One of my more interesting stops in Alaska was my time at the
Red Onion Saloon located in Skagway. A former brothel and bar (among other things), this current restaurant and mini museum tells another side of the Klondike Gold Rush-- that is, what those thousands of (mostly) men did when they weren't prospecting. As you could imagine, they drank. They played games and socialized. And they supported the oldest business in the world- prostitution. There were about 80 different brothels of varying levels at one time in the area, and the Red Onion was considered the best of them all.
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| Red Onion Saloon |
They had quite a few different tour options available, but the one I opted for was the $10 "quickie" tour. For 20 minutes, one of the "working girls" would take you to the upper levels of the building where it has changed very little since the its heyday. There is original wall paper still on the walls, with larger swatches framed and displayed. One of the original red lanterns that advertised the "business" available for patrons is still on the inside (protected form the elements now). Even a beaded gown worn by one of the Saloon's former Madams (the woman who managed the brothel) is on display.
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| Inside the brother area |
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| The Original Red Light |
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| Beaded gown worn by a former Madam |
When they were renovating the building (you know, so they could offer tours and operate a restaurant on the lower levels...) they found all sorts of trinkets left behind over the years. These are displayed in glass cases along the wall. In learning about the renovations, we were told that the dividers that would have separated each woman to give her a "room" had been removed so that groups could come through, but you could still see the staples and nails in the ceiling where they were attached.
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| Some items found under the floor boards during renovations |
That is pretty much the gist of the tour (it was a quickie after all). I learned a few neat factoids (like Skagway had electricity before New York City, and that the ladies would curl their hair with electric curlers- in the dark though because you couldn't have your lights and curlers plugged in at the same time). They talked about the resident ghost names Lydia- but I DO NOT play around with stuff like that, so I was thankful she didn't make an appearance for us. Our tour guide (named Annie Whichway- get it?) was very personable and enthusiastic- even if the corny sex-tinged jokes were laid on rather thickly at times. I get it though, they want to play up the whole brothel thing, and dressing up with red lipstick, bustiers, and telling double innuendo jokes that come across in a family friendly way.
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Annie Whichway telling us about the last Madam of the Saloon
as we stood in her former bedroom |
I didn't eat at the Red Onion for two reasons. One- there was plenty of already-paid-for food on the cruise ship. (Don't let the excursions desks fool you- downtown Skagway is a ten minute walk away from the port, and there is a $2 shuttle that loops all through town if you can't handle that much walking). Two- the only food I saw on everyone's tables that looked halfway appetizing was a plate of nachos- and I didn't go all the way to Alaska for nachos. I liked that with the tour you get a souvenir garter in red and black. A pretty unique and awesome way to promote your business and create memories for your visitors in my opinion.
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| My hooker garter |
Well, I still have a few entries left to type up for my Washington and Alaska adventures. Thank you so much for reading my blog! You can look at the rest of my pictures on my
Facebook page, and as always, I'll see you on the next adventure!
