However tragedy seemed to follow the red headed, green eyed Shelly. There were other gay bars around Seattle, but they operated covertly, and never put a sign out front explicitly stating they were a gay bar. This was a first for the small-town, conservative Seattle of the early 1970s. The sign made Seattle history when it brazenly announced that " Shelly's Leg is a Gay Bar Provided for Seattle's Gay Community and Their Guests".
Shelly's bar was ground-breaking because of the sign now proudly displayed at the MOHAI Seattle history museum. The Shelly's Leg disco club had its own disc jockey and was the hottest ticket in town. Shelly was awarded $330,000 in damages, and used the money to set up Seattle's first openly gay bar in Pioneer Square. Her abdomen was shattered by a ball of congealed confetti recklessly fired from a cannon, resulting in a leg amputation. However, in a tragic turn of events Shelly lost her leg in a freak accident at a Bastille Day celebration in Seattle in 1970.
Shelly was a teenage runaway from Chicago who became an exotic dancer to make ends meet. It's owner was the larger than life personality, Shelly Bauman. Shelly's Leg was Seattle's first openly gay bar in Seattle, open for four years in the 1970s. The Shelly's Leg sign at MOHAI Seattle history museum is also iconic, and a big part of Seattle's history. Go back in time to Seattle's first openly gay bar in the 1970s They also lost foot traffic when the nearby Washington Mutual went belly up in 2008, and thousands of employees lost their jobs.Ĥ. The Lusty Lady's demise was sealed by the 2008 recession and rise of Internet pornography. The strippers performed in a mirrored room while patrons sat in booths watching them. The strip club operated in downtown Seattle from 1985 to 2010, and was managed by women only. This sign was a Seattle institution, displaying cheeky messages like the one in the photo below. MOHAI Seattle has the famous pink marquee sign from this iconic strip club. One of the most famous businesses along this strip was The Lusty Lady. This area is unrecognizable now, and has gentrified with the swanky Four Seasons Hotel, Seattle Art Museum and modern condos. In later years this strip evolved as a location for porn shops, tattoo parlors and peep shows. Hotels sprung up along First Avenue from the 1890s onwards after the Gold Rush, attracting prostitutes who plied their trade out of cheap hotel rooms. Seattle has a seedy past, centered on the notorious Flesh Avenue along First Avenue in downtown. Learn about Seattle's Lusty Lady strip joint It made Seattle history when it first took off from South Lake Union as Boeing's first commercial plane.ģ. If you look up at MOHAI, you can see a Boeing B1 Float Planethat used to fly mail between Seattle and Canada from 1921 to 1927.
Look up at a cool float plane from Seattle's South Lake Unionįloat planes are still a common sight on South Lake Union directly outside MOHAI. Ivar's seafood restaurant was founded in 1938 by folk singer Ivar Haglund, and is one of Seattle's most famous restaurants.Ģ. You can also turn the wheel to open and close a giant clam, known as Ivar's Dancing Clam. Black Bart was an infamous California outlaw, who robbed 28 coaches between 1875 to 1883. Turn the wheel to raise and lower the quickdraw pistol on an old arcade game from Seattle's 1962 World Fair, known as Black Bart cowboy. Light up the vintage Welcome to Seattle Postcard proudly displayed on Seattle billboards during the 1940s, or the red neon 'R' sign at the top of the Rainier Brewery for 50 years on the way to the airport.Ī few old timers mights remember the All Roads Lead to the Doghouse sign from the 1930s, on top of a burger joint at the start of the old Aurora speedway (now Highway 99). Step in-front of the tower, and turn the wheels to a ctivate the animatronics! The first thing you notice when you walk into MOHAI's great hall, is a giant tower of Seattle memorabilia. See MOHAI's giant tower of Seattle memorabilia