Much as the sauna was to the Finnish immigrants, the Russian bath brought back fond memories of the mother land and provided social centers. Occasionally, Russian baths were combined with the Turkish baths. Although most Russian baths are public, I've been told there is a group of Molokans in San Francisco who still use the bania in the backyard of a member's home. The Molokans are a fervent religious sect from southern Russia who hold tightly to their faith. In Chicago, Russian baths were a safe meeting place for rival gang leaders.
Weapons are difficult to conceal on a naked body.
If the meeting resulted in reconciliation, the gangs would meet upstairs for bagels, cream cheese and borscht. I suspect this is because most Russian immigrants first settled in urban areas where such structures were impractical. The bania made a brief debut in the United States along the Pacific coast and Alaska. In the early 1700s, Russian settlements sprang up from the Aleutians as far south as Fort Ross, about midway down the California coast. Aleutian Eskimos were introduced to the bania by Russian traders and trappers and still use the Russian-influenced sweat house.