Saloons
With their swaying doors and sawdust floors, saloons were visible in nearly every town in the west. Some places had only one and served warm beer and watered down whiskey. Other places had more than one and their whiskey wasn't tainted. An off-tuned piano, gilded mirrors and the requisite protrait of a lady in the nude, men from all stations in life gathered inside a saloon for the latest news, conversation and fun.
Gamblers, cowpokes and maybe even a sheriff on occasion crowded around the poker and faro tables. Some tables were covered in green felt. Others were splintered wood. Fortunes were sometimes made at those tables with a turn of a card. More often than naught, they were lost. Blood was shed, gun fights erupted and the term quick-draw didn't
always refer to the cards. Still, there were those who were content to ignore the games of chance and remain at the bar, sipping their drinks and listening to the latest tidbits before they moseyed along.
Painted ladies in their low-cut dresses that had seen better days garnered employment within the saloon's walls. Some served drinks. Others dealt stud or danced with the clientele for a coin. And too many were often required to take a man upstairs for another form of entertainment. These girls came from all walks of life and usually had no other means to support themselves. They were shunned upon by society matrons, frowned upon by the clergy and always in demand by cowpokes and gentlemen alike with a coin to spare on pleasures of the flesh.
Some saloons were elegant and elaborate, with crystal chandeliers, wood floors and a long, mahogany bar polished to a shine. Others were nothing more than cheap pieces of wood nailed together over a dirt floor and lit by wall sconces. And those saloons installed in mining camps and crude settlements were flimsy tents that could be taken down at a moment's notice.
Today, we have air conditioning, tile and carpeted floors, big screen TV's and computer games of poker and golf housed inside the bar itself. Waitresses serve drinks and food and nothing else, and women are welcomed customers. Bright lights, fancy glasses and a variety of beers and liquors to chose from, the local saloon is more than just a place to gather for the latest news. Social clubs, sports groups and even housewives flock to these places, assured of a warm welcome the moment they pass thru those swinging doors.
Gamblers, cowpokes and maybe even a sheriff on occasion crowded around the poker and faro tables. Some tables were covered in green felt. Others were splintered wood. Fortunes were sometimes made at those tables with a turn of a card. More often than naught, they were lost. Blood was shed, gun fights erupted and the term quick-draw didn't
always refer to the cards. Still, there were those who were content to ignore the games of chance and remain at the bar, sipping their drinks and listening to the latest tidbits before they moseyed along.
Painted ladies in their low-cut dresses that had seen better days garnered employment within the saloon's walls. Some served drinks. Others dealt stud or danced with the clientele for a coin. And too many were often required to take a man upstairs for another form of entertainment. These girls came from all walks of life and usually had no other means to support themselves. They were shunned upon by society matrons, frowned upon by the clergy and always in demand by cowpokes and gentlemen alike with a coin to spare on pleasures of the flesh.
Some saloons were elegant and elaborate, with crystal chandeliers, wood floors and a long, mahogany bar polished to a shine. Others were nothing more than cheap pieces of wood nailed together over a dirt floor and lit by wall sconces. And those saloons installed in mining camps and crude settlements were flimsy tents that could be taken down at a moment's notice.
Today, we have air conditioning, tile and carpeted floors, big screen TV's and computer games of poker and golf housed inside the bar itself. Waitresses serve drinks and food and nothing else, and women are welcomed customers. Bright lights, fancy glasses and a variety of beers and liquors to chose from, the local saloon is more than just a place to gather for the latest news. Social clubs, sports groups and even housewives flock to these places, assured of a warm welcome the moment they pass thru those swinging doors.
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