The abolitionists ultimately carried the day. Before 1900 most legislation dealing with prostitution sought merely to control it. After World War I, usually considered the end of the Progressive era, the goal was to stamp it out. Officially, that's been the aim ever since. But let's face it.
Nobody really expects prostitution to go away, and it's hard to believe anyone ever did.
They just don't want it in their back yards. From time to time a few people make noises about changing U.S. prostitution laws. St. James and her camp attracted their share of feminist allies, who felt that a woman's right to control her body included the right to rent it out. This line of thinking has succeeded to the point where much sociological and AIDS literature has replaced the pejorative prostitute with the more PC sex worker. But that seems to victimize prostitutes more than the reality warrants.