Miss Hattie's Bordello was a brothel in San Angelo, Texas, United States. The bordello operated from 1902 until 1952. The area of the historic building in which the business operated is preserved as Miss Hattie's Bordello Museum.
History
Bartholomew J. DeWitt established San Angelo in 1867 outside Fort Concho. San Angelo grew into a rugged frontier town as it was named the county seat in 1882, and the railroad arrived in 1888. Saloons and brothels were included among its burgeoning businesses. A couple named Mr. and Mrs. Hatton purchased a two-story building at 18 Concho Street around 1902. Mr. Hatton ran his business, a saloon, on the lower floor and the couple entertained guests on the upper floor. The couple soon divorced, and Mrs. Hatton received the upper floor, which had a separate entrance, in the settlement. Mr. Hatton received the lower floor.
Mrs. Hatton started a brothel perhaps as that was the only means for her to support herself. Cowboys, ranchers and businessmen frequented the fashionable brothel. The business thrived through Prohibition and became linked through tunnels to other brothes and speakeasies in the area known as The Concho, the local vice district. Although the operation was illegal, the owner was well connected to local politicians and continued to operate with little interference from the police or sheriff. The Texas Rangers finally raided the place in 1952 and shut it down for good.
Over the next two decades, the 1896 building housed other businesses and sometimes sat empty. In the 1970s, the owner discovered many of the original furnishings in the upstairs rooms. Some of the upstairs rooms were restored and opened as Miss Hattie's Bordello Museum. The lower floor currently operates as a jewelry store.