225 Ellis St. (Photo by Julie Thies)
The area known today as the
Tenderloin was undeveloped before the California Gold Rush. Soon after the
opening of the luxurious Baldwin Hotel in 1878 though, on Market and Powell, the
area began to attract a lot of vice. Early on the Tenderloin was filling up
with brothels, bringing a great deal of wealth to some of the more successful madams.
One of the savvier madams of the day was “Diamond Jessie” Hayman.
Going
by Jessie Mellon, she began working for Mrs. Nina Hayman at 225 Ellis St. in
1895. Now the Globetrotters Inn, 225 Ellis St. was once one of the more famous
addresses for prostitution in San Francisco. After marrying in 1898 Mrs. Hayman
left the “boarding house” to Jessie, who then took on her mentor’s name in
tribute. That is when she started being known as Jessie Hayman.
Jessie was known
for being generous and caring with the girls in her houses, but she also
demanded they maintain a certain degree of polish. Her girls were rumored to be some of the
best dressed women in the world! She fronted them the money for their lavish and
expensive wardrobes, made sure they got regular medical care and even provided
massages at the end of their shifts. The clients were also deeply pampered,
provided with meals, the finest champagnes and laundry service.
The
house at 225 Ellis St. was left mostly undamaged after the earthquake in 1906
so Jessie and the other prostitutes in the area set out to help those who
needed it. They cooked for those who were displaced and handed out clothing in
Golden Gate Park. Ever the businesswoman, Jessie also saw the disaster as an
opportunity to expand her business. Unfortunately though for Jessie, city
officials decided it was time the brothels go out of business as the city began
to rebuild itself.
Refusing
to give in, Jessie ended up being arrested a few times. She eventually served
30 days in Alameda for employing an Englishwoman in violation of a law
prohibiting the employing of immigrants. After her release she opened yet
another brothel, expanding her empire even farther. All in all, Jessie spent 16
years running brothels in the Tenderloin before she retired to travel the
world.
Never
married, Jessie died alone, still wearing her diamonds, in a London hotel in 1923. Having invested her money
wisely, she left an estate worth approximately $100,000, the equivalent of over
a million dollars today. Included in her will, besides her siblings, were her 2
cats. I’m curious about what their cut was.
Sources:
Enss, Chris. Pistol Packin' Madams: True Stories of Notorious Women of the Old West. Globe Pequot. 1 July 2006. Print.
Russell, Thaddeus. A Renegade History of the United States. Simon & Schuster. 5 July 2011. Print.
*This was written as a 450 word article for the very first issue of an upcoming newsletter to be put out by Central City SRO Collaborative.
