Have you heard the tales of Red Light Liz and Joe the Whipper? The supposed lovers of the red light district of New Orleans who trafficked in creative names and masochistic pleasure? They appear in many oft-cited versions of the history of New Orleans.

I hadn’t heard of them either. When I recognized the overlapping accounts in three different sources, I realized that the three men who wrote about Red Light twisted and abused her story to paint a different idea of what life was like in the red light districts of New Orleans that eventually erupted into the only quasi-legal red light district in the United States, Storyville.

There are three prominent, but differing, accounts of Red Light that most retellings are referencing — The French Quarter by Herbert Asbury from 1936, Sportin’ House by Stephen Longstreet from 1965, and Storyville, New Orleans by Al Rose from 1974. Then there’s what happened according to the newspaper reports, which is, of course, completely different from the story the writers told. And then there’s the court cases.

What really happened?

I’m not sure if it’s possible to understand Red Light’s story as it actually happened, but maybe we can learn from the variations of the story. With the clues from Asbury’s version, I found the newspaper articles he was referencing.

From there, I found the court records. I had to wait two weeks for the City Archives to flatten the records. The cases are hand written and folded in thirds seemingly since they were written, so roughly 140 years. If Asbury did reference the court cases, they were last referenced in the 1930s, so about 90 years ago. But you’ll learn that I do not think he did reference the primary documents.

Joe the Whipper by Herbert Asbury

“From about 1850 to the early 1880s, except for infrequent clean-up periods, conditions in Dauphine and Burgundy Streets were so bad as to be almost unbelievable. From Canal to Toulouse Streets virtually every building was a brothel, filled with fighting, brawling strumpets of the lowest class. The whole area fairly swarmed with streetwalkers and their ‘fancy men,’ and in the absence of permanent quarters the perambulating bawds flung a piece of old carpet on the sidewalk and entertained their customers in full view of passers-by and the prostitutes in the houses, who screamed advice and abuse from the windows and kept pails of hot water handy to discourage use of the doorsteps. Inside the bordellos prices ranged from fifteen to fifty cents; on the sidewalk the standard rate was a dime. Many of these women were addicted to flagellation, and their needs in this respect were served by a professional flaggellant called Joe the Whipper, who was a familiar figure on Dauphine and Burgundy Streets for many years. He carried with him always a black bag containing the tools of his trade — switches, whips, and thin, flexible metal rods.

I think Asbury is the original source for the Joe the Whipper story. I did not find any other mentions earlier than this. That means that the first reference to Joe the Whipper is at least 50 years after the events took place.

Joe the Whipper by Stephen Longstreet

“In Dauphine and Burgundy Streets, Canal to Toulouse Streets, nearly every building is a brothel. Streets swarm with streetwalkers and fancy men. Some put a piece of carpet on the sidewalk and entertain customers in view of passersby. Pails of hot water were kept to discourage use of the doorsteps. Inside prices were fifteen to fifty cents; on the sidewalk a dime. Many women were addicted to the whip and were served by a specialist, who at his trade of flagellant was called Joe the Whipper. He carried a black bag for the tools of his trade—switches, whips, flexible metal rods, cat of nine-tails. [He worked for years unmolested, servicing his clients powerfully.]”

Longstreet is discredited. However, he is clearly referencing Asbury here and hewed closely to his story. Except where he adds the embellishment that Joe was unmolested and powerful.

Red Light Liz by Herbert Asbury

“At No. 111 Dauphine Street was a brothel which was described by the Picayune in 1885 as the worst Negro dive in the city, and which at that time was the particular haunt of Red Light Liz, the sweetheart of Joe the Whipper and a noted brawler.”

Red Light Liz and Joe the Whipper by Al Rose

“Mortality among law enforcement officers was high, and the police soon learned to tackle the Gallatin Street beat only in groups. The street was the center of narcotics traffic, as well as the home of dealers in stolen goods. Fugitives from every nation’s laws found shelter here.

“Mike Haden, who had so thoroughly ventilated his brother with a razor; America Williams, ‘the world’s strongest whore’; Mary Schwartz, who had permanently blinded a customer in a row over her fifty-cent fee; Red-Light Liz, the one-eyed paramour of Joe the Whipper, who made a good living administering beatings to masochistic harlots, using whips, switches, steel rods, razor straps, or canes, according to the lady’s preference—such as these were typical of those who found safe haven on Gallatin Street.”

Rose moves the whole operation to Gallatin Street instead of Dauphine, and, inexplicably, makes Liz one-eyed. He also adds razor straps to Joe’s repertory, which seems unnecessarily bloody.

What the Newspapers Say

I found Red Light in the newspapers using the clues Asbury gives us in the The French Quarter. Although that story is very different from any of the accounts in the three books. Her name is Jennie not Liz. She is a notorious thief in most of the reports.

It seems like the next article may be Joe the Whipper. If it is, I’m astonished that Asbury turned this story of domestic violence into anything consensual. If she’s screaming for help, she is not addicted to your beating.

Sometimes we get things wrong because we misunderstood. Sometimes we get things wrong because we forgot. Sometimes we turn the tale into a whole new one to protect the men? To condemn the women? To entertain? Did he change her name to protect her memory?

Beyond the fanciful tales and shocking news reports, what do the records say? I found police records and court cases for Red Light and Rosamie. I also found the census and directory records for 111 Dauphine Street.

What the Court Cases Say

I found seven arrest records for Red Light and two corresponding cases in the criminal court files.

In 1884, the police accused Red Light and Rosamie of murdering an old man named Wade Hampton, resulting in most references to the couple. The victim’s alias was Dad, and the police thought Red Light and Rosamie murdered him to rob him. According to the newspaper, the case was dismissed because of a lack of evidence.

Earlier in 1884, Red Light is among those accused of robbing a man named David Rosenbaum. For this case we have the arrest record, the court documents, and newspaper articles to gather information from.

Rosenbaum claimed that Victoria Williams and Lizzie Woods stole $525 from him. Jennie Red Light and Joseph Ben were accessories to the theft when the police found $271 under their mattress and Rosenbaum, claimed it was his. Rosenbaum disappeared before the four were prosecuted. Thus, they were not guilty in April 1884.

It’s unclear what happened to the $271, but it possibly disappeared with Rosenbaum. It makes me wonder if that was his money, if his money was stolen at all, if perhaps he made a few easy bucks by accusing others with reputations for thievery and taking their money?

I did not find Jennie in the census or directories. But I did find a marriage record for Joseph Ben and Mary Robinson. Could Jennie’s real name be Mary? I couldn’t find Mary in the census either.

The Johns: Audubon

111 Dauphine is now 509-515 Dauphine. It is a complex of buildings known as the Audubon Cottages, luxury rooms for visitors to New Orleans since 1975. In 1975, the entire complex sold to Audubon Cottages, Ltd. for $150,000.

Built in 1827, John Audubon reportedly stayed here in the 1820s. There is doubt that he did because of the fact that a free woman of color named Henriette Prieto owned the property from 1822-1841. Henriette was the partner of Jean Baptiste Barthelemy MaCarty, who was the first cousin of Delphine Lalaurie. She owned several properties in the French Quarter, so she probably rented some of them out. It’s possible John Audubon was one of the renters. She also bought and sold enslaved people. She left this property to three of her children who owned it until it was sold to John Langles.

The Johns: Langles

John Langles owned this property from 1871-1901, according to the Historic New Orleans Collection. John was the president of the Union Sanitation Excavating Company, cleaning privies according to the census. He died in 1890 in France. His wife and daughter’s death in an 1898 shipwreck resulted in a historic succession case, which is listed on the daughter’s tomb.

The mother and daughter both left their estates to each other, and then died together in the shipwreck. The courts had to decide who died first to figure out how the succession should proceed. Ultimately, it was decided that since the daughter was younger and a swimmer that she would outlive her mother in the disaster. The stone bridge in city park is named after the daughter, Angele, because she included City Park in her will.

The Langles were extremely wealthy and owned a lot of property. They never lived at 111 Dauphine.

In the 1880 census, 111 Dauphine houses Frank Fritz, his wife Mary, and their servant Louise Band. The 1890 census, was famously destroyed in a 1921 fire. In the 1900 census, 515 Dauphine is where Hone Chake, a Chinese immigrant, lives.

In the 1886 New Orleans City Directory, Mrs. Frederick Fritz is providing furnished rooms. This coincides with the census information showing the Fritzes at 111 Dauphine in 1880. Mrs. Fritz is probably renting the rooms to Red Light and Lizzie and Victoria.