Re: Brothels with a twist
And now for some of the worlds abandoned Brothels,,,,,I found this really interesting, I hope you do to 
Brownwood, TX, USA
“Enter at your own risk” is what this half-open door in Brownwood, TX seems to suggest – though of course today the red light is practically synonymous with the world’s oldest profession. More than 60 years ago, this screen door led to around a dozen rooms in which 'business' was conducted. Don’t miss the white bell on the right!
This is what the inside looked like. Photographer Noel Kerns found several interesting things when he visited, like empty bottles of Knoxit, apparently an old remedy for gonorrhea. Says Kerns: “In several places where the sheetrock has been ripped out by copper thieves, you could look down into the bottom of the wall section and see lots of dead bird skeletons; evidently they found a way in at some point, but never a way out.” Creepy!
The brothel bathroom with tub and sink indicates that some standards of hygiene were observed.
Brownwood had a huge demand for brothels during World War II, as this is where the US Army’s Camp Bowie was located. At peak times, it held over 80,000 soldiers and is still a training camp today.
Montgomery Pass, NV, USA
Nevada is the only state in the USA where prostitution is legal – as long as it takes place in licensed brothels. These are usually located in outer-lying areas rather than in inner cities, like the nondescript Janie’s Ranch. Located on a busy highway, it was once an establishment of certain repute. It looks like the building had two main entrances as well as a side entrance – or exit, depending on the situation.
Although it closed in the late ‘80s, and has apparently since been demolished, as late as 2008 (when this photo was taken) Janie’s Ranch was home to three visitors’ chairs lined up in a row – as if seating the ghosts of patrons waiting for love.
Today, there are about 28 operating brothels in Nevada. The number of such establishments that have been abandoned over the years is probably quite high given that brothels have been around in the state since the mid-19th century.
Seoul, South Korea
Looking more like a factory than a place of debauchery, this drab concrete building was once a brothel. Since there is no visible sign, maybe the red-and-white striped awnings served as a signal to the initiated.
Looking at the size of this waiting room, business must have been brisk.
Though crackdowns on red-light districts in 2004 forced many brothels to be abandoned in South Korea, it by no means ended prostitution. After all, although it is illegal there, estimates in recent years have put the sex trade as a $13 billion dollar industry that employs approximately 1.2 million Korean women. Since the crackdown, prostitution has been forced underground but has not lost its popularity.
Castejón de Monegros, Aragon, Spain
Castejón de Monegros is another desert brothel, this one located in Los Monegros, in northeastern Spain. ‘Hotel Aragon,’ as it was known, looks like it must have once had an impressive bar setup. Now, though, it’s anything but.
According to photographer Xavier Aragonès Garcia, the hotel used to lie on a major road in between Madrid and Barcelona: “In the beginning the building was used as a hotel, but I guess the business went into decline with the opening of a new motorway that now holds most of the traffic,” he told us. “When I explored the building with some friends we found evidence that, just as [with] many abandoned roadside hotels in Spain, it had been used as a brothel in its final years, just before closing.”
This is the former hall at Hotel Aragon. Although probably once spacious and airy, it’s now less inviting, filled with debris.
Rhyolite, NV, USA
Rhyolite was a typical Gold Rush town founded in 1904. By 1905, it had a population of 2,500 that wasn’t adverse to the usual vices of the Wild West: 50 saloons, 35 gambling tables, 19 lodging houses, 16 restaurants, six barbers, a public bath house and even a weekly newspaper.
The small buildings of the type seen here were called ‘cribs’ and were used for prostitution. It’s unclear as to whether they were as open about their trade as this sign suggests. The placement of the modern warning sign is also bemusing, as it seems to notify of the dangers of frequenting a place of ill repute.
Unknown brothel, Spain
Despite metal gates and a brick-covered former door to keep intruders out, this abandoned brothel on a busy highway in Spain has clearly seen its share of rampant vandalism. Urban explorer and photographer Juan found traces of decay, graffiti and human scavenging everywhere.
A shot from above shows the main room in all its ‘glory’: red velvet sofas arranged in cozy corners, dark wood, mirrors and drawings of ladies reminiscent of Paris’ Moulin Rouge. And wait, is that a bidet in the middle of the room? Rack and ruin never looked so sumptuous.
There are so many more abandoned brothels around the world that would tell interesting stories if only the walls could speak.
