Minna Everleigh (1866-1948) and Ada Simms Everleigh (1864-1960) were sisters who operated a high-priced and infamous brothel in the Levee District of Chicago during the first decade of the twentieth century. For those of you tuning in for the first time, welcome! Here’s the deal: Every weekday, we highlight the stories of iconic women in history you may not know about, but definitely should. We’re talking about women from around the world and throughout history. Each month is themed. This month we’re talking about troublemakers–from women who made “good trouble” to women who thrived in illicit industries to villains in the truest sense of the word.
This month, we're talking about troublemakers–from women who made “good trouble” to women who thrived in illicit industries to villains in the truest sense of the word.
History classes can get a bad wrap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Encyclopedia Womannica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.
Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know -- but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Encyclopedia Womannica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.
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Hello! From Wonder Media Network, I’m Jenny Kaplan and this is Womanica.
This month, we’re talking about Troublemakers. We’re covering stories from across the spectrum, from women who made “good trouble” to women who thrived in illicit industries to villains in the truest sense of the word. All of the women we’re covering had a major impact on the societies in which they lived.
Women, just like men, have played good and bad roles in human history. To gloss over women who we may find less than inspiring is to accept a diminished and inaccurate place in the historical record.
If you’re listening with young children you may want to sit this one out.
Today, we’re traveling into the lavish environment created by Minna and Ada Everleigh. They operated what some say might be the only brothel in American history that enhanced, rather than diminished, a man’s reputation.
Minna and Ada, born Minna and Ada Simms, were from Greene County, Virginia. Their parents, George Warren Montgomery and Virginia Madison Simms, had seven children. Ada was born in 1864 and her sister Minna followed two years later.
Their mother died when they were young.. And the family lost much of their wealth during the Civil War. When they could no longer pay their taxes, they lost their plantation too.
In the 1880s, there’s evidence that Ada, Minna, and their sisters traveled around as a singing troupe to earn money. They performed throughout the East coast and the midwest, accompanying themselves with guitar. By 1887, the sisters were in New Orleans, performing in risqué acts.
Ada and Minna were secretive about a lot of their history. They lied about their ages, and made up stories about their childhoods and relationships. And so, not much is known about Minna and Ada’s early life.
At some point they ended up in Omaha, Nebraska where they changed their last name to Everleigh -- after the way their grandmother signed her letters: Everly Yours.
The sisters opened their first brothel in Omaha in 1895, and another a few years later. These ventures weren’t enough to keep them there and they set their eyes on a richer city: Chicago.
Minna and Ada arrived in the Windy City in 1899 and bought a 50-room mansion from another madam. The doors to their new venture, The Everleigh Club, opened on February 1 of the new century. It was situated in Chicago’s Levee District -- a notorious neighborhood of crime and vice.
The Everleigh Club soon became the most famous brothel in America. The Gold Room housed a $15,000 gold-leafed piano, gold-rimmed fishbowls, and gilded furniture. Tapestries, fresh flowers, and live piano music adorned the establishment and created what the customers came back for: the ambiance.
Steam heated the house in winter and fans cooled it in summer. The Club employed two dozen maids and cooks. Gourmet meals included lobster, pheasants, fried oysters, devilled crabs, pecans and bonbons. There were three different orchestras and music constantly played. Labels would take advantage of the opportunity to publicize new songs by having them played at the Everleigh Club.
The employees were nicknamed the “Everleigh butterflies” and the Minna and Ada had strict rules for them:
The girls needed to be 18 and have regular doctor check-ups.
They had to be in good health and look good in evening clothes.
The girls had to be graceful, well-read and able to converse on many subjects with their clients. Chosen “butterflies” had to take courses in culture and manners before interacting with clients.
If they used drugs they would be fired.
As for the club? No pimps, no panderers, no men without checkbooks, no parents eager to sell off their daughters.
The Everleigh Club became legendary.
Local newspaper reporters spent so much time there, that the copy desk took to calling the club when news broke. Other clients included famous actors, boxers, and foreign dignitaries.
On a busy night, the Everleigh sisters could make as much as $5,000 and the Everleigh Butterflies could make $100 - $400 a week, an incredible salary at the time.
But it didn’t last. Reformers had been trying to shut down the vice district, and eventually, they succeeded.
Mayor Carter Harrison, Jr. ordered the Everleigh Club to be closed on 24 October 1911. The city let the club throw one last party, and it was a record-breaker.
Minna was 45 years old, and Ada was 47 when they retired with around a million dollars each. They traveled Europe for a while, before settling in the Upper East Side in New York City. They changed their names Lester, started the Lester Poetry Circle, and joined women’s organizations.
Minna died in 1948 at the age of 82. After her sister’s death Ada moved to Charlottesville and died there in 1960. She was 95 years old.
All month, we’re talking about complex women who were villains and troublemakers in their own times.
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Special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co-creator.
Talk to you tomorrow!