January 14, 2023
2023-01-14T14:30:00
These popular Humboldt County Historical Society Lectures happen monthly, via Zoom. Sign up ahead of time to get your Zoom invitation and be ready to go on Saturday!
Free, thanks to the Clarke Historical Museum and the Humboldt County Historical Society.
2:30 PM. 'Stories from Eureka's Early Red-Light District', a Local History Lecture (Zoom)
Saturday, January 14, 2023
In April 1903, in an effort to replenish the depleted city treasury, the Eureka city council directed the police department to start arresting bawdy-house keepers for selling intoxicating liquor without a license. Today's lecture is by historian, writer, and project manager Lynette Mullen. While researching the history of Scandia Hotel in Eureka, Mullen uncovered the story of Virginia Jeffray, who had been abandoned by her husband in 1914, and was struggling to raise her seven children alone when she narrowly escaped 'a life of shame' in one of Eureka’s many brothels. Jeffray’s plight inspired Mullen’s further research into the Red-Light District and today's talk. A book is in the works!
Stories from Eureka's
Early Red-Light District
with Lynette Mullen
Historical Lectures, Now on the Second Saturday of Every Month
The Humboldt County Historical Society, in a new partnership with the Clarke Historical Museum, presents 'Stories from Eureka’s Early Red-light District'.
Over the years, city officials struggled with how to address Eureka’s Red-Light District and often faced criticism for their laxity in addressing the women who lived “in violation of the laws of God and the state”. But the women struggled more–with poverty, exploitation, public ostracism, addiction, disease, and violence.
Learn more at this presentation by local author and historian Lynette Mullen, Stories from Eureka’s Early Red-Light District. You’ll hear the history of Eureka’s 'Lower District' in the early 1900s, the madams and others who worked there... and those who truly profited from the world’s oldest profession.
Now Meeting Via Zoom. Sign up to get your invitation!
If you are unfamiliar with Zoom, there are a few useful videos created by the HSU Library to help you out: