The Archive of American LGBTQ Political and Legal History, the first of its kind in the United States, resides in the Special Collections Research Center at William & Mary. Donated by Charles Francis, Pate Felts MBA '78 and former W&M Rector Jeff Trammell '73, this archive documents and illuminates the political and legal triumphs and challenges of the LGBTQ community in the U.S. It emphasizes the battles for interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships within Virginia and beyond. The collections seek to showcase legislation, activism and more pertaining to discrimination and acceptance of the LGBTQ community locally, regionally and nationally. Established in memory of gay historian John Boswell ’69, the archive includes materials from the tenure of Trammell, who served as the first openly gay board chair of a major public university, and the Mattachine Society of Washington, D.C.
How to Contribute
We are looking to collect the following types of materials from activists, politicians, civil servants and others who have fought politically and legally for the rights of the LGBTQ community:
We are looking for:
- Correspondence and email
- Diaries and journals
- Legal records
- FOIA records
- Political campaign files
- Newsletters, posters, broadsides, fliers, brochures, pamphlets
- Oral histories/interviews
- Original audio-visual recordings
- Websites
We do not need:
- Photocopies or digital images of materials held at other libraries or archives
- Whole copies of newspapers and magazines
- Books and journals readily available everywhere
Questions?
For more information or to inquire about donating materials, please contact us at spcoll@wm.edu or 757-221-3090.