As crazy as it might sound now, over a century ago, Salt Lake City once was home to an area dubbed the city’s center of “vice and necessary evil.”
Back then, the neighborhood several blocks west of where The Gateway now sits was an officially sanctioned red light district called the Stockade.
“Well, for years Salt Lake City had a system of unofficially sanctioned sex workers where people would pay a monthly fine, and then be released to do their business, but officially sanctioned mean, the police, the City Council, and the mayor, all said, it's okay to do this, said Rachel Quist, a local historian. “And it would be regulated. In this one section of town.”
The Stockade was backed by a newly-formed political party called the American party, whose entire platform refused to follow Mormon ideals, Rachel says.
The party moved prostitution from the areas around Commercial Street, now called Regeant Street, to the west of downtown to allow, what then-Mayor John S. Branford said publicly, “the downtown business district to thrive in more respectable endeavors,” But privately, Bransford and some City Council members had plans in the works to profit from the move.
But why this area?
“This area was developing as old Greek town and was already seen by the city as an undesirable population,” Quist said. And so, moving the sex work trade to old Greek town they didn't think would cause any more property damage to the undesirable element that was already here.”
This seedy district also sat near the railroad tracks, away from schools. Other immigrants were also moving to this area.
City officials who sanctioned the Stockade called upon Dora Topham, more popularly known as successful Ogden Madam Belle London. During the summer of 1908, London purchased parts of land between 500 and 600 West and 100 and 200 South under her new company called the Citizen’s Investment Company.
A 10-foot wall surrounding the Stockade and was built with entrances at the north and south sides of the block. Existing houses were converted into brothels and rows of new cribs, or small rooms were built. Along the façade of the Stockade businesses like saloons were constructed.
But the life of the Stockade was short-lived. It was eventually shut down when the American Party gained criticism from other parties and residents across the city. According to Rachel, the occupants of the Stockade either returned to Commercial Street or remained on the west side of 200 South. Commercial Street remained a red-light district until the late 1930s and 200 South remained one until the late 1970s.
While Belle London made money from the red-light endeavor and was most notably associated with the Stockade in history, Quist notes that another thing to remember in the Stockade’s history is the women who worked in harsh conditions that made it successful for its short three-year run.
“..the stockade is you know Belle London, made money off of it, for sure," Quist says. "But all the rest of the women, you know, they, they were not living their best life, they weren't making a lot of money. You know, depression, alcohol use drug use, all of this is rampant in that population. “
