Monday, March 24, 2014

Sex and the City of Chicago

The Grand Ballroom at the Everleigh Club
The Everleigh Club was the epitome of glamour. Guests flocked to see “the room of 1,000 mirrors, with a floor made entirely of reflective glass.” They came to see “the ballroom, with its towering water fountain, parquet floor arranged in intricate mosaic patterns, and ceiling that dripped crystal chandeliers,” and dined with “a feast of fried oysters, Welsh rarebit, deviled crabs, lobster, and caviar.” And after the guests were entertained by song and dance in the twelve lavish reception parlors, they retire to one of “the thirty boudoirs, each with a mirrored ceiling and marble inlaid brass bed, a private bathroom with a tub laced in gold detailing, imported oil paintings, and hidden buttons that rang for champagne.”[1] Only the rich and famous were permitted to enjoy the club’s decadent atmosphere, food, and ultimately sex. Yes, sex because the Everleigh club was not what you just imagined to be the Ritz-Carlton, but instead, a high class brothel.
It’s hard to imagine a place so marvelous can also be a house of sin. That is why the Everleigh club is a perfect symbol of the Gilded Age, a period spanning approximately the last three decades of the 19th century. Mark Twain coined the term to describe a period in American history that was lavish on the surface but in reality, dishonorable with many social problems.[2] Cities like Chicago experienced an era of rapid economic growth as American wages became much higher than in Europe. As a result, “the stream of immigration that flowed in the 1890s became a deluge…more arrived everyday from Italy and Germany, France and China, Russia and Greece.”[3] The influx of immigrants caused rapid industrialization and urbanization in American cities like Chicago.
Although cities during the Gilded Age like Chicago was in some aspects prosperous because of industrialization, the era was also defined by poverty as poor immigrants poured in. “Many girls were desperately poor, burdened with supporting parents, siblings, and children. They had been juvenile delinquents and tossed out of the home, and the $35 per week that one made as a whore-even in a low class resort-far exceeded the $6 she could earn in a factory.”[4] Therefore, prostitution can be linked to immigration, industrialization and urbanization of the Gilded Age. As cities like Chicago became more urban with increased population, the more that poverty came into play and thus, prostitution became more prevalent as many women struggle to make a living. This is clear when Reverend John P. Brushingham said, “Chicago, great in population, great in commerce, and great in sin.”[5]
Chicago in the 1890
The Everleigh sisters used the Gilded Age’s population, commerce, and sin to capitalize. After the sisters gave careful consideration and did a lot of research, they decided to open their new brother in Chicago as they saw the city’s growing potential. The sisters then made an effective business plan that centered around the formula, “the more difficult to gain entry to an establishment, the greater the number of people who vie to do so.”[6] Therefore, a great amount of money was spent on decoration and maintaining the health of the harlots, something their competitors overlooked. This business plan helped the Everleigh Club flourish as "companies were welcome to set up corporate and expense accounts at the brothel for their employees," and "manufacturers were known to spare no expense when wooing important dealers."[7]
The Everleigh sisters 
Another factor that helped the Everleigh Club prosper is from the support of influential figures. The sisters weaved a web of important relationships with clients such as Michael ‘Hinky Dink’ Kenna and ‘Bathhouse John’ Coughlin, who were the “true leaders” of the Levee district. After being elected to the Chicago City Council, the two men controlled “both the wealthiest and most depraved of Chicago.”[8] The Everleigh sisters wisely established a good relationship with the two men who “received a portion of every dollar generated in the red light district” when they agreed to protect the businesses in the district. This demonstrates the political landscape of the Gilded Age as somewhat corrupt.

Part one of Sin in the Second City sets the scene of the Gilded Age, marked by deceiving appearances of America during that time.

Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya, Pink - Lady Marmalade 
This video and song reminds me of the Everleigh Club 





[1] Karen Abbot, Sin in the Second City: Madams, Ministers, Playboys and the Battle for America's Soul (New York: Random House, 2007), 68-70.

[2] S. Mintz, and S. McNeal. Digital History, "Gilded Age." Accessed March 24, 2014. http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/era.cfm?eraid=9&smtid=1. 
[3] Abbot, Sin in the Second City, prologue xxiii.
[4] Abbot, Sin in the Second City, 19-20.
[5] Abbot, Sin in the Second City, 65.
[6] Abbot, Sin in the Second City, 18.
[7] Abbot, Sin in the Second City, 73.
[8] Abbot, Sin in the Second City, 58.


Thursday, March 20, 2014

Whats up HST 314?!

Hello HST314! 
My parents gave me the unfortunate name of "Hanbing Zhang" at birth so that is why I prefer to be called Serena Zhang instead. Why such an odd name? Good question... I am originally from Beijing, China where I was born and lived for several years. My parents and I emigrated from Beijing to Boston, MA when I was about ten years old. So if I have many grammatical errors in my writing, I kind of have an excuse. But at the same time not really because I live on the downtown campus and I'm a journalism major at Cronkite, so I should start improving on my grammar skills. My goal is to one day be able to travel around the world and report about many interesting things and interview many interesting people. 
I love traveling. It is my dream to visit all of the 7 wonders of the world, the new 7 wonders of the world, and the 7 natural wonders of the world by the time I am 40. And also, visit every country in some way in my life (No, connecting flights at airports does not count) 
I'm not sure if America has a defining culture, or if it ever did. There are so many different languages and culture here that I can't think of anything that is purely "American"... Ok maybe McDonalds. I do think however, the counterculture of the 60s is coming back as seen in contemporary fashion statements, view on drugs, and the music scene. 
I look forward to this class actually, the books seem to be interesting. 

Larry the cable guy - what people from other countries think the US is like. But, his show on The History Channel is actually pretty good!