Experience La Grange!! - La Grange Tourism - Texas - The Chicken Ranch
  The       Chicken Ranch
The Chicken Ranch
Whatï¿½s synonymous          with La Grange, Texas?  Why the infamous Chicken          Ranch!  Even though it has been closed for more          than 30 years, the legendary brothel is still          intriguing.   
When it comes to          instant name recognition no other house of          prostitution can match the Chicken Ranch.
What made the          Chicken Ranch so special?  First longevity comes          to mind.  One of the oldest brothels in Texas,          the questionable business operated for more than 130          years.
According to the legend, there wasnï¿½t much cash          around during the Great Depression so patrons          would trade chickens for services rendered.  The          girls never went hungry and the Chicken Ranch          moniker stuck.
The infamous          Chicken Ranch operated as a brothel for more          than a century in the countryside near La          Grange, Texas before closing on August 1, 1973.  Today all thatï¿½s left is the legend of the most          famous Texas brothel of them all.  Hereï¿½s how          the Chicken Ranch looked in 1937. 
The Chicken Ranch was        located on a dusty Central Texas country road near the        town of La Grange not that far from the state capitol of        Austin and two renowned colleges ï¿½ The University of        Texas and Texas A&M. 
While the Chicken Ranch is        said to have always successfully resisted any        association with organized crime, the madam and the        girls did their part to help maintain a strong local        economy and minded their own business.   
The Chicken Ranchï¿½s        reputation took on new life after a Houston TV reporter        tripped the first domino that led to the eventual demise        of the brothel on August 1, 1973.  A musical stage play,        The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas that has played all        over the world, poked fun at the series of events and        letï¿½s not forget the movie by the same name featuring        Burt Reynolds and Dolly Parton.  Then thereï¿½s the ZZ Top        song that still fuels Texas folklore. 
Now the Chicken Ranch is        long gone ï¿½ literally.  After it closed and the        prostitutes moved on, the building was sold and hauled        to Dallas where, for awhile, it served as a restaurant        that served ï¿½ what else?  Chicken.  Later, the building        burned to the ground and that was that. 
Today, thereï¿½s nothing left        of the Chicken Ranch.  But, in our imaginations, the        most famous brothel of them all lives on and on.