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By: Katie Butler

Amidst labor reforms churning in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, another movement was making waves throughout the United States: moral reformation. Moral reform targeted vices thought to be causing the detriment of the family, alcohol being the one of the main focuses. The government worked to stave off the pressure of moral reformers through separation of certain acts from public view, control, and regulation. As moral reform swept through the U.S. it came for alcohol, gambling, and, of course, prostitution.

Fort Smith was not an exception to widespread reform. Fort Smith tended to keep up with major U.S. movements, even if it trailed a bit behind in its timeline. City laws paint a shifting picture as Fort Smith grappled with the consistent presence of prostitution and the call for reform.

Pre-1900 Legality

In the 1891 Digest of Ordinances, Sections 272-293 under “Morals,” prostitution is labeled as a “nuisance” within Fort Smith city limits, to be “abated by Chief of Police” when needed. Prostitution was an illegal act subject to fine. For men and women caught engaging in or soliciting prostitution, being caught meant a misdemeanor and a fine between $10 and $25. This, however, doesn’t mean prostitution was not happening in Fort Smith. 

At the mercy of the judgement of the Chief of Police, brothels continued their work, paying fines when needed. The local government was essentially treating fines as payment for the presence of brothels, detaining madams nearly monthly and releasing them once fines were paid. The laws gave the illusion of a city trying to rid itself of prostitution, but brothels continued to be profitable.

1905: Ordinances 355 and 356

New ordinances passed in 1905 exerted more control in the moral matters of  Fort Smith. While the presence of “houses of ill-fame” was still declared a nuisance, there was more detail added to the legality of participation in the act of prostitution. Now, it was blatantly declared:

It shall be a misdemeanor to do, or cause to be done, any of the following acts…To keep a house of ill-fame or assignation house, or to permit any house owned by him, her or them, under his, her or their control, to be kept for the purpose of prostitution; to be an inmate of a house of ill-fame, or to be found in such house for lewd purposes; or for any woman of the town or any prostitute to walk the streets after nine o’clock at night, without having any lawful business or without necessity therefor… (Section 1630, original spelling kept)

Still, business on the Row continued. Even as the brothels were being raided monthly for the sale of alcohol, they were paying their fines and going right back to business.

1907: Ordinance 760

Ordinance 760 was approved and passed on May 20th, 1907. Its purpose? “To regulate and suppress bawdy or disorderly houses, houses of ill fame, assignation houses, and prostitution in Fort Smith, Arkansas” (Sec. 283). While previous ordinances had a tone of restriction, suddenly regulation was emphasized, and it included a detailed layout.

By ordinance 760,  prostitution became legal in Fort Smith, but was to be confined to the “district embraced between North ‘C’ Street on the North; the alley in Block No.s 2 and 3, City of Fort Smith, on the East; North ‘A’ Street on the South, and the Arkansas River on the West, and there only…” (Sec. 1). In other words, the Row was now the only place for legal prostitution. Using a house for prostitution, or engaging in prostitution, anywhere else in the city would result in a hefty fine and a misdemeanor charge (Sec. 5).

With this new regulation also came the implementation of permits, all of which had to be kept in clear view within the houses. Property owners were to pay $10 per month for a permit to use their houses for prostitution (Sec. 6). Keepers of houses had to pay $20 per month for their permits, while also providing names of each occupant. Occupants, or “inmates,” of houses also needed a $5 permit each before they could work (Sec. 9). Essentially, the money the city had been making from prostitution fines was now being made through permits.

Regulation also introduced city-enforced health exams. The Mayor would appoint a practicing physician to make bi-monthly examinations of both keepers and inmates of Row houses. The appointed physicians would report to the Chief of Police with the patients’ names, and the dates and results of their examinations. If the physician diagnosed a worker with a venereal disease or illness, they would inform both the Chief of Police and the house Keeper. The patient would then lose their certificate of health until they passed a health exam. To work without a physician’s approval was to risk losing the right to have a permit at all (Sec. 14).

Other regulations included requiring houses on the Row to build a fence around their properties, age restrictions on those permitted into the houses, and regulations on when, and in what clothes, keepers and inmates were allowed in town (Secs. 7, 8, 10). In section 11, it was initially written that the women would have to wear a scarlet “P” while in town; this section was crossed out before the ordinance was approved (see photo above).

After Legalization

Prostitution flourished in Fort Smith after legalization and continued strong until its downfall in 1924, a year that saw fines intensify and the act of prostitution, even on the Row, become a matter to extinguish rather than regulate once again. Despite this, prostitution in houses of assignation continued in Fort Smith in places like the Como Hotel into the 1980s. Whether restricted or regulated, in Fort Smith and the rest of the U.S., “the world’s oldest profession” continued on.

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“So long as society places the entire burden of sin upon the woman and excuses the man, there can be no real reform. If men were held to the same moral accountability as women, the demand for prostitution would diminish, and with it, the degradation of women.”

– Josie Washborn

The Underworld Sewer: A Prostitute Reflects on Life in the Trade, 1871-1909

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Special thanks to Shanna Jones for sharing her expertise for this blog post! Fort Smith ordinances are public record and can be found through the online Municode Library. If you’re interested in learning more, visit the Fort Smith Public Library, or better yet, stop by Miss Laura’s to hear all about the Brothel Museum’s history with Fort Smith laws. Questions are always welcome here.

Join us next month for another dive into the rich history of Fort Smith’s very own Brothel Museum. We hope to see you soon!

Welcome to Miss Laura’s Brothel Museum’s very first blog post! I’m here to walk you through what Miss Laura’s was, is, and hopes to be. But first, let’s get something out of the way:

We’re Discussing a Brothel Museum?

Yes, we are. Miss Laura’s has carried on for over a century in different capacities for different times, but its first purpose and its most consistent use was to be a house of prostitution for Fort Smith locals and travelers. Fort Smith and its people have carried on into change after change; a creation of history, and also a barrier to it. A brothel of all places can strike people as an odd center of historical focus, but the truth is, all of our history overlaps to create our present space, even the aspects that are harder to look at. 

Miss Laura’s has a rich history. The women who lived and worked here (whether by choice or circumstance) had a heavy hand in shaping Fort Smith into what it is today. To look at the preserved space is to look at what Fort Smith was and how it became. 

Miss Laura’s believes in educating on the history of our area’s involvement in one of the world’s oldest professions. What better place to start than at Miss Laura’s namesake?

“Miss Laura” Herself

“Miss Laura’s” full name was Laura Zeigler. Or Laura Sargent. Or Laura Parker. It wasn’t uncommon for women in prostitution to use different names on legal documents, as Laura did. According to census records, Laura was from Vermont. We know she used the name “Laura Sargent” when moving to Fort Smith, but “Laura Zeigler” when it came to the workings of her brothel. “Laura Parker” shows up in her later years.

Sadly, we don’t know much about Laura personally. There are no known photos of her. Laura’s profession required a degree of privacy that makes it hard to piece her together today. What we do know largely comes from her legal and business dealings, including the inception of her brothel.

Creating “Miss Laura’s”

From census records we can gather that Laura Zeigler owned another house on Commercial Row (a line of 6, and briefly 7, houses between the river and railroad tracks at the River Front), and probably worked at another house in town 1 month prior to being a madam.  Laura purchased Commercial Row’s lot 6 for her “Female Boarding House” in 1898. A few years of building and a total of $6,500 (the equivalent of $250,445 today) later, Miss Laura’s officially opened in 1903. We can surmise it was successful from the start, as Laura had all her debts paid within 17 months.

Day to Day

We assume Laura’s brothel was a higher end house based on the house’s size and decorum. Laura would’ve most likely used a token system for payment, a common practice at the time, but we don’t know the exact amount. As for the everyday, the women of the house had a barn, chickens, we presume a garden. Higher end houses usually had maids, bouncers, cooks and groundskeepers to assist the madam. Visiting men had a behavioral expectation when they entered the house; Madams wouldn’t tolerate any nonsense. 

Health exams were a regular occurrence for the girls at Miss Laura’s. Prostitution was legal and city regulated, and regulations required the women of the brothels have at least 2 health exams per month. It’s unclear if Laura paid for the exams or if the girls were required to cover it themselves. The girls’ certificates of health hung above the beds in their rooms.

Moving On

Laura Zeigler ran her successful “Female Boarding House” for eight years. Toward the end of those years, a sales abstract tells us that Laura moved to Jackson County, Kansas City, MO. Laura sold her Fort Smith brothel while already living in Missouri to a woman named Bertha Dean. Laura later acquired land in Laclede County and retired on a 292 acre farm.

In the years since, Miss Laura’s has passed through many different hands. From a brief time as a restaurant, to the Visitor Center of recent history, one thing is for sure: Fort Smith was set on preserving Miss Laura’s.

So What Now?

Miss Laura’s Brothel Museum is determined to pull back the curtains of its own history and uncover the atmosphere of what it has left behind. It can be an uncomfortable history, but leaning away from the uncomfortable deprives us of hard truths and leaves behind the building blocks we need to better ourselves today. Our dedication guides our mission: to provide a comprehensive educational experience regarding the history of prostitution, women’s rights, and women’s experiences in Fort Smith and other similar communities; to remember and honor the legacy of the women who were both in and out of one of the world’s oldest professions whether by choice or circumstance. 

“The westward expansion of our country was forged on the literal backs of sex workers and the men who dared to venture there. There isn’t a town in America that can honestly say that brothels aren’t in the beginning chapters of their stories.” 

-Angel Tracy 

(Miss Laura’s Museum Manager)

I hope you enjoyed Miss Laura’s Brothel Museum’s first “Ode to History”  blog post! Keep a look out for a monthly post ranging from history, to myth-debunking, to special event reports. If you want to learn more but don’t want to wait a whole month for more reading, Miss Laura’s Tour Guides would be delighted to show you around the museum and drop some more history. Or you can schedule a group tour in advance! Questions are always welcome. New information is always popping up; we’re more than happy to share.

Come back next month for a deeper dive into the pricing of Miss Laura’s original business, along with a conversation of the local myths the topic has gathered. 

Until next time!