Donna's Ranch is a legal, licensed

brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

located in

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

, United States. Donna's Ranch is situated in

Wells Wells most commonly refers to: * Wells, Somerset, a cathedral city in Somerset, England * Well, an excavation or structure created in the ground * Wells (name) Wells may also refer to: Places Canada *Wells, British Columbia England * Wells ...

, in

Elko County Elko County is a county in the northeastern corner of Nevada, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 53,702. Its county seat is Elko. The county was established on March 5, 1869, from Lander County. Elko County is the fourth ...

, on 8th Street. The ranch traces its history back to 1867 and is owned by Geoff Arnold. The boxer

Jack Dempsey William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey (June 24, 1895 – May 31, 1983), nicknamed Kid Blackie and The Manassa Mauler, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1914 to 1927, and reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1919 to 1926. ...

was a previous owner.

History

The ranch was originally established near the railroad to serve the men constructing the nearby railroad. Wells was a major cattle pick-up point on the

Central Pacific Railway The Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) was a rail company chartered by U.S. Congress in 1862 to build a railroad eastwards from Sacramento, California, to complete the western part of the " First transcontinental railroad" in North America. Incorp ...

, cowboys who had driven the cattle to the railroad celebrated in the ranch. Local ranchers would give a few cattle to Donna's for credit against future visits. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

, the ranch donated food and money to the people of Wells. It has undergone several name changes and has been previously known as ''The Calico Club'', ''Donna's Calico Club'', and ''Chardon's Club''. Arnold purchased the ranch from Evelyn and Ken Merrill in 1999 for $1,000,000. On February 21, 2008, the ranch survived a 6.0 earthquake, however the interior of the building was trashed. The building was also extensively damaged in a flood on February 7, 2017. They operated two locations, however the one in Battle Mountain, Nevada in

Lander County Lander County is a county in the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,734. Its county seat is Battle Mountain. History Lander County was created in 1862 as the result of a mining boom on the Reese River along the ...

, closed in 2011. It was subsequently re-opened by new owners under its previous name of ''The Calico Club''.

References

External links

Donna's Ranch website
Brothels in Nevada Buildings and structures in Elko County, Nevada Companies established in 1867 1867 establishments in Nevada {{ElkoCountyNV-geo-stub

History

See also

References

External links