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The Last Brothel in Calaveras County - FROM THE VAULT
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Samuel Clemens arrived in Angels Camp in 1865 in the middle of a rainstorm so intense that it left Clemens stranded in Calaveras County for the next two weeks. Many local townspeople gathered at the Angels Hotel at the corner of Main at Birds Way to pass the time. While local residents were sharing stories, a local man told the tale of his friend who possessed a frog that he had trained. Clemens found the story amusing and took notes in the corner. Later that year he embellished the story when he wrote “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” under his new pen name, Mark Twain. It was his first published short story.
Sixty-three years later in honor of the legend, a frog jumping contest was held on the Main St of Angels Camp. Over 15,000 people swarmed the streets for the tournament on the sloping street. In the coming years, the event grew in attendance so much, that the frog jumping contest was moved to the county fairgrounds they called Frogtown in 1928. But we are not here to talk about the Frog Jumps in Calaveras County. We are here to talk about the brothel that operated was across the street and down the road from Frogtown.
After America’s largest migration, the gold rush, brothels thrived in the California foothills for over 100 years. In my book Queens of the Mines, I wrote about Belle Cora, who ran the Sonora Club, one of the many bawdy houses that were in operation in Sonora, Ca during the gold rush. The Sonora Club, which was somewhere along Woods Creek, accumulated a profit of over one hundred and twenty six thousand dollars in less than a year. That would equal the spending power of 4.4 million dollars in 2021. To buy that book, visit queensofthemines.com. 14 miles away, Vallecito was the home to over eighty ladies of the night in 1855. Some of these so-called houses of ill repute continued operation until the 1950’s. But none were as famous as the last brothel in Calaveras County.
This is Queens of the Mines, where we discuss untold stories from the twisted roots of California. We are in a time where historians and the public are no longer dismissing the “conflict history” that has been minimized or blotted out. I’m Andrea Anderson. The preceding episode may feature foul language and adult content including violence which may be disturbing some listeners, or secondhand listeners. So, discretion is advised.
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By Andrea Anderson, Gold Rush Author & Historian
4.8
9292 ratings
Support Queens of the Mines with a tip!
Venmo- @queensofthemines
CashApp $queensofthemines
Paypal [email protected]
Samuel Clemens arrived in Angels Camp in 1865 in the middle of a rainstorm so intense that it left Clemens stranded in Calaveras County for the next two weeks. Many local townspeople gathered at the Angels Hotel at the corner of Main at Birds Way to pass the time. While local residents were sharing stories, a local man told the tale of his friend who possessed a frog that he had trained. Clemens found the story amusing and took notes in the corner. Later that year he embellished the story when he wrote “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” under his new pen name, Mark Twain. It was his first published short story.
Sixty-three years later in honor of the legend, a frog jumping contest was held on the Main St of Angels Camp. Over 15,000 people swarmed the streets for the tournament on the sloping street. In the coming years, the event grew in attendance so much, that the frog jumping contest was moved to the county fairgrounds they called Frogtown in 1928. But we are not here to talk about the Frog Jumps in Calaveras County. We are here to talk about the brothel that operated was across the street and down the road from Frogtown.
After America’s largest migration, the gold rush, brothels thrived in the California foothills for over 100 years. In my book Queens of the Mines, I wrote about Belle Cora, who ran the Sonora Club, one of the many bawdy houses that were in operation in Sonora, Ca during the gold rush. The Sonora Club, which was somewhere along Woods Creek, accumulated a profit of over one hundred and twenty six thousand dollars in less than a year. That would equal the spending power of 4.4 million dollars in 2021. To buy that book, visit queensofthemines.com. 14 miles away, Vallecito was the home to over eighty ladies of the night in 1855. Some of these so-called houses of ill repute continued operation until the 1950’s. But none were as famous as the last brothel in Calaveras County.
This is Queens of the Mines, where we discuss untold stories from the twisted roots of California. We are in a time where historians and the public are no longer dismissing the “conflict history” that has been minimized or blotted out. I’m Andrea Anderson. The preceding episode may feature foul language and adult content including violence which may be disturbing some listeners, or secondhand listeners. So, discretion is advised.