Sex shops in Colonial America

Slate ^ | March 2, 2009 | Brian Palmer

[re_tail20]

The opening of a sex shop in the historic district of Alexandria, Va., has generated outrage among local residents, who claim such a business sullies an area once frequented by the Founding Fathers. Were there sex shops in George Washington's day?

No. There is little record of sex toys, let alone a sex toy industry, from America's Colonial era. To the extent that Colonials used sex props, they would have made them on their own. (In one of the few references to sex and inanimate objects from the time, a 17th-century New York court described a prostitute flamboyantly measuring her clients' penises using a broomstick.) Nevertheless, there were plenty of brothels in the Colonial era, especially in port cities like Alexandria.

[jiggyboy]

ibtz

[jiggyboy]

No. There is little record of sex toys, let alone a sex toy industry, from America's Colonial era.

ABC "News" would tell you that that's because the Republican party didn't start until the 1800's.

[hinckley buzzard]

No. There is little record of sex toys, let alone a sex toy industry, from America's Colonial era.

LOL! I know this is Slate, but really--can this moron be serious?

[GovernmentShrinker]

Also little record from that of era of a meddlesome government zoning industry, which is the proximate cause of this sex toy shop’s recent opening in Old Town Alexandria.

[humblegunner]

You.. look up stuff like this a lot do you?

[re_tail20]

Not more than most people, I think.

[Paratrooper]

Reminds me of old Joke:

The General went into officer’s club and noticed that the officer’s had cut notches into the table with their name along side. He could not understand what they had done so he called the orderly and asked what the meaning was of the notches and names on the table. The orderly explained that the officers had quite a bit to drink and they had a contest to see who had the largest penis. The General could not resist so he pulled out his manhood to see how he measured up...”Look” he said to the Orderly, “I am bigger than all the officers!” To which the orderly responded, “Sir, the officers were standing on the other side of the table”