LGBTQ+ Youth & Adult Resources: History

The mission of The History Project is to document and preserve the history of Boston's LGBT community, and to share that information with the public.

For a more extensive look at Boston's LGBTQ history in the early 1970s, visit the Boston Globe article: "How Boston Powered the Gay Rights Movement."

1947 - Sylvia Sidney

Sylvia Sidney, Boston's most infamous drag queen, performs onstage circa 1947 at the age of 17, long before the explosion of the gay rights movement in the '70s. Sylvia Sidney, or Sidney Sushman, was active in Boston's gay nightlife scene for five decades.

Photo Credit: The History Project

1970 - First Liberation Dance

The Student Homophile League holds their first Liberation Dance at the Harvard Free University in Lawrence Hall, an abandoned building scheduled for demolition.

Photo credit: The History Project

1970 - Lesbian Rights Rally

Women participate in a lesbian rights rally at the Boston Commons Parkman Bandstand.

Photo Credit: Spencer Grant, the Spencer Grant Collection at Boston Public Library

1975 - Back Bay Parade

A gay pride parade is held in Back Bay.

Photo Credit: Spencer Grant, Spencer Grant Collection at Boston Public Library

1975 - Back Bay Parade

Banners are held at the Back Bay gay pride parade, demanding legal equality.

Photo Credit: Spencer Grant, Spencer Grant Collection at Boston Public Library

1975 - Back Bay Parade

The lesbian contingent at the Back Bay gay pride parade display a banner quoting Mao Zedong: "Women hold up half the sky."

Photo Credit: Spencer Grant, Spencer Grant Collection at Boston Public Library

1976 - Barney Frank Speaks Out

Prominent gay politician Barney Frank  addresses the crowd at a gay pride rally at the Parkman Bandstand in the Boston Commons.

Photo Credit: Spencer Grant, Spencer Grant Collection at Boston Public Library

1976 - Gay Unity is Gay Strength

"Gay Unity is Gay Strength" is the theme for the 1976 Gay Pride Parade at Copley Square.

Photo Credit: The Boston Globe, 'Wicked Proud: How Boston Has Been Celebrating Gay Pride for 45 Years'

1977 - Commonwealth Ave Parade

A gay pride parade marches on Commonwealth Ave.

Photo Credit: Spencer Grant, Spencer Grant Collection at Boston Public Library

1977 - Copley Square Rally

Female impersonators pose as they carry a gay pride sign at a rally held in Copley Square.

Photo Credit: Spencer Grant, Spencer Grant Collection at Boston Public Library

1977 - Elaine Noble

Elaine Noble, the first openly gay state representative in the nation, speaks at a 1977 gay rights rally at the Boston Common.

Photo Credit: Stan Grossfeld, Boston Globe, "How Boston Powered the Gay Rights Movement"

1978 - Dignity/Boston at Boston Pride

Dignity/Boston, an organization for GLBT Catholics formed during the Gay Liberation movement that followed the Stonewall Riots, bears signs during the 1978 Gay Pride March.

Photo Credit: Ken Rall, The History Project

1978 - Black and White Men Together Protest

Men of All Colors Together, the Boston chapter of the National Association of Black and White Men Together, declares "Lesbians and Gays Say No to Nazis and the Klan" in protest of racial and societal inequalities.

Photo Credit: The History Project

1982 - It's a Nice Day to Be Out

"It's a Nice Day to Be Out" is the theme for the 1982 Gay Pride Parade.

Photo Credit: The Boston Globe, 'Wicked Proud: How Boston Has Been Celebrating Gay Pride for 45 Years'

1983 - The Batucada Belles

The Batacuda Belles, an all-women percussion troupe that plays the Brazilian-inspired batucada samba, performs in the 1983 Boston Pride March.

Photo Credit: Susan Bernstein, The History Project

1983 - AIDS Action Committee

Members of the AIDS Action Committee, the oldest and largest community-based health organization, march for a rally titled "Stepping Out with Pride."

Photo Credit: The Boston Globe, 'Wicked Proud: How Boston Has Been Celebrating Gay Pride for 45 Years'

1985 - How Many More Must Die?

At the 1985 Gay Pride Parade, The AIDS Action Committee hold a banner and signs dating the deaths of community members.

Photo Credit: Janet Knott, The Boston Globe

1987 - NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt

The co-chair of Men of All Colors Together, George Nolley, poses with a piece of the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, commemorating member Michael O'Leary.

Photo Credit: Laura Wulf, The History Project

1987 - Out for Good

A couple kiss at the 1987 "Out for Good" Pride Parade.

Photo Credit: Tom Herde, The Boston Globe

1988 - Rightfully Proud

Marchers enter the Boston Common for the 1988 parade, themed "Rightfully Proud."

Photo Credit: Suzanne Kreiter, The Boston Globe

1989 - A Generation of Pride

Celebrators flood Beacon Street for the 1989 parade theme: "A Generation of Pride."

Photo Credit: Wendy Maeda, The Boston Globe

1990 - Lesbianas Latinas at Boston Pride

Members of Lesbianas Latinas (LESLA), an organization formed in 1986, march with a LESLA banner on Charles Street in Beacon Hill during the 1990 Boston Pride march.

Photo Credit: Susan Fleischmann, The History Project

1991 - Club Antorcha

Club Antorcha, originally Latinos Unidos, works to expand the visibility of Latino gay men in Boston with their motto: "Illuminating Our History, Lighting the Present, a Beacon into the Future."

Photo Credit: Susan Fleischmann, The History Project

1991 - Together in Pride

The AIDS Action Committee joins the 1991 "Together in Pride" parade on Beacon Street.

Photo Credit: The Boston Globe, 'Wicked Proud: How Boston Has Been Celebrating Gay Pride for 45 Years'

1993 - Family of Pride

Rainbow balloons are featured in the 1993 "Family of Pride" celebration.

Photo Credit: The Boston Globe, 'Wicked Proud: How Boston Has Been Celebrating Gay Pride for 45 Years'

1996 - Pride Without Borders

Marchers show off their costumes for the "Pride Without Borders" parade.

Photo Credit: Pam Berry, The Boston Globe

Janet Mock

Transgender author and activist

Raven Symone

Lesbian actress, comedian, and singer

Brittney Griner

Lesbian WNBA 
basketball player

Michael Sam

Gay NFL football player

Anderson Cooper

Gay television personality, journalist, and author

Ian McKellan

Gay actor

B.D. Wong

Gay actor

Don Lemon

Gay television personality and journalist

Freddie Mercury

Bisexual singer and songwriter
1946-1991

George Takei

Gay actor, director, and author

Laverne Cox

Transgender actress, producer, and activist

Elliot Fletcher

Transgender actor

Ricky Martin

Gay singer, actor, and author

Rita Mae Brown

Bisexual writer, feminist, and activist

Tracy Chapman

LGB Singer and songwriter

Alice Walker

Bisexual novelist, poet, and political activist

Rachel Maddow

Lesbian political television host and author

Eddie Izzard

Transvestite (self-identified) stand-up comedian and actor

Angel Haze

Pansexual, agender rapper and singer

Ruby Rose

Genderfluid, lesbian actress, model, and DJ

Sappho

Lesbian poet
630-570 BC

Sculpture from Boston Museum of Fine Arts

Sylvia Rivera

Transgender activist
1951-2002

Audre Lorde

Lesbian writer, feminist, and activist
1934-1992

Keith Haring

Gay artist
1958-1990

Josephine Baker

Bisexual vedette, singer, and entertainer
1906-1975

Frida Kahlo

Bisexual artist
1907-1954

Eleanor Roosevelt

Bisexual First Lady
1884-1962

Ma Rainey

Bisexual blues singer
1886-1939

Gore Vidal

Bisexual writer
1925-2012

James Baldwin

Gay writer
1924-1987

Angela Davis

Lesbian political activist, academic scholar, and author

Lorraine Hansberry

Lesbian playwright and writer
1930-1965

Maude Fealy

Lesbian or bisexual silent film star
1883-1971

Eva Le Gallienne

Lesbian stage actress, producer, director, and author
1899-1991