Inside a Wild West Brothel
Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society
History Hit
4.8 • 2.1K Ratings
🗓️ 14 October 2025
⏱️ 49 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Shoot outs, hard drinking and gambling. The Wild West is remembered for it's general lawlessness, but what might life have been like for the first women to join the American settlers as they moved west?
**TW: This episode contains mentions of suicide**
In this episode, we are investigating the lives of sex workers on the American frontier. Who were they? What were their living conditions like? And how were they treated by their contemporaries?
Kate is joined for this episode by Hollie Marquess, Dr Leo Oliva Distinguished Professor of History at Fort Hays State University.
This episode was edited by Tim Arstall and produced by Sophie Gee. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
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All music from Epidemic Sounds.
Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, I'm your host, Kate Lister. |
| 0:02.4 | If you would like Betwixt the Sheets, |
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| 0:08.7 | With a History Hit subscription, |
| 0:10.6 | you can also watch hundreds of original documentaries |
| 0:13.6 | with top history presenters |
| 0:15.6 | and enjoy a new release every single week. |
| 0:19.8 | Sign up now by visiting history hit.com forward slash subscribe. |
| 0:27.4 | The Grand Sumo Tournament comes to the Royal Albert Hall. |
| 0:32.6 | Over 40 elite sumo wrestlers from Japan will battle for the coveted title of grand champion over five days. |
| 0:41.1 | Witness the battle of power and endurance between these great athletes. |
| 0:46.3 | From the 15th to the 19th of October. |
| 0:49.5 | For tickets and more information, head to royalalberthall.com. |
| 0:59.6 | In early 1988, federal agents raced to track down the gang they suspect of importing millions of dollars worth of heroin into New York from Asia. |
| 1:09.5 | We had 30 agents ready to go with shotguns and rifles and you name it. |
| 1:15.3 | But what they find is not what they expected. |
| 1:19.0 | Basically, your stay-at-home moms were picking up these large amounts of heroin. |
| 1:23.0 | They go, is this your daughter? I said yes. They go, oh, you may not see her for like 25 years. |
| 1:32.3 | Caught between a federal investigation |
| 1:34.3 | and the violent gang who recruited them, |
| 1:37.3 | the women must decide who they're willing to protect |
| 1:40.3 | and who they dare to betray. |
... |
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