Curating the City: LGBTQ Historic Places in L.A.

Curating The City

LGBTQ Historic Places in L.A.

Explore familiar and lesser-known places that tell the stories of Los Angeles' diverse LGBTQ communities.

LGBTQ Historic Places in L.A. is a film project that aims to bring together a diversity of stories, perspectives, and experiences that reveal the layered historic and cultural importance of LGBTQ places throughout L.A. County

Overview

Greater Los Angeles has long been at the forefront of creating and shaping a collective, yet diverse LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning and/or queer) identity. For decades, the region and its residents have played an important role in bringing LGBTQ experiences into the public consciousness.

Over the course of the twentieth century, the region was home to the world’s first gay pride parade, the world’s first LGBTQ synagogue and oldest continuously operating Christian LGBTQ ministry, the country’s longest-running LGBTQ publication, and groundbreaking work in medical research and care for members of the LGBTQ community.

Nonetheless, local contributions to LGBTQ history are often eclipsed by the legacies of New York’s Stonewall riots and San Francisco’s reputation as America’s “Gay City.”

Curating the City: LGBTQ Historic Places in L.A. aims to recognize the unique stories and contributions of Los Angeles’ diverse and constantly evolving LGBTQ communities. This microsite represents the first major step in our broad efforts to tell these stories and to identify, promote, and preserve these rich, yet complex historic places.

While some of the places highlighted on this microsite have architectural importance, many are modest in appearance and require a deeper look beyond their facades to fully understand their stories and cultural value.

Architecturally unspectacular buildings also deserve recognition for the important roles they’ve played in defining many communities in Los Angeles, including the region’s diverse LGBTQ communities.

These stories come alive and are much more meaningful when the physical building in which they occurred still exists. Use these pages to learn more about the history of LGBTQ Los Angeles. The content of this microsite will continue to expand over time as new stories and places come to light.

Special Thanks

Special thanks to Arielle N’Diaye, a Conservancy 2015 Getty Multicultural Undergraduate Intern, for her contributions to this project.

History of LGBTQ Los Angeles

The LGBTQ history of Greater Los Angeles touches upon the many racial, gender, religious, sexual, and socioeconomic identities and communities that contribute to the diversity of the region.

To date, current literature on queer history and, more specifically, the queer history of Los Angeles, is sporadic and largely incomplete. (Read how and why we use the term “queer.”)

Conventional scholarship did not begin to treat the history of LGBTQ individuals as a legitimate field of study until the 1970s, when critical thought around topics such as gender and sexual identity began to emerge.

Early attempts to document LGBTQ history did not focus on communities, but rather on the experiences of well-known and well-respected historical figures such as Walt Whitman, Frida Kahlo, and Alexander the Great.

From the 1820s through the 1970s, LGBTQ life in Los Angeles was largely underground and functioned along the lines of a subculture.

For decades, non-heteronormative behavior in Los Angeles was either illegal or cause for investigation. Bars and private residences served as primary social spaces for queer individuals to gather and meet one another, though police harassment was common in public establishments.

For many LGBTQ individuals in the region, the entertainment industry provided a safe and open work environment. The same social mores that gave performers the freedom to be themselves were often extended to those who worked behind the scenes.

During and immediately following World War II, the LGBTQ population in Los Angeles dramatically increased, much as it did in other major cities like Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, San Diego, and San Francisco.

The postwar era witnessed the rise of new LGBTQ civil rights organizations, social spaces, and cultural institutions as perceptions of sexual and gender identity evolved.

Beginning in the 1970s with the onset of the gay liberation movement, the nature of queer public spaces began to change drastically.

Many LGBTQ bars reached their peak popularity in the 1970s and 1980s, often meeting full capacity nightly. The 1990s saw a resurgence of interest in queer literature, and, as a result, queer bookstores grew more common in major cities across the country.

By the early 2000s, LGBTQ communities began experiencing unprecedented levels of acceptance and positive visibility within mainstream heteronormative society. This resulted in a large decrease in patronage to LGBTQ establishments that were once essential fixtures in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s.

Over the last several years, many establishments that once catered exclusively to queer individuals have changed hands or closed their doors. Yet there are anomalies to this pattern.

Neighborhoods such as Downtown Los Angeles, where residential populations have grown and attracted a younger demographic, have actually seen a rise in the establishment of new LGBTQ bars and nightclubs.

Explore LGBTQ Los Angeles

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Albert Van Luit Complex

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Metropolitan Community Church

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Arzner-Morgan Residence

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George Cukor Residence

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Bob Mizer Residence and Studio

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Tom of Finland House

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Isherwood-Bachardy Residence

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Club Ripples

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Redz (Former)

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Christopher Street West / L.A. Pride Parade

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