Sheri's Ranch
Encyclopedia
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
, resort and spa in Pahrump
Pahrump, Nevada
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 24,631 people, 10,153 households, and 7,127 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 82.7 people per square mile . There were 11,651 housing units at an average density of 39.1 per square mile...
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
. Unlike many other brothels in the state, it styles itself as a "resort", with upscale rooms and furnishings, tennis courts, a spa and outdoor swimming pool. A sports bar is also on the premises.
In January 2001, the business was purchased by Chuck Lee, a retired Chicago homicide detective of 20 years, former owner of an AT&T retail store and car dealer from Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
.
Lora Shaner, a former madam of the brothel, wrote a book about her experiences there: Madam: Chronicles of a Nevada Cathouse (1999, ISBN 0929712579), later reissued and extended as Madam: Inside a Nevada Brothel (2001, ISBN 0759603677).
In 2005, Sheri's Ranch sought local zoning changes in Pahrump in order to build a 700-plus residential subdivision on its 330 acres (133.5 ha) known as Mountain Shadows Resort.