# Prostitution Before the Age of the Pill. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 23, 2007, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335 "2007-04-23T17:28:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jim\_B](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jim_b/32/4338_2.png) [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/1 "2007-04-23T17:28:53Z")
Something has perplexed me for the longest time now. What did prostitutes do before reliable birth control? Take as a focal point the 18th Century. I recall hearing stories of Ben Franklin arranging orgies for the Hellfire Club in the 18th Century. This leads me to believe that prostitution was quite common at that time. Yet for women to be having such indiscriminant sex, they must have been having babies left and right too. How did they deal with this issue? And was there indeed any alternative to having babies left and right as a prostitute in the 18th Century? Thank you in advance to all who reply šŸ™‚šŸ™‚šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![DudleyGarrett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d9b06d/32.png) [@DudleyGarrett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DudleyGarrett)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/2 "2007-04-23T17:30:29Z")
Abortions. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/3 "2007-04-23T17:44:16Z")
The first condoms, made of animal intestine, were developed by the mid-1600s, though they may have been used mainly for disease prevention. While not as effective, women may also have used other barrier methods or perhaps douching. But unwanted pregnancy was certainly an occupational hazard of prostitution. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/4 "2007-04-23T17:46:01Z")
There are plenty of herbal and chemical contraceptives, some more effective than others, and nothing Iā€™d want to rely on, thanks! Some of them, like wild yam, are hormonal in nature, others would simply irritate the uterine lining like an IUD and make implantation unlikely, and still others simply make the woman sick enough to hopefully kill the baby and not her. There were, indeed, a lot of abortions - Romans used turtle shells to scrape the uterus in a D&C-like procedure. Sea shells and bones were used, as well. Wealthy prostitutes might simply have the baby and send it off somewhere to be fostered so she could get back to work. A very lucky woman might even be set up for life if she were to bear the child of an important man - one of Henry VIIIā€™s sons was born to a woman more-or-less a prostitute, and she got a house and pension for it. Iā€™m sure, knowing the vagaries of human sexuality, that one could even specialize for a while, as there are plenty of men who think that sex with a pregnant woman is the beeā€™s knees. But that is speculation, I donā€™t know that for sure. Another thing I donā€™t know about, but wonder, is how many of them followed some sort of fertility awareness method. I wouldnā€™t expect many of them to be taking their daily basal temps, but paying a bit of attention to your cervical fluid and cervix position makes the monthly cycle pretty obvious. I wouldnā€™t be surprised if prostitutes recommended to one another to avoid taking clients when their ā€œemissionsā€ were clear and stretchy, indicating peak fertility. But again, speculation on my part. ---
**Author:** ![milquetoast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@milquetoast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/milquetoast)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/5 "2007-04-23T17:46:21Z")
Condoms have existed for centuries. They are believed to have been in use in ancient Egypt. And then there is the rhythm method ā€“ not really considered ā€œreliable,ā€ but it doesnā€™t mean prostitutes couldnā€™t have used it. Iā€™m sure many women were aware of their own cycles and worked only three weeks out of the month (or some such schedule). ---
**Author:** ![milquetoast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@milquetoast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/milquetoast)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/6 "2007-04-23T17:50:05Z")
[QUOTE=WhyNot] Another thing I donā€™t know about, but wonder, is how many of them followed some sort of fertility awareness method. I wouldnā€™t expect many of them to be taking their daily basal temps, but paying a bit of attention to your cervical fluid and cervix position makes the monthly cycle pretty obvious. I wouldnā€™t be surprised if prostitutes recommended to one another to avoid taking clients when their ā€œemissionsā€ were clear and stretchy, indicating peak fertility. But again, speculation on my part. [/QUOTE] **WhyNot** , you are much more articulate than I. Hats off! ---
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/7 "2007-04-23T17:53:15Z")
I remember reading about excavators in the U.S discovering a cache of infant corpses just outside a 19th century house of prostitution. It seems they had been thrown away. I was trying to Google it to offer a cite, and instead of turning up a reference I found an article from 2006 about women in Zimbabwe currently doing the same thing. [Hereā€™s a link if you really want it.](http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/article701078.ece). Iā€™ve lost interest in searching. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/8 "2007-04-23T17:55:30Z")
[QUOTE=milquetoast] **WhyNot** , you are much more articulate than I. Hats off! [/QUOTE] Yeah, well, I forgot about condoms, so thanks for filling in the gaps! Rubbers on! šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![milquetoast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@milquetoast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/milquetoast)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/9 "2007-04-23T18:06:06Z")
[QUOTE=WhyNot] Yeah, well, I forgot about condoms, so thanks for filling in the gaps! Rubbers on! šŸ˜ƒ [/QUOTE] That just goes to show that not all guys think of birth control as strictly the womanā€™s responsibility. šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/10 "2007-04-23T18:17:06Z")
When Scarlett gets pregnant by Rhett, a former madame of a brothel offers her an abortion. Rhett wonā€™t let her have one because he saw a prostitute die from one. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/11 "2007-04-23T18:22:25Z")
There are apparently many answers. Another is the literary cliche of the foundling infant in a basket on somebodyā€™s doorstep. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/12 "2007-04-23T19:00:33Z")
Not just a cliche ā€“ foundlings were often left on the doorsteps of churches (some even had a special door where the woman could leave the child inside and ring a bell, and be able to leave before anyone arrived. It wasnā€™t just from prostitutes: any poor woman who didnā€™t want a child was encouraged to leave them at a church. The child would be raised by the nuns. Some information can be found here: [CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Foundling Asylums](http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06159a.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/13 "2007-04-23T19:08:47Z")
On the subject of douching as a method of contraception, hereā€™s a [Snopes article](http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/sperm.asp) on the use of Coca Cola douches for that purpose. I recall scenes from a few films in which prostitutes use this method. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/14 "2007-04-23T19:35:45Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] On the subject of douching as a method of contraception, hereā€™s a [Snopes article](http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/sperm.asp) on the use of Coca Cola douches for that purpose. I recall scenes from a few films in which prostitutes use this method. [/QUOTE] Many of the items sold as ā€œdisinfectantsā€ and ā€œgerm killersā€ were in fact code for ā€œsperm killersā€, including Lysol. ā€œMedical Expertsā€ from ā€œEuropeā€ (because contraception was illegal here, so no US doctor would recommend it - and in fact, so European doctor did, either, it was all made up.) were quoted extensively in ads for Lysol, advertised for douching before and after sex. [Link to an interesting article on historic contraception.](http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=51170) Lysol might just have been harsh enough to be somewhat effective, unlike Coca-Cola. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/15 "2007-04-23T19:40:47Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] On the subject of douching as a method of contraception, hereā€™s a [Snopes article](http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/sperm.asp) on the use of Coca Cola douches for that purpose. I recall scenes from a few films in which prostitutes use this method. [/QUOTE] To hell with Snopes. I look to the [Perfect Master](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_218b.html) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/16 "2007-04-23T19:50:07Z")
Umm, dudes? What gives you the idea that hookers do a lot of regular vaginal intercourse? Itā€™s mostly blowjobs, and for extra- greek. If one did want vaginal sex, you wore a condom. Still today, you still wear a condom if either you or the hooker have half a brain. ---
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/17 "2007-04-23T19:50:30Z")
[QUOTE=Annie-Xmas] To hell with Snopes. I look to the [Perfect Master](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_218b.html) [/QUOTE] Alternately, this one here on silphium is fairly topical to this thread: [http://www.straightdope.com/columns/061013.html](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/061013.html) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/18 "2007-04-23T20:02:58Z")
[QUOTE=DrDeth] Umm, dudes? What gives you the idea that hookers do a lot of regular vaginal intercourse? Itā€™s mostly blowjobs, and for extra- greek. [/QUOTE] Iā€™m not totally sure about that. The people I know who have partaken of prostitutes have generally had vaginal sex (with condom). In Hungary, where most of my knowledge on these topics comes from, the ads for call girls had to specifically mention ā€œfrench sexā€ to guarantee oral sexā€“otherwise, vaginal intercourse was assumed. Iā€™m not sure how call girls and street walkers work here, but I wouldnā€™t assume itā€™s mostly blowjobs and butt sexā€“it might be, but itā€™s certainly not a universal standard. ---
**Author:** ![milquetoast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@milquetoast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/milquetoast)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/19 "2007-04-23T20:16:48Z")
**DrDeth** , Iā€™m in agreement with **pulykamell**. I would like to see a site that shows vaginal sex is not the standard for prostitutes (word used in the OP). _On edit_: Iā€™d also like to see a **cite** that shows vaginal sex is not the standard for prostitutes. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Danalan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/76d3ee/32.png) [@Danalan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danalan)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335/20 "2007-04-23T20:18:30Z")
[QUOTE=WhyNot] There were, indeed, a lot of abortions - Romans used turtle shells to scrape the uterus in a D&C-like procedure. Sea shells and bones were used, as well. [/QUOTE] I understood that turtle shells were used as diaphragms. Do you have a cite? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-before-the-age-of-the-pill/401335.md?page=2)