See Inside A Historic and Naughty Idaho Brothel for Sale
At first, living in a former house of ill repute might not sound all that appealing. But when you see what was done with this property's sister? You can see the potential!
Author's Note: This story was updated with new photos on March 14, 2023 shortly after the brothel went on the market for the third time in about three years.
The property we're talking about is located at 611 Cedar St, the heart of the former Red Light District in Wallace. Until the late 1980s, it was one of the many brothels in the small mining town. According to Heather Branstetter's website outlining the history of brothels in Wallace, it had gone by the names "the Western," "the Jade" and finally the "Luxette," which it operated as until it closed.
It was run by a well-known madam, Dolores Arnold, who worked her way up from one of the working girls at the Lux Rooms to the eventual owner of that brothel. She eventually expanded her empire to the "Luxette." In a 1973 New York Times article about what turned out to be a temporary shutdown of Wallace's five brothels, Dolores was mentioned by name.
When an underground fire at the Sunshine Mine led to Idaho's worst mining disaster, it was Dolores who stepped up and made sure the families of the 91 miners who died of smoke inhalation received food baskets. Helping to ease the burden on these families was just one of the charitable things Dolores did for the community of Wallace. Branstetter explains that Dolores and the other madams regularly donated to local schools, charities and churches.
They also had a positive relationship with the local police department which would run new girls' names against the FBI database to make sure they didn't have any serious offenses on their record and were not underage.
The property is back on the market for the second time in less than a year. It operated as the "Historic Crazy Horse Hostel," a seven-bedroom hotel booked through Airbnb until it became a private apartment.
From the realtor's photos, it looks like the Luxette got some MORE great updates (or at least new staging furniture) since the last time it was on the market in April 2022. With a little more work it could become something like The Lux, located just a few doors down the road. Five private rooms at The Lux are still available to rent through Airbnb. You can take a look inside those HERE. It could also be a nice private residence!