Skagua, (later called Skaguay) was a small, quiet, peaceful Indian fishing village until the Klondike Gold Rush at the turn of the last century. Although there was no gold in the Skaguay area (now spelled Skagway), it was the nearest good harbor and seaport to the Klondike and Dawson City. Whatever you've seen in movies or read about this upheaval life and death event doesn't begin to cover the reality of the adventure, lust, greed, horror, or the magnitude of what happened. This history is not included in school text books, or discussed in conservative polite society. In the beginning Skagua (meaning "home of the north wind" in aboriginal language), consisted of a few native fishermen's huts and fishing families in a quiet, secluded wooded valley. In winter, there were fierce gales, but in summer, the weather was fair, with flowers and sunshine. Suddenly, Skagway became a booming seaport. As in Dawson City, there were tens of thousands of far-from-home, healthy, young, virile, normal, lusty males, seeking gold, who needed, food, shelter, clothing, prospecting supplies, and a hormonal outlet. Married families in the area were grateful for well run bordellos that met this demand, leaving the town and its permanent residents to pursue normal lives as quiet law abiding citizens, (when they weren't meeting the varied business needs of supplying gold seekers). While most places in the lower 48 contiguous states try to erase or whitewash their seamier past, Skagway celebrates it with a unique National Historic Landmark Building: The Red Onion Saloon, the town's most exclusive brothel! In 1897, Capt. Wm. Moore cut planks for the building, which opened for business in 1898, serving alcohol on the ground floor, and sex upstairs. According to the saloon's menu, (a free souvenir to visitors): "The brothel consisted of ten tiny cubicles, called "cribs", each ten foot by ten foot with three exits: one into the hallway and one into each of the adjoining rooms. Each room also had a hole in the floor which connected to the cash register in the bar by means of a copper tube." "In order to keep track of which girls were busy, the bartender kept ten dolls on the back bar, one for each of the girls in each of the rooms. When a girl was with a customer, her doll was laid on its back. When she sent her money down the tube, the doll was returned to the upright position signaling waiting prospectors that she was ready for business. The bartender safeguarded the girl's earnings, usually $5.00, preferably in gold, while in the crawl space between the floors, loose floorboards hid nuggets and private tips." Because the rooms were divided by single planks toe-nailed into the ceiling and floor, not much sound-proofing was provided. To decorate their cribs, the women stretched linen across the rough planks, then glued wall paper to the cloth. Remnants of the original wall papers still cling to the walls. Many of the girls who'd worked in Skagway&by late 1899 moved to Dawson which was closer to the gold fields and had big new gambling casinos, dance halls and other opportunities. Skagway business suffered. When the White Pass Yukon railroad, which went to the Yukon, opened, downtown became the center of business for Skagway. Many buildings were moved closer to the depot. The Red Onion was moved in 1914 with one horse, traveling from Sixth and State Street to its current Broadway location. Unfortunately, the Onion was dragged around the corner backwards and the front and back of the building had to be removed in order to switch them. "During World War II, the building was used as an army barracks and in subsequent years housed a laundry, bakery, union hall, television station, and gift shop. In 1980, Jan Wrentmore purchased a liquor license and opened the building once more as a saloon." Brews offered include the entire repertoire of the Alaskan Brewing Company of Juneau, a relatively short ferry trip away. My favorite is their Smoked Porter, made from grain that's been smoked prior to the fermentation process, which keeps well, and may even improve with age. There's a respectable wine list, and Red Onion Cocktails including: "Red Light Bloody Mary (our special homemade bloody mary mix!!! Red eye go-go juice made with Alaskan Lava Hot Sauce." Their Gold Rush Chili is good on a chilly day. Their pizzas, which could not compete with most restaurants in the greater Seattle area, are appreciated by locals and have interesting names such as: Madam Jan; Bombay Peggy; Big Dessie; Babe Davenport; Klondike Kate; The Virgin Veggie; The Shady Lady and Plain Jane. Their sandwich menu offers: Cocotte; Strumpet; Trollop; Harlot; Menage a Trois; and Painted Lady as choices. Step back in time and tour the Red Onion Brothel Museum upstairs for what visits cost a hundred years ago, $5. On the walls are what was considered lewd pictures back then, some of the original wall paper, planks, and decorations. See what was high fashion in the bordello's heyday. Come away with your very own provocative lacy garter available only to those who take the tour. Tidal waves of thousands of cruise ship tourists flood the town daily in season with each of the many gigantic floating cities that dock here during the day. Visitors to the saloon crowd in, eat food not as good as what's available on their ship, take the tour, and then leave, hunting for "normal socially acceptable" souvenirs elsewhere in town. A short visit gives no sense of the historic heritage of the place which may re-enact itself later in the evening, after tourists have departed, when locals come in to drink and socialize, perhaps play music together. I'm grateful to new gracious local friends who clued me in, and held seats at their table for one of these concerts. The home town music was wonderful! There's so much to do and see in and around Skagway that it makes a splendid end destination all in itself. (More about these local opportunities for everyone in the family soon.) (The saloon and brothel are for adults only.) I came home with a long sleeved red cotton T-Shirt imprinted: "Official Brothel Inspector, Skagway, Alaska: Putting Crime to Bed since 1898". The sedate Rev. (in me) hasn't had the courage to wear it, yet. Maybe, it would make a good winter evening lounge top or as a Halloween party costume? Stay tuned for more about Skagway, then and now. |
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