Bootleggers, Brothels, and the Wild Legacy of Creek Street.

Step back in time to when Ketchikan was Alaska’s rowdiest frontier town! Creek Street wasn’t just a picturesque boardwalk—it was the heart of the red-light district, home to bold and independent women like Dolly Arthur, who ran some of the most infamous brothels in the Pacific Northwest. During Prohibition, bootleggers and rum runners smuggled illegal liquor through secret tunnels and floating barrels in Ketchikan Creek. While the red lights went dark in the 1950s, the town’s scandalous past still lingers in its colorful history. Today, Creek Street stands as a reminder of a wilder time—where vice, survival, and entrepreneurship walked hand in hand.

Sources:

https://www.achp.gov/preserve-america/community/ketchikan-alaska

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketchikan,_Alaska

https://ketchikanstories.com/film/a-true-frontier/history-1

https://www.experienceketchikan.com/creek-street-ketchikan.html

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JlUnjxZMuS8

https://www.alaska.org/detail/dollys-house-museum

http://www.johnstraley.com/blog/2023/11/12/the-prostitutes-of-ketchikan

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=182103

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=v3CnInuKwlk

https://www.roadsideamerica.com/tip/35923

https://www.roadsideamerica.com/tip/35923

https://ketchikanstories.com/film/our-native-legacy/history-and-heritage

http://mar is garetdeefholts.com/dollyarthur.html