The Sporting District
The District | |
|---|---|
Red-light district in San Antonio, Texas, U.S. | |
 The 1911–1912 Blue Book, a tourist guide to San Antonio's Sporting District | |
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| Established | 1889 |
| Shut down | 1941 |
The Sporting District was a red-light district in the U.S. city of San Antonio, Texas in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was established by the city council to manage prostitution in the city. For a time it was one of the nation's largest vice districts with venues ranging from brothels to gambling halls. The area was officially shut down in 1941 resulting from the mobilization for World War II.
The term sporting was a common 19th-century euphemism for gambling and/or prostitution. Many communities around the U.S. used this term; brothels were often referred to as sporting houses.