This Week In Gay History, February 10th

Here are a few moments in gay history that occurred on this week in the past (last week in gay history):

• February 7th
  • 70 years ago, the FBI reported One Inc. was formed as a non-profit in California, which they appear to have noted in surveilling the Mattachine Society. FBI Memo One Inc Registered Post Office Box, FBI (Record, July 1953).
  • 70 years ago, during the Lavender Scare, Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin claims that an employee seeking a promotion within the federal government is a “homosexual”. McCarthy to Summon Security Files Chief, Evening Star (Article, February 1953).
  • 155 years ago, newspapers began publishing articles regarding the story of Edgar Burnham, an intersex man that lived at the time. Edgar was born in Wisconsin and socialized as a girl. As a young adult he married another man, but they quickly divorced as he became aware of his intersex traits. He moved to Chicago began dressing as a man, and gave himself the name Edgar Burnham. He would start seeing women and eventually married a woman he would move to Iowa with. A Most Strange Chapter, Burlington Weekly Free Press (Article, 1868); He She Or It, Daily Ohio Statesman (Article, 1868).
• February 8th
  • 69 years ago, a State Department administrator claimed that the security firings during the combination of the Red Scare and Lavender Scare were not impacting morale, as otherwise reported. McLeod Backs Security Rules, Evening Star (Article, February 1954).
  • 69 years ago, the Justice Department reports out of eight security firings, only one was security related. The rest included other categories of which being LGBTQ was included. Justice Department Lists 1 Loyalty Case In 8 Security Ousters, Evening Star (Article, February 1954).
• February 11th
  • 69 years ago, 2200 security related firings were reported in total across the federal government, but the Eisenhower administration would refuse to publish a breakdown of how many were actually security risks. The World Today, Key West Citizen (Article, February 1954).