Seeking Stories of Queer California: A Hidden Histories Online Exhibit Main Menu Introduction Galleries A guide to each of the online galleries in this digital exhibit, grouped by topic or theme. Arts Asian & AAPI LGBTQ+ people Bisexual People Black LGBTQ+ People Communities Defying Expectations Gay men HIV/AIDS Latino/a/x LGBTQ+ people LGBTQ+ Activism LGBTQ+ Discrimination LGBTQ+ Life in California Marriage and Families Politics Pride Religion and Spirituality Transgender People

Lesbians

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Lesbians are women and gender non-conforming people who identify as lesbians and are romantically and/or sexually attracted to other women. Lesbians form an integral part of the LGBTQ+ community, contributing distinctive elements to queer culture. While lesbian identities and relationships have existed across cultures and centuries, the visibility and recognition of their history have often been marginalized, erased, or distorted by narratives that focus on heteronormativity and patriarchy. As such, lesbian history is intertwined with broader movements for women's rights, gender equality, and social justice.

Collection Information

For more information on the materials in this gallery, see their holding institutions.

California Historical Society
Hey Young Lesbians flyer

California History Section, California State Library
Gay & Lesbian L.A. History map

Center for the Study of Political Graphics
3a Marcha Lésbica
Lesbian Dyke March poster
Lesbian Libertys
Lesbian Visibility Week poster

Claremont Colleges Special Collections & Archives
Black Lesbian Newsletter

Gerth Archives & Special Collections at California State University, Dominguez Hills
Aché: A Journal for Black Lesbians
Gay Sunshine

Historical Society of Long Beach
First Ladies Memorial Dance Marathon button
Gerrie Schipske for State Assembly button
Melissa Etheridge Gold Record
Profile of Ellen Ward
Profile of Vanessa Romain

The Huntington Library
Laura Aguilar series Plush Pony
Zoë Akins
Eloise Klein Healy, “There Are No Words for the Sexual Acts of Lesbians"
Connie Samaras series Edge of Twilight
Florence Yoch

Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Art & Sciences
The Children's Hour
Dracula's Daughter
The Killing of Sister George
Pandora's Box
Thirteen Women
The Word is Out

The Outwords Archive
Judy Abdo Oral History
Gwenn Craig Oral History

Philosophical Research Society
Marie Corelli and Bertha Vyer
Portrait of Marie Corelli

Santa Monica Public Library
Sheila Kuehl and Judy Abdo

University of California Riverside Special Collections & University Archives
Civil Rights for Lesbians and Gay Men: A Reference Manual for City and County Officials

The Workman & Temple Family Homestead Museum
Two women embracing and kissing

This page has paths:

  1. Seeking Stories in Queer California Beth McDonald

This page has tags:

  1. Galleries Beth McDonald

Contents of this tag:

  1. Aché: A Journal for Black Lesbians, Vol. 1, no. 1, February 1989
  2. Portrait of Marie Corelli, 1908
  3. A celebration of adult Bar and Bat Mitvahs at Congregation Kol Ami, 2000
  4. The Killing of Sister George
  5. Lesbian Visibility Week poster, 1990
  6. Lesbian Wedding, 1987
  7. Lesbian parents and their children at the March on Washington, 1993
  8. 3a Marcha Lésbica, 2006
  9. Sheila Kuehl for Supervisor, circa 2014
  10. Gold record for "Melissa Etheridge" album by Melissa Etheridge, 1988
  11. Gwenn Craig Outwords profile
  12. Poster for Carolyn Weathers : shitkickers & other Texas stories
  13. Marie Corelli and Bertha Vyer, 1921
  14. Marie Cartier graduation celebration, 2010
  15. Aché: A Journal for Lesbians of African Descent, Vol. 3, no. 1, February/March 1991
  16. Robert Arthur, Ivy Bottini, Quentin Crisp, Morris Kight, and Patricia Nell Warren, 1994
  17. Sheila Kuehl (L) and Judy Abdo (R), December 14, 1997
  18. The Children's Hour, 1961
  19. Lesbian Libertys, 2009
  20. Gay Sunshine, undated
  21. Laura Aguilar, #20, from the series Plush Pony, 1992
  22. Willa Cather, letter to Zoë Akins, May 4, 1918
  23. Two women embracing and kissing, 1923
  24. Laura Aguilar, #6, from the series Plush Pony, 1992
  25. Judy Abdo Outwords profile
  26. The Word is Out, 1977
  27. Lesbian Dyke March poster, 1996
  28. First Ladies Memorial Dance Marathon button, 1978
  29. Photograph of Florence Yoch and her partner Lucile Council, circa 1940
  30. Cover of manual for "Civil Rights for Lesbians and Gay Men: A Reference Manual for City and County Officials", 1990
  31. Dracula's Daughter, circa 1936
  32. Thirteen Women, 1932
  33. Aché: A Journal for Black Lesbians, Vol. 2, no. 6, November/December 1990
  34. Gerrie Schipske for State Assembly button, 1996
  35. Florence Yoch, landscape design, “A Hillside Garden for Mr. George Cukor, West Hollywood,” 1936
  36. Hey Young Lesbians, undated
  37. Eloise Klein Healy, typescript draft of poem, “There Are No Words for the Sexual Acts of Lesbians,” circa 1984
  38. Black Lesbian Newsletter, December 1982
  39. Aché: A Journal for Black Lesbians, Vol. 1, no. 2, March 1989
  40. Profile of Ellen Ward, 2023
  41. Connie Samaras, #11 from the series Edge of Twilight, 2013
  42. Home, circa 1982
  43. Profile of Vanessa Romain, 2023
  44. Connie Samaras, #16 from the series Edge of Twilight, 2013
  45. Pandora's Box, 1929
  46. Gay & Lesbian L.A. history map, 2000
  47. Tribal Connexions: A Celebration of 2 Years of Aché, 1991
  48. Laura Aguilar, #19, from the series Plush Pony, 1992
  49. Unattributed photograph of Zoe Akins, circa 1930s