Not to cast any doubt on the virtue of our historical statesmen, but for the latter half of the s, at least two major red light districts were right in the center of D. With the White House to the north, the Capital to the east, and the business district within walking distance, it was pretty perfectly positioned. The area got its name during the Civil War, when Union General Hooker moved everything seedy in the capital to a choice few spots and The Division was one such place.
There are at present, more houses of this character [ill-repute], by ten times, in the city than have ever existed here before, and loose characters can now be counted by the thousands.
After the end of the Civil war, business returned to the normal ebb and flow of the seasons —that is, with the rhythm of congressional sessions. Things remained relatively quiet until the end of the century.
With the high-wheeling corruption and extravagant spending associated with the Gilded Age, business was booming again. By , most of the buildings in the Division were brothels and the number of sex workers registered in the area increased significantly. The nature of the work also changed over time. Earlier, most sex workers were their own bosses. They rented rooms in boarding houses, found their own clients, and kept all their wages.
But capitalism took hold of the sex industry as well as it did the rest of America. By the end of the century, most sex work took place in brothels managed by a madam. You can still visit her imposing grave today, in the Congressional Cemetery. Given the scarcity of factory jobs D. But life in a brothel could be comfortable.
