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Black Gay and Lesbian Archive Project
Cornell University, Human Sexuality Collection
Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center, National Archive of Lesbian and Gay History
Lesbian Herstory Archives
The Leslie-Lohman Gay Art Foundation
The New York Public Library, Center for the Humanities, Manuscripts and Archives Division
The New York Public Library, Performing Arts Library, Billy Rose Theatre Collection
The New York Public Library, Performing Arts Library, Dance Collection
The New York Public Library, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
New York University, The Fales Library and Special Collections
New York University, Tamiment Library & Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
University at Albany, SUNY, M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives
Black Gay and Lesbian Archive Project
12 West 130th Street #3
New York, NY 10037
Phone: (212) 491-2226
Contact: Steven G. Fullwood, Project Director
Email: bglanyc@yahoo.com
Collecting areas: Materials produced by and about lesbain, gay, bisexual, transgender, Same Gender Loving, queer, questioning, and in the life people of African descent, nationally and internationally. Formats include: audiotapes, books, broadsides, dramatic works, film, flyers, journals, magazines, monographs, newletters, newspapers, organizational records, palm cards, pamphlets, photographs, poetry, posters, prints, slides, and video.
Cornell University, Human Sexuality Collection
Location: Rare and Manuscript Collections
2B Carl A. Kroch Library
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853-5302
Phone: 607-255-3530 Fax: 607-255-9524
Contact: Brenda J. Marston
Email: bjm4@cornell.edu
Web: http://rmc.library.cornell.edu/HSC/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Cornell.HSC
Hours: Mon-Fri: 9 am - 5 pm all year; Some Saturdays: 1-5 pm. Out of town visitors should verify hours before they visit by calling or emailing RareRef@cornell.edu.
Wheelchair Access: yes
History
The Human Sexuality Collection's mission is to build and promote the use of an extensive collection of primary sources on social and political aspects of sexuality. We document LGBT politics and lives and the politics of pornography on a national level. Our collecting is guided by an interest in how definitions of sexual identity shift over time and the way in which personal choices and public discourse about sexuality evolve. We pay particular attention to under-documented people and issues, in the interests of making the historical record more complete, and we welcome input from activists and researchers about issues that need to be documented.
The HSC aims to work in cooperation with other repositories and people to promote interest in preserving the history of sexuality and to identify and find appropriate archival homes for important primary sources.
The collection began with Bruce Voeller's 1988 gift of the Mariposa Education and Research Foundation archives and an endowment from David B. Goodstein (Cornell '54). Cornell University's Board of Trustees approved the institution's commitment to the new program. The mission and history are described in a printed brochure and on our web site.
Information about holdings
Manuscript and Organizational records: 278 collections; 1,250 cubic ft.
Printed material: over 10,000 books; 495 non-U.S. periodicals; 3,380 U.S. periodicals.
Clippings/vertical files: as part of numerous manuscript collections and organizational records
Objects/ephemera: Objects and ephemera, including major collections of AIDS posters, photographs, postcards, matchbook covers, and political buttons and t-shirts, art and book art, are all cataloged and described in the online catalog.
Film/Video/Sound: Many, including items contained within manuscript collections and organizational records.
Photographs: contained within manuscript collections and organizational records.
Time periods/geographical regions documented:
Eighteen century to contemporary. For manuscripts, the geographical focus is national level activities in the United States and a regional focus on upstate New York. For print material, the geographical focus is international, with especially strong German language materials and AIDS posters from Africa.
Significant People/organizations/subjects documented:
Lesbian, bisexual, gay male, and transgendered people and politics, especially national organizations and personal papers. Strong subjects: personal impact of AIDS; LGBT activism, from the 1950s homophile movement to 1970s lesbian feminism and gay liberation through 1980s AIDS activism and on; LGBT people of color; pro- and anti-pornography activism, and samples of erotica and porn; families of LGBT people; LGBT publishing and writers.
People: Loren Rex Cameron; Brian McNaught; James M. Foster; H. Lynn Womack; the Goldstaub family; Phil Zwickler; Robert Garcia; Rosa Von Praunheim; Brent Nicholson Earle; Perry Brass; Robert J. Leach; Kristin Esterberg's oral history project; Roey Thorpe's oral history project; David B. Goodstein; Bruce R. Voeller; Robert Roth; Harry Langhorne; Robert Lynch; David P. McWhirter; Jean O'Leary; Alice Reynolds; Richard Schlegel; Joseph Albertson's films; Michael Scherker; Thomas J. Collier; Chasen Gaver; Larry Bush; Gordon Martin; David Patrick McIntosh; George Fisher; Michael L. Williams; Matthew Wolfe; Perry Deane Young.
Organizations: National Gay and Lesbian Task Force; Human Rights Campaign; Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, national office; GLAAD; Gay Media Task Force; Fund for Human Dignity; Advocate Research and Education Foundation; Big Table; Gay Publishing Company; Lesbian and Gay Congressional Staff Association; National Socialist League printed miscellany; National Lesbian and Gay Health Association; PWA Health Group; Senior Action in a Gay Environment; American Psychological Association's Division 44, Society for the Psychological Study of Lesbian and Gay Issues; Gay Alliance of Genesee Valley, New York; New York State Lesbian and Gay Lobby; AIDS Work of Tompkins County, NY; Elysian Fields Booksellers.
Art work of note: Don Bachardy's Mariposa Portrait Series. Photographs of Loren Rex Cameron. Bruce of L.A. photographs. Chasen Gaver’s performance poetry. Alice Axel manuscript with original watercolor illustrations by Hélène Azenor.
Collecting interests
The Human Sexuality Collection seeks to preserve and make accessible primary sources that document historical shifts in the social construction of sexuality, with a focus on U.S. lesbian and gay history, bisexual and transgender issues and individuals, and the politics of pornography. We are actively expanding the Collection and are especially seeking gifts of personal papers, organizational records, rare books, and periodicals that document marginalized groups. Through this program, Cornell University is working to ensure that a more complete historical records of sexuality and gender will be available to researchers.
Use requirements
Open to the public. Researchers register upon first visit, showing a valid photo ID. Registrations are kept confidential.
Comments about access/use:
Web site contains information on access and use.
Services
Research space, copying, audiovisual facilities, exhibitions, reference assistance on site, telephone reference, Internet reference (email/web), and loan agreements for exhibits. We allow researchers to use digital cameras, and in 2009 started a ground-breaking policy on open access for all materials in the public domain: http://cdl.library.cornell.edu/guidelines.html.
Other services/notes:
The Rare and Manuscript Division is committed to providing access to the collections through tours and instruction. We welcome opportunities to meet with classes and other groups. Instructors who wish to integrate primary sources into student assignments are encouraged to contact the Head of Public Services. Staff can also aid in searching a variety of national online resources and locating materials available in other libraries.
Staff organize and participate in conferences and events that promote discussion and research in these areas. Cornell's LGBT Studies and Feminist, Gender & Sexuality Studies programs provide an exciting environment for researchers.
Access and use of the materials is a priority. We catalog and process collections as soon as possible, and we will allow use of uncataloged and unprocessed materials. Because the division's collections are unique and often fragile, they are housed in secure stacks with carefully controlled temperature and humidity. Items will be retrieved upon request for use in the Reading Room.
Reproductions: Research materials may be photographed or photocopied on request, depending upon physical condition and any donor or copyright restrictions. There is a charge for these services. We allow researchers to use digital cameras, and in 2009 started a ground-breaking policy on open access for all materials in the public domain: http://cdl.library.cornell.edu/guidelines.html.
Indices, finding aids, collection descriptions
All manuscript collections cataloged online soon after they arrive, and a complete list of finding aids is available: http://rmc.library.cornell.edu/EAD/browselists/humsx.html. Print material is also cataloged online.
News about collections
hared by Facebook, our web site, and press releases, as well as at academic, professional, and political conferences and meetings.
Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center
National Archive of Lesbian and Gay History
Location: 208 West 13 Street
New York, NY 10011
Phone: (212) 620-7310 Fax: (212) 924-2657
Contact: Rich Wandel
Email: archive@gaycenter.org
Internet address: http://www.gaycenter.org/resources/archive/
Hours: Mon, Thu: 6-9 pm, or by appointment.
Wheelchair Access: difficult but possible; happy to make accommodations needed for the differently abled.
History
The National Archive of Lesbian and Gay History is a program of the Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center. The archive was founded in 1988 by Rich Wandel at the request of the center's Board of Directors.
Information about holdings
Manuscripts: 100 ft.
Organizational records: 50 ft.
Printed material: 150 ft. of periodicals
Clippings/vertical files: 30 ft.
Objects/ephemera: 10 ft.
Film/Video/Sound: 12 ft.
Photographs: 12 ft.
Time periods/geographical regions documented:
Mostly the eastern United States in the second half of the 20th century. Periodicals cover the entire United States and some foreign countries.
Significant People/organizations/subjects documented:
Includes the papers of AIDS activist Michael Callen, Meridian Theater co-founder Terry Helbing, author Darrell Yates Rist, gay activist Marty Robinson, copies of FBI files on gay organizations in the early 1970s, the death row papers of R. A. Sullivan, personal papers of Washington resident James R. Perry, and many New York City GLBT organizations including early records of the Christopher Street Liberation Day Committee, Gay and Lesbian Youth of New York, and the Chelsea Gay Association. Several photographic collections document the LGBT community. These include the Leonard Fink Collection images of the New York City piers in the 1970s and 1980s, and the Richard Wandel collection documenting the early political activity of the Gay Activists Alliance. For additional information, see the Summary Guide to the Collections.
Collecting interests
We collect LGBT materials from all times and places. We collect all forms of material except books. The center has a separately operating lending library that does accept books.
Use requirements
The Center Archive is for use by the entire community. No one will be denied use of materials based on race, color, creed, sex, or sexual orientation, nor will restrictions be based on political views or affiliation, age, academic credentials or the lack thereof. The center will make every reasonable effort to accommodate those who wish to use the archive.
Services
Research space, copying, exhibitions, reference assistance on site, telephone reference, and loan agreements for exhibits.
Other services/notes:
Lecture series, walking tours, and speakers for local groups.
Indices, finding aids, collection descriptions
Collection level Summary Guide (available from the repository); folder level finding aids, local MARC database and records in RLIN.
News about collections
Summary Guide is updated from time to time; the center publishes a newsletter Center Voice, which includes information on the archive as well as on other center programs.
Lesbian Herstory Archives/Lesbian Herstory Educational Foundation, Inc.
Address: LHA / LHEF,inc
484 14th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11215
Contact: Deborah Edel, Co-Coordinator
Phone: (718) 768-3953
Fax: 718-768-4663
Email: lesbianherstoryarchives@gmail.com
Web: http://www.lesbianherstoryarchives.org/
History:
The Lesbian Herstory Archives was founded in 1974 in New York City by a group of Lesbian activists as an outgrowth of their work with the Gay Academic Union. There are written by-laws and a clear mission statement. The organization was established as a 501©3 not for profit resource center in l981. Initially housed in an apartment on the upper west side, it purchased its own home in Brooklyn in l991.
Over its 37 years the Lesbian Herstory Educational Foundation, Inc (also known as the Lesbian Herstory Archives) has proved to be an invaluable source of difficult to find and one of a kind materials for researchers, scholars, authors, filmmakers, artists and others searching for information on Lesbian lives, history and culture. The Archives has also served as a haven and home for thousands of Lesbians looking for more information about their heritage and history in a welcoming environment. The impact of the Lesbian Herstory Archives on Lesbian cultural history has been profound and deep. Not only does the work of the Foundation help to preserve and share all aspects of Lesbian cultural history with the community, by its existence it also serves to shape the understanding and discussion of the complexity of lesbian history.
Current Holdings and Content:
The Lesbian Herstory Archives collection spans the early 1900s through today with even some earlier print material. The collection is international in its scope; however the majority of the materials are from the USA. The collection includes books, periodicals manuscripts, film, video/dvd, sound, photographs, microfilm, organizational records, personal papers, diaries, letters, and an extensive vertical file collection as well as ephemera, (such as t-shirts, clothing, paintings, postcards, banners, doll houses, buttons, sex toys, origami lesbian nuns) and so much more.
The collection is housed in an early 20th century limestone building on three floors. Some special collections are stored offsite in an archival storage and retrieval warehouse.
Collecting areas:
We collect all aspects of lesbian history and culture (international in scope). We will collect and preserve any materials that are relevant to the lives and experiences of lesbians: books, magazines, journals, news clippings, bibliographies, photos, historical information, tapes, films, diaries, oral histories, poetry and prose, biographies, autobiographies, notices of events, posters, graphics and other memorabilia and records of Lesbian life wherever and however they are expressed.
Access and Use:
Anyone who is interested in using the material may. You do not have to have a university affiliation or a letter of introduction. Hours vary and are posted on the website and included in fliers. The collection is staffed by volunteers. If you are doing long term research and want to come at hours when the Archives is not officially “open” arrangements are made for access. The first floor is wheel chair accessible.
A researcher or visitor has access to the entire collection. There is sufficient table space to lay out projects as well as a couch for comfort and a refrigerator and coffeepot for sustenance. The person staffing provides the researcher with a tour of the archives and then helps the researcher get going with their topic of interest. Beyond that, a researcher must do their own digging. Some assistance is available by telephone and in response to snail mail, email and faxes. There is a copy machine on site and audio visual facilities to watch tapes and listen to cds and audiotapes. Nothing may be taken off site. Loan agreements for exhibits are negotiated individually depending on the length of time, the uniqueness and provisions for safety of the materials requested and other issues which may arise. In addition traveling exhibited prepared by the Archives are available when requested by an organization, school or community group.
Indices to the Collections:
We are working fast and furiously to catalogue in materials, develop finding aids, process collections in greater depth and get information up on line. There are many lists and finding aids available here at the Archives for researchers including such listing as the book collection, the t-shirt collection, a running list of subject flies (not content) the unpublished papers and more.
News about Collections:
The website, email blasts and Facebook are the ways we reach out to inform all about special events, news and projects.
The Leslie-Lohman Gay Art Foundation
Address: 26 Wooster Street
New York, NY 10013
Phone: (212) 431-2609
Fax: (212) 431-2666
Contact: Wayne Snellen, Director of Collections; Jerry Kajpust, Director of External Affairs
Web: http://www.leslielohman.org
Hours: Gallery hours are Tue-Sat: 12-6 pm; archival material available by appointment only.
Wheelchair Access: no
History
For more than 20 years, the Leslie/Lohman Gay Art Foundation's (LLGAF) mission has been to preserve, exhibit and foster the creation of art that is created by LGBTQ artists or which speaks directly to gay and lesbian sensibilities, including erotic, political, romantic, and social imagery that resonates of queer experience. As we look to the future, our plan is to continue this mission and expand our programs and outreach to the community with the establishment of the Leslie/Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art. With a permanent collection of more than 6,000 objects spanning more than three centuries of queer art, our programs include regularly scheduled exhibitions, video events, workshop presentation of plays, artists' and curator's talks, panel discussions, THE ARCHIVE-a quarterly newsletter focusing on LGBTQ art and artists, a membership program, a research library and an archive of the permanent collection. LLGAF is the premier resource for anyone interested in the rich legacy of the LGBTQ community and its influence on and confrontation with the mainstream art world. There is no other organization in the world like us.
Information about holdings
Artwork: over 6,000 works of art (painting, drawing, photography, prints, sculpture)
Books: 1250 titles (LGBTQ art and history: artists collections, photography, biography, erotica)
Organizational records: 80 ft. (paper files on artists)
Clippings/vertical files: 21 ft.
Film/Video/Sound: some video
Photographs: some
Time periods/geographical regions documented: The holdings covering 19th, 20th & 21st century lesbian and gay art worldwide.
Collecting interests
Gay/lesbian erotic art and information on artists from +any time or place.
Use requirements
By appointment.
Services
Research space, exhibitions, reference assistance on site, telephone reference, and loan agreements for exhibits.
Indices, finding aids, collection descriptions
Over 6,000 works of art (paintings, drawings, photographs, prints, sculpture) cataloged by a computer database.
News about collections
A quarterly newsletter, "The Archive."
The New York Public Library, Manuscripts and Archives Division
Address: Stephen A. Schwarzman Building
Fifth Avenue & 42nd Street, Room 324
New York, NY 10018-2788
Email: Reference: mssref@nypl.org (submit reference queries at http://www.nypl.org/mssref)
Phone: Reference: 212-930-0801
Fax: (212) 302-4815
Contact: Curator of Manuscripts: William Stingone (williamstingone@nypl.org); Asst. Curator: Thomas Lannon (thomaslannon@nypl.org)
History
NYPL first gave serious consideration to documenting LGBT history in the mid-1980s. LGBT history became a major area of collection development in 1988 with the acquisition of the International Gay Information Center Archives, previously a community based archive. The documentation of AIDS and HIV was added to the division's mission in 1989. Since the late 1980s, numerous collections pertaining to LGBT history and culture, and to AIDS and HIV, have been added.
Holdings summary:
There are over 1100 linear feet of personal papers and organizational records, 2000 periodical titles (180 linear feet), 4200 books, 4500 sound and video recordings, 100 linear feet of vertical files of printed ephemera.
1. Manuscript material (personal papers)
2. Film, video, or sound
3. Organization's records
4. Photographs
5. Printed (books, journals, etc.)
6. Microfilm
7. Clippings or vertical files
8. Objects
9. Other - Art work, posters, placards
10. What specific time period(s) and geographical region(s) do the holdings cover?
Chiefly the United States in the 20th century with an emphasis on New York City and State
11. What significant people, organizations and subjects are documented in the material?
People: Barbara Gittings, Craig Rodwell, Martin Duberman, Morty and Jeanne Manford, Jonathan Ned Katz, Stephen Donaldson, Truman Capote, Doris Grumbach, Karla Jay, Vito Russo, Lawrence Mass, Arnie Kantrowitz, Carl Van Vechten
Organizations: Gay Men’s Health Crisis, ACT UP New York, Mattachine Society of New York, Gay Activists Alliance, People With AIDS Coalition, Gran Fury, Testing the Limits
Photographic collections: Bettye Lane Gay Rights Movement photographs, Kay Tobin Lahusen photographs, Diana Davies photographs, Fred McDarrah photographs
Major subject areas: Gay rights activism, AIDS activism
Brief descriptions of each of our LGBT collections can be found at http://www.nypl.org/locations/tid/36/node/138008.
Collection Growth:
We continue to collect personal papers and organizational records documenting LGBT history and life in New York City and State, as well as collections of national significance.
Access and Use
:
What are the requirements for using the organization's/institution's material?
Researchers are required to register online or in person. Registration form can be found at http://www.nypl.org/mssref. This form should be submitted at least on week in advance to expedite requests for specific resources.
Hours: Tuesdays through Saturdays 10:00 – 6:00
Site is wheelchair accessible.
Services: 1. Research space
2. Reference assistance on site
3. Telephone reference . No. All reference inquiries are to be submitted via the form at http://www.nypl.org/mssref or by U.S Mail
4. Internet reference (e-mail/web)
5. Copying services Yes, but no self-service.
6. Audiovisual facilities
7. Exhibitions Loan agreements for exhibits Yes, with minimum 6 months lead time.
Indices to the collections:
Brief collection descriptions can be found in the online catalog at http://catalog.nypl.org, and in OCLC/WorldCat. When the size or complexity of a collection merits, the catalog record will contain a link to the collection guide which is also available in printed form in our reading room. These guides (or finding aids) describe the collections to the box or folder level. Using our Find Archival Materials tool (http://www.nypl.org/amat) researchers can search the guides to all of our holdings using title, creator, or keyword.
Books can be found in our online catalog. A guide to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Periodical Collection is available at http://www.nypl.org/sites/default/files/archivalcollections/pdf/lgbtperi.pdf.
Updating Collection Descriptions:
Via the Library’s LGBT web page (lgbt@nypl) at http://lgbt.nypl.org; Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/nyplmss); and Twitter (http://twitter.com/#!/NYPL_Archives) posts.
The New York Public Library, Performing Arts Library, Billy Rose Theatre Dvision
Location: 40 Lincoln Center Plaza
New York, NY 10023
Phone: (212) 870-1636
Fax: (212) 870-1868
Contact: Karen Nickeson, Curator
Email: theatrediv@nypl.org
Web: http://www.nypl.org/research/lpa/the/the.html
Hours: Mon, Thu: 12-8 pm; Tue, Wed, Fri, Sat: 12-6 pm; closed Sun. Videotape viewing in the TOFT Archives is by appointment only, Tues-Fri: 12-6 pm; Sat: 12-6 pm.
Wheelchair Access: yes
History
The Billy Rose Theatre Division was established as a separate unit of the New York Public Library in 1931. It was elevated to full research division in 1945, and was officially named the Billy Rose Theatre Division in 1979.
Information about holdings
Manuscripts: yes
Organizational records: yes
Printed material: yes
Clippings/vertical files: yes
Objects/ephemera: yes
Film/Video/Sound: yes
Photographs: yes
Other holdings/notes: Original set, costume and lighting designs
Time periods/geographical regions documented:
International in scope, with an emphasis on the performing arts scene in New York.
Significant People/organizations/subjects documented:
"Theatre" is broadly defined to include not only live drama and musical theatre, but also film, television, radio, circuses, wild West shows, puppetry, pageants, magic, vaudeville and burlesque, and cabaret performance.
Holdings include the papers of playwright-director Charles Ludlam, director A. J. Antoon, librettist Michael Stewart, producer Ken Harper, and writer-performers Tom Keegan and Davidson Lloyd, among others. The work of major artists such as Antoon, Michael Bennett, Ludlam, and Larry Kramer, among others, are represented in the New York Shakespeare Festival/Joseph Papp Archives (in progress). Other collections that contain materials related to gays and lesbians include the Chamberlain and Lyman Brown Collection (in progress), and the Off-Off Broadway Collection, which documents, season-by-season, the work of small theatre companies in New York City.
The Theatre on Film and Tape (TOFT) Archive holds videotapes of New York stage performances, regional productions, and dialogues with prominent theatre artists. Among those gay and lesbian writers whose works are represented in the TOFT archives are Terrence McNally, Jon Robin Baitz, Paula Vogel, Craig Lucas, Tony Kushner, Harvey Fierstein, Charles Ludlam, Holly Hughes, and Martin Sherman. One-person shows by David Drake, Dan Butler, and Colin Martin, as well as performances by companies like Split Britches and Ridiculous Theatrical Company are represented. Holdings also include numerous works with gay themes and characters.
Collecting interests
The Theatre Collection exhaustively collects all formats of materials related to theatrical performance, from all times and geographical areas.
Use requirements
Anyone may use the collection during open hours. Collections in process are not available for study. Some items may require 24-hour turnaround time for retrieval.
Services
Research space, copying, exhibitions, reference assistance on site, telephone reference, Internet reference (email/web), and loan agreements for exhibits.
Indices, finding aids, collection descriptions
Collection level records for archival collections are available via RLIN and CATNYP (Catalog of the New York Public Libraries Research Divisions) on the web. Finding aids providing folder level information are available on-site. CATNYP also provides catalog records for all post-1972 books, and for more recent scripts acquisitions. On-site, researchers should consult book, card, and catalog records for complete holdings.
News about collections
The New York Public Library's annual report lists major acquisitions by the various research divisions.
The New York Public Library, Performing Arts Library, Dance Collection
Location: 40 Lincoln Center Plaza
New York, NY 10023
Phone: (212) 870-1657 Fax: (212) 799-7975
Contact: Madelaine M. Nichols
Email: mnichols@nypl.org
Internet address: http://www.nypl.org/research/lpa/dan/dan.html
Hours: Mon, Thu: 12-8 pm; Tue, Wed, Fri, Sat: 12-6 pm. No appointments.
Wheelchair Access: yes
History
The Dance Collection is a part of the Research Libraries of The New York Public Library. Together with collections in music, recorded sound, and theater, these divisions form the Performing Arts Library at Lincoln Center.
Holdings summary
In the past twenty years, many gay and lesbian dancers have become outspoken about their sexuality and how it affects their creative work. Mark Morris, Bill T. Jones, Rudolf Nureyev, Paul Taylor, Alvin Ailey, and the Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo are perhaps the best known names of this period of candor. Other distinguished contemporary performers who identify themselves as gay or lesbian include Ann Carlson, Pat Graney, Neil Greenberg, DanceNoise, Ishmael Houston-Jones, and Tim Miller.
Materials in the Dance Collection that provide a view of their works and opinions include performance videotapes, oral history recordings (650 hours) and transcripts, photographs (65,000), 20,200 programs, and 800 posters. Also documenting gay and lesbian artists are 130 feet of manuscripts, 40 feet of organizational records, 7,500 books, 5,200 folders of clippings (reviews, press releases, feature articles from mass media and specialized non-dance sources), 5,200 film and videotape titles, and 350 reels of microfilm. Documentation is strongest in 20th century America, Asia, and Europe, but there is worldwide coverage of the 17th century to the present and some earlier.
In the early years of this century, Serge Diaghilev (d.1929) with his Ballets Russes, led by the great male dancer Vaslav Nijinsky, provided a western European focus for gay art of the highest standards. The Astruc Papers, approximately 1,300 items, cover the earliest years of Diaghivev's arrangements to introduce Russian opera and ballet to Paris. The extensive book and periodical literature on the Ballets Russes is well represented in the Dance Collection's general holdings, along with many original photographs, particularly of Nijinsky.
In modern dance, Ted Shawn was the first important male dancer, and founded a performing group, the Men Dancers, who toured America extensively in the 1930s Their working home was the farm at Jacob's Pillow. Beginning with the Men Dancers' public demonstrations, the Pillow became a leading summer performance and teaching venue that continues today, and has nurtured artists such as Mark Morris. Shawn's long career is documented by extensive manuscript and photographic collections.
Transgendered performance is the norm in several theatrical traditions ranging from the Kathakali of southwest India, to modern Japanese Kabuki theater, to the women who sometimes danced male roles in 19th century ballet. These traditions are documented in prints, photographs and videotapes, and discussed in articles and books.
The Dance Collection has recorded oral histories with dance artists since the 1960s. As AIDS became a significant presence in the dance community during the 1980s, the collection realized that artists who would normally record an oral history at late middle age might need to be reached much earlier. Outreach to the dance community produced a number of requests for interviews, and the project continues. Chris Komar and Arnie Zane are among the interviewees who have since died of AIDS related illnesses.
Collecting interests
Must be primarily focused on dance. Photographic, print, audio, manuscript, and moving image materials. No costumes. Networking with other repositories in the Dance Heritage Coalition helps place materials appropriately in those cases when inclusion in the Dance Collection, or only in the Dance Collection, is not the best location.
Use requirements
Must have a research interest.
Services
Research space, copying, audiovisual facilities, exhibitions, reference assistance on site, telephone reference, Internet reference (email/web), and loan agreements for exhibits.
Indices, finding aids, collection descriptions
A search in the computerized catalog of the heading "homosexuality and dance" leads to 55 specific items and may serve as a starting point. However, a knowledge of specific names of interest is necessary for research in depth. There is Internet access to the online catalog; there is a CD-ROM publication Dance on Disk, and the entire catalog is in RLIN.
The New York Public Library, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
Location: 515 Malcolm X Boulevard
New York, NY 10037-1801
Phone: (212) 491-2225
Fax: (212) 491-6760
Contact: Diana Lachatanere or Steven G. Fullwood
Email: scmarbref@nypl.org
Web: http://www.nypl.org/research/sc/sc.html
Wheelchair Access: yes
History
The Schomburg Center is part of the New York Public Library. The Black Gay & Lesbian Archive was donated to the Schomburg Center in 2004. It is currently the largest collection of LGBTQ/SGL materials created by about people of African descent in the world.
Information about holdings
Manuscripts: 99.8 ft.
Organizational records: 27.2 ft.
Printed material: approx. 700 volumes
Periodicals: est. 90
Clippings/vertical files: 6 ft.
Photographs: 3,000 images
Other holdings/notes: 7 microfiche
Time periods/geographical regions documented:
1920s to the present.
Significant People/organizations/subjects documented:
SDiane Adamz-Bogus, Joseph Beam, Glenn Carrington, Cheryl Clarke, Melvin Dixon, Thomas Glave, Craig Harris, Reginald Harris, Essex Hemphill, Ira Jeffries, Audre Lorde, Assotto Saint, and Ron Simmons. ADODI, Gay Men of African Descent, and Other Countries. Black Pride, Erotica, and House/Ballroom Scene.
Collecting interests
Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender/Same Gender Loving life, any time period, geographical area, all formats.
Use requirements
No requirements for general collection, valid identification required to use special collections.
Services
Duplication, audiovisual facilities, exhibitions, reference assistance on site, telephone reference, and Internet reference (email/web).
Other services/notes:
Internet reference is limited.
Indices, finding aids, collection descriptions
Finding aids, WorldCat, OCLC, and NYPL catalog
New York University, The Fales Library and Special Collections
Address: 70 Washington Square South
Third Floor
New York, NY 10012
Email: fales.library@nyu.edu
Phone: 212.998.2596
Contacts: Marvin Taylor, Director; Charlotte Priddle, Librarian for Printed Books; Lisa Darms, Senior Archivist; Brent Phillips, Media Specialist and Processing Archivist
History: We maintain a closed stacks reading room for scholarly access to our book collections, archival and manuscript collections, and media holdings. We also host public events and exhibitions, provide bibliographic instruction to class groups, and loan material from our collections for exhibitions and screenings worldwide.
Our mission is to acquire, preserve, and provide access to a wide range of primary research materials in their original formats, including books, manuscripts, media, archives, and other items in support of the educational and research activities of our various constituencies.
Most of the Fales LGBT materials are found in our Downtown Collection. The Downtown Collection, which began in 1993, is an attempt to document the downtown arts scene that evolved in SoHo and the Lower East Side during the 1970s through the early 1990s. The Downtown Collection includes the personal papers of artists, filmmakers, writers and performers; archives of art galleries, theatre groups, and art collectives; and collections relating to AIDS activism and off-off- Broadway theater. Many of the collections within it contain LGBT content, whether being the personal papers of artists like David Wojnarowicz and Robert Blanchon, and writers like David Trinidad, Tim Dlugos and Dennis Cooper; archives of organizations like Group Material or the Mix: New York Lesbian and Gay Experimental Film and Video Festival; or small collections, such as the Bill Bytsura ACT UP Photography Collection and the Peter Lewis Allen Collection of Safe Sex Pamphlets. A major holding is the archive of Gay Cable Network. Further LGBT materials can be found in our Riot Grrrl Collection and General Special Collections.
Current Holdings: Size and Content:
Our LGBT and related archival holdings overall consist of approximately 4,500 linear feet of material, including approxamately 7,500 audiovisusal elements.
The holdings include the following formats: 1. Manuscript material (personal papers)
2. Film, video, and sound
3. Organization's records
4. Photographs
5. Printed (books, journals, etc.)
6. Objects and ephemera
7. Artworks
8. Bulk1960s -1990s
9. Relevant Collections include:
A.I.R. Gallery Archive; Alan Klein Papers, Bill Bystura ACT UP Photography Collection, Coleman Dowell Papers, David Trinidad Papers; David Wojnarowicz Papers, Dennis Cooper Papers, Frank Moore Papers, Fred McDarrah Collection, Gary Indiana Papers, Gay and Lesbian Pulp Fiction Collection, Gay Cable Network Archive; Group Material Archive; Heather Lewis Papers, Hunter Reynolds Papers and Collection; Ira Silverberg Papers; Jay Blotcher Papers; Jimmy De Sana Papers, John Hall Papers; John Vaccaro and the Play-House of the Ridiculous Papers; Johnny Science Papers; Kirk Winslow Papers, Lee Snider Photograph Collection, Lenora Champagne Papers, Magie Dominic Off-Off Broadway Collection, Martin Wong Papers, Michelangelo Signorile Papers, Mix Collection, Outpunk Archive, Paul Langland Papers, Peter Lewis Allen Collection of Safe Sex Pamphlets, Queer/Art/Film Collection, Red Hot Organization Archive, REPOhistory Archive, Robert Blanchon Papers and Collection, Robert Alexander Papers, Sarah G. Jacobson Papers, Serpent’s Tail/High Risk Archive, Split Britches Archive, Steven Crohn Papers, Stuart Sherman Papers, Sylvère Lotringer Papers and Semiotext(e) Archive, Tammy Rae Carland Zine Collection, Terence Sellers Papers, Tim Dlugos Papers. And others!
Collection Growth:
We are currently actively collecting LGTB material as part of our growing Downtown Collection.
Access and Use
:
Qualified researchers should make appointments to use archival materials in our Reading Room.
Hour: Appointment only, Monday to Friday, 10:00 to 5:45.
Site is wheelchair accessible.
Services:
Fales provides the following:
1. Research space
2. Reference assistance on site
3. Telephone reference
4. Internet reference (e-mail/web)
5. Copying services (by our staff, with a curator’s approval)
6. Audiovisual facilities (for viewing only)
7. Exhibitions Loan agreements for exhibits
Indices to the collections:
Finding Aids are available online for our processed collections: http://www.nyu.edu/library/bobst/research/fales/findingaidstest.html.
A search tool is available to search for specific terms across finding aids: http://dlib.nyu.edu/findingaids/search/?q=&collectionId=fales.
New York University, Tamiment Library & Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
New York University
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012
Phone: (212) 998-2630
Contact: Chela Scott Weber, Associate Head for Archival Collections
Email: chela.weber@nyu.edu
Web: http://www.nyu.edu/library/bobst/research/tam
See Also: Women’s History Resource in the Tamiment Library: http://nyu.libguides.com/tamiment_womens_history
Collecting areas: The Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner labor Archives document American radicalism, labor, and progressive social movements. Includes material related to LGBT trade unionists, activists, and organizations, including the Gay and Lesbian Labor Network, Leslie Cagan, Connie Kopelov, and the Out at Work Collection. Collections that in part relate to LGBT issues also include: the National Organization for Women, New York City Chapter Records; WHAM! (Women's Health Action and Mobilization); and the Rose Schneiderman Papers (see the correspondence with Pauline Newman).
University at Albany, SUNY, M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives
Address: Science Library 352
University at Albany, SUNY
1400 Washington Avenue
Albany, NY 12222
Email: bkeough@albany.edu
Phone: 518.437.3931
Fax: 518.437.3930
History: The New York State Modern Political Archives was established in 1982 to document the work of individuals and private interest groups concerned with New York State public policy issues in the 20th century. The collection began as an initiative to collect, preserve, and make available original research materials pertaining to New York State public affairs and policy, and now includes the personal papers of members of the gubernatorial administrations of Nelson A. Rockefeller; papers of 20 former New York Congressional members and 41 elected officials who served in New York State Legislature; and the official records and personal papers of more than 200 private groups, professional associations, individuals, public-sector labor unions, community groups, and other organizations concerned with Empire State public-policy issues. The Archives of Public Affairs and Policy consists of over five thousand cubic feet of historical records, photographs, film, audiotapes, microfilm, and other record forms. Archival materials are available in a number of subject areas including: African Americans and Civil Rights Organizations; Conservation and the Environment; Criminal Justice and Prisons; the Death Penalty; Education; Human Sexuality and Gender Identity; Labor; Neighborhood Associations; Public Servants and Politicians; Social Activists and Public Advocates; Women; as well as other emerging public policy issues.
Current Holdings: Size and Content"
A portion of the New York State Modern Political Archive documents gay and lesbian history, please be as specific as possible about that portion, especially its quantity, and names of people and organizations, and subjects documented.
The following collections are currently housed in the collection:
ACT UP, ALBANY (N.Y.) CHAPTER
Records, 1983-1992 (APAP-106)
The collection documents the activities of ACT UP, Albany (N.Y.) Chapter, and other chapters from its creation in 1987 to 1992. In March 1987, ACT UP, AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power, was formed in New York City by a group of people as a diverse, nonpartisan organization of individuals united in anger and committed to ending the AIDS crisis. ACT UP is a national and international nonpartisan activist group whose mission is to fight for "an end to the AIDS crisis." The collection consists of administrative files such as handbooks for activists, activism in various chapters, the AIDS Curriculum Lesson for the City of Albany, AIDS education and preventive guides and programs, correspondence, minutes, and papers of the Health Systems Agency of Northeastern New York, Inc., from 1990 to 1991. It also includes several legal documents related to human rights, penal law, and public health law, and meeting notes. The strengths of this collection are the posters, fliers, and other activism material from ACT UP chapters.
CAMPUS ACTION
Records, 1992–2006, 2.29 cubic ft. and 68 mb of electronic records (APAP–164)
Campus Action was formed in April 1992 as a multicultural, multi-issue organization with a mission to promote activism and support activist organizations on university campuses in New York’s Capital Region. It maintained eight chapters representing individual campuses as well as a central office at the Social Justice Center in Albany. The records of Campus Action contain materials collected and generated by the organization including both paper documents and electronic records. These materials include minutes, correspondence, publications, grant applications, webpages, fliers, leaflets and other handouts. The collection holds material from the Campus Action central office and does not contain material specific to the individual chapters of Campus Action. Campus Action created a number of publications for campus distribution. These include the newsletter Campus Action News, two study guides, and directories of local activist organizations and internships. These are all represented in the collection, along with materials from the biannual conferences held to help organize activism, primarily as paper documents with some additional later material in electronic form. The case of Ali Yaghi, an Albany resident and owner of a pizza shop who was arrested just days after 9/11, is also documented in the collection.
CAPITAL DISTRICT GAY AND LESBIAN COMMUNITY COUNCIL, INC.
Records, 1972–2002, 5.33 cubic ft. (APAP–193)
The records of the Capital District Gay and Lesbian Community Center include primarly publications, correspondence, news clippings, and publicity materials. The collection includes: news clippings; correspondence; and publications that include CommUNITY (1974-2000), Speak Out (1974-1978), Northeast Alive, Capital District Alive, among others. The inventory provided here covers only the publications in this collection. Additional records created by the CDGLCC are also available in the Department of Special Collections and Archives, but have not yet been inventoried.
CAPITAL REGION TRANSGENDER COMMUNITY ARCHIVE
Records, 1970–2004 (APAP–185)
The Capital Region Transgender Community Archive is a unique collection of local and regional newsletters and documents from the 1970s to 2004. The collection includes the TVIC newsletter (1972-1984), Transgender Independence Club newsletter (1987-2001), and issues of other local and national publications. Also available in the collection are posters, fliers, some organizational records, videos, and material from the Albany Gender Project. A brief inventory is available online. There are some restrictions on access to this collection and researchers should consult a staff member for details.
CRONE, MICHELLE
Papers, 1977–1998 (APAP–101)
(Currently being processed)
The collection includes material documenting the National March on Washington, Women's Encampment, Elword Productions, Gay Games, Full Circle Festival: Equinox '89, Lesbian & Gay Film & Video Festival, Rhythm Fest, and other events and groups.
DANSKY, STEVEN F.
Papers, 1966–2006, .33 cubic ft. (APAP–289)
The collection includes magazines, correspondence, photographs, and unpublished writings from Steven Dansky's work with the effeminist and gay liberation movement. The majority of the material is from the 1970s-1990s. Additional information about the contents of each folder is provided in the box and folder list created by Dansky.
DESOLE, GLORIA
Papers, circa 1969-1984, 1.2 cubic ft. (APAP-215)
The collection includes materials related to the women's movement with an emphasis on the Capital Region of New York. DeSole collected material related to projects in Albany, speeches, and publications. Records of particular interest are DeSole's speeches and the MA thesis "Feminism in the Seventies: A Study of the Woemn’s Liberation Movement of Albany, New York, 1969-1979" by Margaret Boys of Goddard College in August 1980. Also included are newsletters, journals, and periodicals. Note that only scattered issues for most of these publications are available in the collection.
LURIE, ANDREA
Papers, circa 1967-1986, 3 cubic ft. (APAP-051)
The collection includes materials related to the women's movement and lesbians with an emphasis on the Capital Region of New York, but also including material from throughout the United States. Lurie collected photographs from Women's Day in Albany, posters, material related to projects in Albany, correspondence, drafts of manuscripts, and Lurie's own speeches. Also included are pamphlets, newsletters, journals, and periodicals.
NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR WOMEN--ALBANY (N.Y.) CHAPTER
Records, 1966–2005, 6.41 cubic ft. (APAP-174)
The collection includes correspondence, minutes, by-laws, financial reports, subject files on women's issues, and printed materials pertaining to NOW with particular strength in documenting the Albany and New York State chapters. The records of this women's organization pertain to sexual discrimination in education and employment, reproductive rights, gay and lesbian rights, the Equal Rights Amendment, and other gender-related issues.
NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR WOMEN, NEW YORK STATE
Records, 1966–1988, 23.75 cubic ft. (APAP-029)
Includes correspondence, minutes, by-laws, financial reports, documentation of lobbying activities, subject files on women's issues, and printed materials pertaining to NOW, New York State, founded in 1974, the state affiliate of NOW, which was founded in Washington, D.C., in 1966. The records of this women's organization pertain to sexual discrimination in education and employment, reproductive rights, gay and lesbian rights, the Equal Rights Amendment, and other gender issues. The records are organized into five series: subject files, 1968–1988; issues files, 1966–1988; lobbyists' files, 1976–1985; chapter newsletter file, 1966–1985; and a feminist publications collection, 1966–1985.
NORTON, JOSEPH L. (1918– )
Papers, 1955–81, 13 ft. (UA–902.006)
Correspondence, lecture notes, publications, primarily relating to Norton's career (1963– ) as a professor in the School of Education, University at Albany, particularly to his interest in vocational guidance, school counseling, and sex education. The papers also include two cubic feet of correspondence, minutes of meetings, and printed materials relating to Norton's involvement in the gay liberation movement: advisor to the Gay Liberation Front in New York State (1971–72); a member of the Board of Directors of the National Gay Task Force (1976–78); a founder and director of the National Caucus of Gay and Lesbian Counselors of the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors and Therapists; and a founder and director of the Caucus of Gay Counselors of the American Personnel and Guidance Association (1977–78).
POST, LIBBY
Papers, 1982–1992, 1.46 cubic ft. (APAP–045)
Libby Post has worked for numerous politicians including the campaigns of Edward Bloch (APAP-115) for Congress in 1984 and 1987. She was press secretary for New York State Assembly Representative May W. Newburger and Sheila Healy, the 6th District Democrat for Albany County Legislature. Post is also very active in numerous social issues. She served as media coordinator for Family Planning Advocates of New York State and the Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Inc. Post worked for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, for gay rights, and against domestic violence as part of her private activist work. Her papers include press kits for campaign workers; newsletters; press releases; and press coverage in the form of news clippings. Subject files are predominantly news clippings on topics such as homosexuality, child abuse, gay rights, Planned Parenthood, reproductive issues, and state law.
ROSENTHAL, DONALD
Papers, 1980-2004, 2.75 cubic ft. (APAP-202)
Collection includes publications and material from the CDGLCC, material from other parts of New York State, and other material created and collected by Don Rosenthal as part of his research of AIDS service organizations in New York.
SOCIAL JUSTICE CENTER
Records, 1981-2001, 4.3 cubic feet, 19 VHS tapes, approximately 600 KB of electronic records (APAP–177)
The Social Justice Center (SJC) was formed in 1981 by an alliance of non-profit activist organizations in order to provide a central location, office space, and basic services for activist groups in Albany, New York. Projects of the Center include the Dismantling Racism project, which sponsors workshops to address the roots of racial prejudice, the PCB/Environmental Health project, which works to educate the community about potential toxins, and the Infoshop, a lending library that stocks progressive periodicals and books. The records of the Social Justice Center include financial records, meeting minutes, publications, fliers, grant proposals, photographs, and correspondence. There are also materials generated by the operation of the store Peace Offerings. The history, goals, and operations of the organization are well represented in the Administrative Files series. Histories of the center can be found in the 1991 board retreat material. The Peace Offering series primarily contains promotional materials such as signs and displays. There is little material in this collection from the member groups of the SJC. There is a small amount of administrative materials from the Centro de Progresso group and a folder of materials from the creation of the Institute for Farmworker Justice.
WHEELER, WALTER
Papers, 1977-2005, 2.66 cubic ft. (APAP–212)
This collection documents gay and lesbian publications with a particular emphasis on the Capital Region and Upstate New York. Material from New York City and neighboring states is also included. The publications range from professionally produced magazines to independently published zines. These publications are scheduled to be cataloged in Minerva, the University Libraries' online catalog. The collection also includes material often considered to be ephemeral such as handbills, flyers, advertising postcards, stickers, matchbooks, and other promotional material for various events and venues. Objects includes a condom packaged by the AIDS Council Project HOPE and a latex dental dam from the Women's Action Coalition both of which were used to promote safe sex.
WOMEN'S BUILDING
Records, 1980-2000, 18 cubic ft. (APAP-292)
The Women's Building, Inc. is the women's community center of the Capital Region located at 79 Central Avenue in Albany, New York. The Holding Our Own foundation owns and operates the Women's Building. The Women's Building's mission is to create an environment where differences are respected, leadership is shared, all women's strengths are recognized, all women's growth is supported, and a diversity of age, race, education, income, physical and mental ability, sexual orientation, religion, and social background is seen as enriching. The organization's goals are to: provide a resource center and clearinghouse for information of interest to women; a multi-purpose space for cultural, informational, and recreational events of interest to women and children including meeting rooms, office rental for women's organizations, services, commercial, and professional enterprises, and a performance area; and to enhance a sense of community among women throughout the Capital Region. The collection includes records such as meeting minutes, grant applications, material related to the Women's Building's capital campaign, publications, program material, and other administrative material.
Collection Growth: We actively add to the collection.
Access and Use
:
We are open 9:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. Monday through Friday. The M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives is located on the third floor of the Science Library on the Uptown Campus of the University at Albany. For directions please see: http://library.albany.edu/speccoll/directions.htm. All visitors to the M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives' Marcia Brown Research Room are required to sign in upon arrival. Access and use of Special Collections and Archives material is available under supervision in the Marcia Brown Research Room during posted hours. The staff will retrieve materials for all researchers and items that circulate must be checked out at the Research Room desk. You do not need formal permission, but please let us know 1 week in advance of your arrival.
Services:
1. Research space
2. Reference assistance on site
3. Telephone reference
4. Internet reference (e-mail/web)
5. Copying services
6. Audiovisual facilities
7. Exhibitions Loan agreements for exhibits
Indices to the collections:
MARC records are available through OCLC and online finding aids are available at http://library.albany.edu/speccoll/gayrights.htm.