Leah Tehme ~ "House of Mirrors"

Leah J. Tehme, later known at Jennie Rogers, was born in Allegheny, Pennsylvania on 4 July 1843. She was described as being six feet tall and hot-tempered. She married young to a doctor, but the union didn't last long. Wanting a life of excitement, she met and ran off with a steamboat Captain Rogers, who named his boat, the Jennie Rogers, after her.

Jennie left Captain Rogers and made her way to Denver, Colorado arriving there around 1880. Looking to establish a parlor house that would outdo the one belonging to her rival, Mattie Silks, she built a small parlour house at 1942 Market Street and began recruiting the most seductive ladies. Her place, known as the "House of Mirrors" was an intimate haven where gents could enjoy the finest cigars, the best of brandies and the most discreet companionship. It boasted a dining room, three parlours, a ball room, a wine cellar and 15 bedrooms. The mirrored ceilings captured the grand piano, a golden harp, crystal chandeliers, oriental rugs, birds's-eye maple woodwork and some anatomical wonders. Carved into the building's facade are busts of men she was supposed to have blackmailed to build the most elegant cat house in Colorado.

Jennie ran the House of Mirrors until she died in 1909. She's buried in the Fairmount Cemetery under the name Leah Wood. In 1911, Mattie Silks bought the place for $14,000 and reigned supreme until 1915, when the national inclination toward morality reached the West and Denver's red-light district shifted to other, less prominent areas of the city.