United States of America

From LGBTQIA+ Archives Wiki

This page provides an overview of LGBTQIA+ history in the United States, including key events, legal milestones, and social movements. It highlights both progress and challenges while preserving historical records for research and education. Some materials may reflect outdated or discriminatory views, included here to document the historical context in which they existed.


19th Century

The 19th century had strict gender roles, but historical records show people living beyond those expectations. Newspaper articles from the 1830s describe women wearing breeches instead of dresses, facing criticism and being labeled "unsexed." Some accounts mention women who lived as men, sometimes for survival or better opportunities, and other situations of transgender men who lived authentically despite legal and social barriers.

Some publications in the 1850s discussed a "third sex," often in response to women wearing shorter skirts and loose trousers known as bloomers. This style, popularized by women's rights activists, challenged expectations of how women should dress and behave. By the 1860s, newspaper articles reference Macintosh balls, gatherings where drag performers and gender expression played a central role, reflecting early forms of ball culture.

One well-documented figure from this period was James Barry (1789–1865), a transgender man and respected surgeon. Historical records like these show that transgender and gender-diverse people have always existed, even if history has not always recognized them.

20th Century

The early 20th century saw growing awareness of LGBTQIA+ communities alongside increasing government restrictions. In the 1920s, Mae West’s play The Drag, which depicted gay life, was banned. During the 1930s, Nazi Germany intensified persecution, targeting LGBTQIA+ people through book burnings and police raids on gathering spaces.

In the 1940s, reports from Europe revealed that LGBTQIA+ individuals were among those imprisoned in Nazi concentration camps, where they faced brutal conditions and were often marked with pink triangles. In the United States, discrimination continued as LGBTQIA+ service members were discharged under "blue discharges," which denied them veterans' benefits.

The 1950s brought widespread government firings during the McCarthy era, labeling LGBTQIA+ individuals as security risks. At the same time, One: The Homosexual Magazine won a landmark Supreme Court case affirming the right to publish LGBTQIA+ content, challenging censorship laws.

By the 1960s, LGBTQIA+ activism gained momentum. The Mattachine Society, an early LGBTQIA+ rights organization, fought through the courts for legal recognition and defended itself before Congress. These efforts laid the foundation for future activism, pushing back against laws and policies that had long targeted LGBTQIA+ communities.


US Records

Related Pages

State and Territory Archives

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