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Dolly's House Museum & Gift Shop
2 reviews for Dolly's House Museum & Gift Shop
Dolly's House has been preserved quite wonderfully, and, upon entering, it truly does feel like you're stepping back in time. The rooms have there original wallpaper and furniture, and are filled with fascinating vintage goods ranging from kitchen appliances to a rather intimidating turn-of-the-century vibrator. Since Dolly was a prostituted women for the majority of her life (up until the age of 72), and lived in the same home for most of that time, the tiny museum spanned several decades. I especially enjoyed getting a peak at the ways in which she hid and sold liquor during Prohibition. The tour was short and to the point, but with loads of character, just like the depiction of Dolly that museum was eager to portrayed. The staff are truly excellent, and it is evident that they fully and honestly enjoy their work; they were interesting, funny, knowledge, and incredibly friendly. Our guide gave us the facts, and then let us take our time exploring the petite, two floor house on our own.
Despite my intrigue, I do have to admit that I found the whole thing a bit depressing. The fact that Dolly lead a painfully tragic life, albeit an interesting one, seemed entirely glossed over in order to make the tour enjoyable for the guests. During the brief tour, we were informed in an oddly light-hearted way that Dolly was so severely sexually assaulted by her family throughout her childhood that she was rendered sterile, and therefore ultimately forced to turn to prostitution to escape the home and survive (and because she was viewed as impure, and therefore, ineligible for marriage). Going in, I assumed the subject matter would be heavy--the prostitution of women always is--so, naturally, I was a bit taken aback by the overly cheery characterization of her life. Even if Dolly became the richest and arguably most famous woman in Ketchikan, it came at a very high, awful price; even though this is a tourist attraction and not a PBS special, it could have been a bit more serious than it was.
That said, I would recommend stopping in if you're in the area. For only five bucks, you'll get a glimpse of a time gone by, and of a life that will never be forgotten.
I was prepared to go all history-geek on you, by telling you that the house is a fine example of late 19th century folk Victorian cottage architecture, and that it was owned by the same woman (Dolly, duh) until her death in the 70's, so it was better preserved than most. And I swear, these things excited me.
But, you know, that's not totally why it's fun. Dolly's house is fun because it's a House of Negotiable Affection, if you know what I mean. In the old days, Creek Street was a red light district. Albeit a nice one, since most of the ladies had their own houses, or shared with only one other, unlike up in Juneau where they did it bunk-style.
Dolly was a colorful broad, of the hardy wild west variety, and it's fun to study her for a few minutes. Even if Creek Street is reeeeally touristy and it does cost $5 to get in. Minus one star for that. But I guess the admission fee probably would have been much higher in Dolly's day.
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