There is a common misconception that saloon girls also turned tricks. But the truth is that women who worked in saloons also earned their money from drink sales.

Drinks often cost between 10 and 75 cents, and for each one sold, the saloon girls made a percentage of the profit.

So by marking up beverage costs, saloon owners made more money and paid their female employees. A saloon girl could make around $10 per week, which is almost $200 today.

Most settlers travelled West in the 1840s and ’50s in pursuit of gold, and were often men. Some of the women ventured west as mail-order brides, spouses, and daughters. But the men were typically unaccompanied bachelors.

The gender demographics were heavily unbalanced with the male population outnumbering women by a ratio of three to one.

In 1850, around 90% of the California settler population was male. The women there made money by working in the saloons all those men frequented.

It was a legitimate form of income then, and many communities were unincorporated territories without proper governance. Historians think that about 25% of the population participated in this work, which often happens in brothels or parlor houses.

Parlor houses advertised services with hanging red lanterns and would have game rooms or dancing for those anticipating the service.

Working women in these establishments were protected by bouncers, while women on the streets had to fend for themselves. Sometimes, the women who got older and were no longer desirable moved into small houses, choosing to work for the madams who previously employed them.

Societal ideas regarding sexuality were pretty rigid in the 19th century. Most folks believed intercourse was solely for procreation, so “shady ladies,” or women who offered this knd of work, were seen as detrimental to society.

It was also one of the few options for women and if they were widowed, “shady ladies” could still support their families by charging anywhere from $1 to $50 for the act.

Being a saloon girl meant a woman could have a relatively comfortable existence, but it wasn’t exactly a lifelong career. There was no shortage of bachelors trying to become rich in the Old West, so these girls sought to marry one of these men.

Their relationships with patrons gave them plenty of opportunities to do so.

To prevent the women from falling in love and leaving the saloon or dance hall, saloon owners would limit the amount of time a male patron could spend with any of the women. This hindered the individuals from getting to know each other well, meaning the women were less likely to leave.

Dance halls appeared in the region as early as 1849, and these places offered many of the same appeals as saloons. Dance halls had dancing partners. and visitors could purchase a ticket for about a dollar in exchange for dances with women employed by the business.

The dancers made money from tickets, and even earned a percentage for each drink sold after the dance. Dancers who were sought-after made a great deal of money, more than a man made in a month, with around 50 dances per night.

Saloon girls were expected to chat with visitors, serve them drinks, and then entertain lonely men of the Wild West. Men would often try to buy drinks for the women who gave them attention, but saloon owners wouldn’t allow their employees to get drunk on the job.

Owners didn’t want to lose sales, though, so bar owners would sneakily replace the drinks men ordered for the girls with tea or colored water that looked like liquor.

Saloon girls would drink with every customer without getting drunk, continuing to make money from each sale.

Even though Victorian style and the fashion of the Old West was ornate and complex, it was actually more demure than the previous decades. Women in saloons weren’t exactly prudish, though.

Saloon girls had to be flashy and entertaining, so the ladies wore visible, colorful petticoats. Their bright skirts and shorter hemlines caught the eye of their customers.

Dresses stopped at the knee or shin, though floor-length skirts or skirts with trains were more appropriate. They also wore visible garters and stockings, which were usually considered underclothes at the time.

There were many names for saloon girls who sold adult experiences. Some called the women “ceiling experts,” “soiled doves,” or “horizontal employees.” And since these women wore eye-catching makeup, they were also called “painted ladies.”

Saloon employees were also called, “ladies of the line” or “sporting women.”

These were nicknames that allowed people to talk about the profession without really talking about it.

Women took jobs in saloons to escape farm labor, but the dangers of work were all too real. Violent deaths were a hazard with the men sometimes becoming possessive over the women or when they demanded more than the worker was willing to give.

Women who were considered too old for the job would have nowhere to turn.

Saloon girls were responsible for a large variety of things at work. Saloon and dance hall girls would entertain men through other methods like singing, talking, and dancing.

“Shady ladies” were the actual ladies working for madames or even be independently employed. Women in brothels had a somewhat higher status in society, working in businesses that didn’t bother hiding their profession.

Shady ladies would also work alongside the saloon girls who didn’t provide adult companionship to male guests.

Social stratification in the Old West was a big deal, even among women. Proper ladies that fit the social expectations of the time were wives, mothers, and daughters, and these women relied on men for support.

Saloon girls were typically looked down upon by women, but that didn’t matter much to the men who sought the company of these women.

Saloon girls only made up a small population of the Old West, so they were sought after by men. Their low social status made male patrons feel comfortable with their company.

Saloon owners even required customers to treat the women nicely. Mistreatment could have them banned from the establishment, ostracized from the community, or even shot.