Celebrating Arthur A. Levin on this National Honor Our LGBT + Elders Day
Honor Our LGBT Elders Day is celebrated each year on May 16th. While every day is a good day to pay tribute to those who have paved the way for … Continued
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Tag: LGBT History
Walk Through LGBTQ+ History with Our Civil Rights and Social Justice Map
Every June, New Yorkers and people from around the world gather in our city to celebrate Pride Month and honor the memory of the Stonewall Riots, three nights in 1969 … Continued
Washington Square United Methodist Church: Where Identity and Inclusion Collided
The intersection of religion and identity can be potent, or even combustible, mix. For one Greenwich Village church and its congregation, in the late 1970s they came to a head … Continued
Alvin Baltrop: Photographs of a Dystopian Past
Greenwich Village’s Hudson River piers have always held a certain clandestine fascination for some segment of the public. After an automobile crash caused the elevated West Side Highway to collapse … Continued
Village Preservation Plaques Highlight LGBTQ+ History Throughout Our Neighborhoods
On April 21, Village Preservation joined with the the NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project to honor the city’s oldest gay bar and a pioneering event from the early days of … Continued
Go West! – The Leather & Denim Scene in the Weehawken Street Historic District
The Weehawken Street Historic District (designated May 2, 2006) consists of a small area on three blocks around West, Christopher, and 10th Streets. Although primarily known for its relation to … Continued
The Documents of History: Mattachine Society of New York’s Archival Papers of 1951-1976 at the New York Public Library
As Village Preservation prepares to unveil a plaque commemorating the “Sip-In” at Julius’ Bar on April 21, 1966, one might wonder about the Mattachine Society of New York, which organized … Continued
Stormé DeLarverie: Village Guardian
A self-proclaimed “gay superhero,” Stormé Delarverie (≅ December 24, 1920 – May 24, 2014, Pronouns: she/her in public, he/him in performance) was a drag king, bouncer, and neighborhood activist who … Continued
Local Lesbian Bookstores: Founders of a Feminist Future
Historically, our neighborhoods have hosted many independent and unconventional bookstores. These small institutions have helped define the character of our neighborhoods as a literary capital of the Western world. With … Continued
Taking a Closer Look at “Fortune and Men’s Eyes”
Telling the stories of incarcerated young men in the 1960s, Fortune and Men’s Eyes was a drama written by John Herbert in 1967 to process and analyze his own experience … Continued
A Dominating Narrative: The Mineshaft and BDSM Culture in the Meatpacking District
Notice: The following text contains references to sexual materials and activities appropriate for mature audiences only. Reader discretion is advised. 835 Washington Street has had many past lives. In the … Continued
2021 Village Preservation Public Programs Round-Up
As we close the chapter on yet another wild and successful of year of public programs at Village Preservation, we wanted to take the time to reflect and highlight some … Continued
Greer Lankton: An Artist’s Life in the Village of the Dolls
Greer Lankton (she/her, April 21, 1958 – November 18, 1996) was an East Village-based multidisciplinary artist who worked in illustration, photography, and sculpture. She’s mostly known for creating lifelike paper-mache … Continued
Candy Darling: A Superstar in Her Own Right
Candy Darling (She/Her, November 24, 1944 — March 21, 1974) was a transgender icon and muse for well-known artists and musicians like Andy Warhol and The Velvet Underground. Darling was … Continued
Sylvia Rivera: A Controversial But Powerful and Enduring Activist for LGBTQ+ Rights
Sylvia Rivera (July 2, 1951 – February 19, 2002, She/Her) was a trailblazing advocate for the rights of transgender individuals and LGBTQ+ communities. A vocal opponent of racism and transphobia … Continued
Cary Grant Before He Was Cary Grant, in Greenwich Village
Cary Grant: a name synonymous with Hollywood glamor in the mid-20th century. He tumbled and swanned, he looked equally incredible in a pristine tuxedo and in Katherine Hepburn’s fur-embellished silk … Continued
The Mattachine Society, and the Post-Stonewall Shift
As with any revolution, there was a spark, which lit the fire fed by years of quieter work and struggle which preceded it. Such is certainly the case with the … Continued
Downtown Drag + Performance in the 1990s — the Jillian Jonas Collection
The Village Preservation Image Archive highlights the history of the people and built environment of Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo, as well as New York City in general. … Continued
New Historic Image Collection Explores Downtown Drag + Performance Scene of the 1990s
As we approach LGBTQ+ Pride Weekend, Village Preservation is proud to share with you a wonderful new collection in our historic image archive of donated images from Jillian Jonas chronicling the fiery … Continued
LGBTQ Pride+History Month with Village Preservation
LGBTQ+ Pride and History Month may be in June, but at Village Preservation, we’re working to document, celebrate, and protect the incredibly rich LGBTQ+ history of our neighborhoods, which played … Continued
Jackie Curtis: East Village Superstar, “Pioneer without a Frontier”
“I am not a boy, not a girl, I am not gay, not straight, I am not a drag queen, not a transsexual – I am just me, Jackie.” This … Continued
Remembering the HIV/AIDS Crisis
We’re in the midst of battling a global pandemic, with a federal government which often seems disinterested at best in addressing the situation and unwilling to take the steps necessary … Continued
Legendary LGBTQ Nightlife of Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo
LGBT nightlife in New York has changed drastically throughout the years, with an exodus of sorts to Brooklyn. There have been a multitude of reasons suggested for the decline, including … Continued
LGBT Historic Sites in Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo
June is Pride Month, which makes it an especially exciting time to be in the Village. LGBT history is closely tied with our neighborhood and their culture, and throughout the … Continued
Why Isn’t this Landmarked?: 86 University Place, “Mittelstaedt House”
Part of our blog series Why Isn’t This Landmarked?, where we look at buildings in our area we’re fighting to protect that are worthy of landmark designation, but somehow aren’t landmarked. … Continued
Why Isn’t This Landmarked?: 80 Fifth Avenue
Part of our blog series Why Isn’t This Landmarked?, where we look at buildings in our area we’re fighting to protect that are worthy of landmark designation, but somehow aren’t … Continued
Former Schools of Greenwich Village and the East Village
Now that school is back in session and summer weather is having its last hurrahs, we’re all either living by the bell or remembering the days when we did. So … Continued
The Former Gay Activists Alliance Headquarters at 99 Wooster Street Has At Last Become a Landmark
On June 18, 2019, Village Preservation scored a big victory five years in the making — persuading the City to landmark two more LGBT historic sites: the LGBT Community … Continued
The long road to landmark: How NYC’s Stonewall Inn became a symbol of civil rights
Millions converge in New York City each year in late June to celebrate events which took place in and outside of a Greenwich Village bar in 1969. The Stonewall Riots are not only be memorialized … Continued
The Mob and the Roots of the Stonewall Uprising
On June 24, 1969, the Stonewall Inn was raided by New York City Police, four nights before the infamous raids that sparked the Stonewall Riots. This was not the first … Continued
East Village Building Blocks Tour: the LGBTQ East Village
While the neighboring West Village may have the more well-known sites, the East Village contains a rich assortment of places connected to LGBTQ history, including the homes of noted artists, … Continued
GVHD50 and Stonewall50 – LGBTQ Sites of the Greenwich Village Historic District
This is one in a series of posts marking the 50th anniversary of the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Click here to check out our year-long activities and … Continued
Great Writers and the Greenwich Village Historic District
This is one in a series of posts marking the 50th anniversary of the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Check out our year-long activities and celebrations at gvshp.org/GVHD50. The Greenwich … Continued
Letter to the LPC about Designating The Stonewall Inn
On January 16, 2014, GVSHP sent a letter to the then-chair of the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) Robert Tierney calling for landmark designation of the Stonewall Inn.
Viewers Choice: Top 5 Village Preservation Program Videos of 2018
Each year, Village Preservation hosts more than sixty public programs. They cover our neighborhoods from the western edge of Greenwich Village to the easternmost reaches of the East Village. Topics … Continued
“An Intimate and Unconventional Space:” Caffe Cino
Caffe Cino at 31 Cornelia Street was a community, a haven, the birthplace of countless theatrical careers and movements, and the origin of off-off-Broadway theater. In November 2017, Caffe Cino … Continued
Coming Out, and Going Out, in the Village
October 11th is National Coming Out Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness and visibility of the LGBT community through the process of “coming out,” or identifying one’s LGBT identity … Continued
Beyond the Village and Back: Assyrian Revival on West 30th Street
In 2001, the Landmarks Preservation Commission designated 130 West 30th Street as a Landmark. Designed by the preeminent architect Cass Gilbert in 1927–28, the building was built to accommodate offices, showrooms and manufacturing space for the fur industry.
Beyond the Village and Back: “Becoming Visible” and The Legacy of Stonewall at the NYPL
Our Beyond the Village and Back series takes a look at great landmarks in New York City outside of our neighborhoods, finding the sometimes hidden connection to the Village. Today we … Continued
Bea Arthur Residence: 2018 Regina Kellerman Award Winner
The Bea Arthur Residence for homeless LGBT youth, named for “Golden Girl” Bea Arthur, was born of a partnership between the Cooper Square Committee and the Ali Forney Center. This … Continued
Oral Histories on the Founding of An Artists’ Colony, A Prison Reform Organization, and So Much More
GVSHP has been conducting and sharing oral histories since the mid-1990s. As we look back on two powerhouse oral histories, we’re considering the importance of such documents as “the first … Continued
How LGBT activism led to NYC’s most notorious bank robbery: The real story behind ‘Dog Day Afternoon’
The most notorious bank robbery in New York City history took place on August 22, 1972, during the decidedly dog days of that long hot summer. Immortalized in the film … Continued
The Legacy of the Stonewall Riots
The infamous raid on the Stonewall Inn occurred at 3am on June 28th, 1969, and was followed by five nights of ongoing protests. These events came to be known as the … Continued
LGBT History in All Corners: NoHo
June is Pride Month, an especially exciting time in our neighborhoods. LGBT history is closely tied with the Village and environs, and this month we’re highlighting the LGBT history of the … Continued
LGBT History in All Corners of the Village: East Village
This is the latest post in our Pride Month series, read the first on the West Village here. June is Pride Month, which makes it especially exciting time to be … Continued
LGBT History in All Corners of the Village: The West Village
June is Pride Month, which makes it an especially exciting time to be in the Village. LGBT history is closely tied with the Village and its environs, and throughout the … Continued
Black History Month in the Village: African-American & LGBT Historic Sites
February is Black History Month. We here at GVSHP are celebrating it by highlighting different sites of significance to the African-American community within our neighborhoods. We’re focusing on sites found on … Continued
LGBT History: Not Just West Village Bars
Here at GVSHP we are excited about our recently launched Village Civil Rights & Social Justice Map. With our upcoming LGBT history bar crawl at the end of the month … Continued
GVSHPride: Roundup of LGBTQ Resources and Information
Happy Pride Week! Each June during the week leading up to the Gay Pride March, NYC celebrates Pride Week. Throughout the week, different groups and organizations will host events, throw parties, … Continued