LGBT Oral History Summaries

Number of Pages
120
Date
2018

Since August 2012 the LGBT History Project of the LGBT Center of Central PA has actively collected stories of LGBT history in central PA as told by those who lived them. This growing collection of oral history interviews is housed by the Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections. The attached PDF file contains summaries of each completed interview. To access the full video/audio file or transcription of an interview, contact archives@dickinson.edu or 717-245-1399.

Year
Time Period
Origin
Created by Dickinson Archives and Special Collections Staff
Collection
Location
LGBT Oral History

LGBT History Project: LGBT-102 Central PA Womyn's Chorus Collection

Number of Pages
4
Date
1998-2022

The Central PA Womyn’s Chorus is an all-women’s chorus group that performs concerts throughout the Central Pennsylvania region. Founded in 1994, the chorus made its debut at the Pride Festival of Central PA in Harrisburg. The chorus continues to perform concerts throughout the area which raise awareness about feminist and LGBTQ+ issues.

This collection contains eight series: Concert Programs; Concert Flyers; General Publicity; Gala Choruses VIIE Festival International, Montreal, Canada 2004; Articles; Miscellaneous; Posters; and Artifacts.

Concert Programs features an assortment of programs from the chorus group’s concerts between 1998 and 2022. Concert Flyers includes a series of flyers promoting the chorus group’s concerts between 2014 and 2019. General Publicity includes inserts, a postcard, and a membership brochure to raise awareness about the chorus group. The Gala Choruses VIIE Festival International, Montreal, Canada 2004 includes a booklet and a program from the festival at which the group performed. Articles features news stories documenting the work of the chorus group in the community. Miscellaneous includes music lyrics, notes, and a music catalog used by members of the chorus group. Posters features an assortment of the chorus group’s promotional concert posters. Artifacts include a chorus group polo shirt and t-shirt.

General Subjects
Year
Origin
Gift of Mary Nancarrow
Location
LGBT-102 Central PA Womyn's Chorus Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-071 Anonymous Collection

Number of Pages
1
Date
1976 - 2010

This collection contains newspaper articles collected by a Central PA resident from The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Washington Blade, and The Washington Post that focus on national LGBTQ+ history in the Washington D.C. area.

General Subjects
Origin
Gift of Anonymous
Location
LGBT-071 Anonymous Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-090 Unidentified Donor Collection

Number of Pages
1
Date
1983 - 1999

This collection was donated by an unidentified donor during a LGBT History Roadshow event in Harrisburg in October of 2019. It includes a t-shirt, a trophy, 4 buttons, and 1 wooden nickel.

Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Unidentified Donor
Location
LGBT-090 Unidentified Donor Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-096 Alberta Hamm Collection

Number of Pages
4
Date
2000 - 2007, 2019

Alberta Hamm was born April 1, 1941 and assigned male at birth. After high school, Hamm entered the seminary for a short time before ultimately enrolling in the Army. She was stationed at Fort Dix, NJ and served 13 months in Korea. After being discharged in 1961, Hamm entered sales, owning her own business for a time, and working for Montgomery Ward department store starting in 1979 selling appliances throughout stores in Pennsylvanian for the next 20 years. From a young age Hamm knew she was different. She started to transition in 1995 and after retiring in 1999, had transition surgery in 2001 at the age of 60. She also enrolled in Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC) in 2000, where she pursued a degree in social services. While at HACC, she served as president of the campus LGBTQ+ organization, student senator, and in 2002 became the first transgender individual in the nation to become student body president of a collegiate student government. She served in this position from Spring 2002 to Spring 2004. After Hamm graduated, she worked for the Center for Independent Living, and stayed active with local LGBT+ organizations like TransCentral PA and Common Roads. Hamm passed away in October 2019 at the age of 78.

People
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Anonymous
Collection
Location
LGBT-096 Alberta Hamm Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-094 Pedro Zagitt Collection

Number of Pages
1
Date
2019

The Non-Straight Motorist Green-Book was created by Pedro Zagitt for an exhibit at the Susquehanna Art Museum. After visiting the Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections to explore the LGBT History Project, Zagitt was inspired by the Gaia’s Guide 1976 by Sandy Horn, one of the first travel guides for non-heterosexual/non-cisgendered people in the pre-internet era. The form of the guide is based on the Motorist Green Book created by Harlem postman Victor Green in 1936, and the first travel guide for Black Americans during the time of segregation. This publication is one of two copies that Zagitt created.

People
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Pedro Zagitt
Collection
Location
LGBT-094 Pedro Zagitt Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-092 Richard Malmsheimer Collection

Number of Pages
1
Date
1993 - 1997

This collection contains 4 t-shirts: two from local AIDSWalks held in Harrisburg, PA by local AIDS organizations, SCAAN and AIDS Community Alliance; one from the 1993 March on Washington held in Washington, D.C.; and one created for the Dan Miller Legal Defense Fund.

General Subjects
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Richard Malmsheimer
Location
LGBT-092 Richard Malmsheimer Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-089 Walter J. Lear Collection

Number of Pages
5
Date
1976 - 2008. 2010. 2018

Born on May 4, 1923, in Brooklyn, NY, Walter J. Lear was a physician and activist for healthcare reform and LGBTQ+ rights. He received his B.S. from Harvard in 1943, his M.D. from Long Island College of Medicine in 1946, and his M.S. in Hospital Administration from Columbia University School of Public Health in 1948. Lear came out in January of 1976 in the first issues of the Philadelphia Gay News.

Lear held many public health positions in Pennsylvania including, but not limited to, Deputy City Health Commissioner for Philadelphia (1964), State Regional Health Commissioner (1971), and acting executive director of Philadelphia General Hospital. He also founded the Institute of Social Medicine and Community Health (circa 1975) and was one of the four founders of the Maternity Care Coalition in Philadelphia (1980).

As an activist, Lear’s dedication to healthcare and LGBTQ+ rights intersected. His activism included, but is not limited to: Chairperson to the Gay Public Health Workers Caucus of the American Public Health Association (1975-1978); Board of Directors member for the Gay Community Center of Philadelphia, now the William Way Center, (1975-1991); PA State Health Department delegate to the Governor’s Council for Sexual Minorities (1976-1979); co-founder of the Mazzoni Center in Philadelphia (1979); co-founder the Philadelphia AIDS Task Force (1982); and the first openly gay member of the Philadelphia Human Relations Commission (1984-1988).

Lear passed away in 2010.

The contents of this collection are organized into six series: Context of Collection, Correspondence, Photographs, Scholarship, Recognition Events, and Miscellaneous. For more materials related to Walter J. Lear, please see:

Walter J. Lear papers, 1975-1996, John J. Wilcox, Jr. LGBT Archives, William Way LGBT Community Center.

Walter Lear Collection, 1944 – 1963, Joan E. Lynaugh Archives and Special Collections, Barbara Bates Center for the Study of The History of Nursing, University of Pennsylvania.

People
Year
Origin
Gift of John Barns
Collection
Location
LGBT-089 Walter J. Lear Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-037 John Folby Collection

Number of Pages
15
Date
1980 - 2009

John Folby was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The eldest of five children, Folby was raised in a “very strict Roman Catholic, Irish-Italian family.” At age twenty-five, he relocated to Harrisburg with his partner. Shortly after moving to Harrisburg, Folby became heavily involved in the local gay community, beginning with his work on the Harrisburg Gay Switchboard. He also joined a group for gay Catholics, Dignity/Central PA, which better integrated him into the gay community with trips to New York City for the annual Gay Pride parade and introductions to the gay bar scene in Harrisburg.

With the influx of HIV/AIDS in the gay community, Folby began his twenty-five-year career with the Department of Welfare where he ran the Special Pharmaceutical Benefits Program (SPBP), Pennsylvania’s version of an AIDS Drug Assistance program for people living with HIV/AIDS. Folby, with the help of his supervisor, was able to parlay this civil servant position into one of advocacy. Due to lack of government funding, Folby was frequently forced to think creatively and economically to promote HIV/AIDS awareness and get the word out about HIV/AIDS medications, such as AZT. Folby became an advocate inside the system.

This collection contains the personal and governmental activism of John Folby. Items represent local, state, national, and international HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention.

Topics
People
Year
Origin
Gift of John Folby
Collection
Location
LGBT-037 John Folby Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-088 TransCentral PA Collection

Number of Pages
6
Date
2007 - 2019

TransCentral PA is a nonprofit 501c3 organization which serves the transgender, non-binary, and gender nonconforming community in central Pennsylvania. It was originally formed in 1989 as the Lower Susquehanna Valley chapter of the national trans organization, Renaissance Education Association. The group separated from the Renaissance in 2006. This collection contains administrative materials and monthly newsletters from 2007-2021.

Organizations
General Subjects
Year
Origin
Downloaded from TransCentral PA website by Malinda Triller-Doran and Sarah Wakefield
Location
LGBT-088 TransCentral PA Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-064 Jan Brittan Collection

Number of Pages
6
Date
1971 - 1994
Jan Brittan graduated from Dickinson College in 1971. This collection contains LGBTQ+ periodicals and articles. Brittan also donated books, which are listed in a separate PDF Appendix.
People
Year
Origin
Gift of Jan Brittan
Collection
Location
LGBT-064 Jan Brittan Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-060 Carlisle Anti-Discrimination Ordinance Collection

Number of Pages
4
Date
2016 - 2017

The Carlisle Anti-Discrimination Ordinance, also known as the Borough of Carlisle Human Relations Ordinance, was passed in December 2016. This ordinance established a Human Relations Commission and protection of LGBTQ+ community in the Borough, specifically when it comes to sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.

The majority of materials in this collection were collected by Malinda Triller-Doran, Special Collections Librarian for Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections in Carlisle, PA. Items include drafts of the ordinance and resolutions, newspaper coverage of the debate, and community responses.

General Subjects
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Malinda Triller-Doran and Sean Crampsie
Location
LGBT-060 Carlisle Anti-Discrimination Ordinance Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-033 Jon Johnson & Charles Maser Collection

Number of Pages
3
Date
1928 - 2015; Bulk Dates 1970 - 1996

Johnson and Maser met in 1975 through a mutual friend. As a couple, they saw how AIDS was affecting their community and became active in local AIDS Awareness organizations, the Lancaster AIDS Project, and the Betty Finney House, which helped raise awareness and support people with AIDS.

This collection contains newspaper clippings, which document coverage of issues related to LGBT rights and activism in the LNP (Lancaster, PA) newspaper in summer 2015; a program for the art exhibit “Men and Other Abstractions” created by Johnson; posters that address civil rights and the ban on military service for gays and lesbians; buttons that feature various advocacy efforts; and matchbooks from hotels, bars, clubs, and restaurants in Pennsylvania and cities across the United States.

Topics
General Subjects
Year
Origin
Gift of Jon Johnson & Charles Maser
Location
LGBT-033 Jon Johnson & Charles Maser

LGBT History Project: LGBT-032 Lindsay Snowden Collection

Number of Pages
2
Date
2007 - 2014

Lindsay Snowden was born in Pittsburgh on March 15, 1976. Lindsay joined the military at 17 and was an army nurse for nine years. After the military Lindsay stayed in nursing, while also becoming an entrepreneur. Lindsay worked on many projects in the Central PA area, which included: forming the first all-black drag king troupe in Central PA, House of Gaines; co-founding and editing STUDS Magazine; and running the Central PA Vipers, a women’s semi-professional full contact football team.

This collection contains materials related to STUDS Magazine and the Central PA Viper’s all-female football team. There is also a flyer advertising Voyce Mail, a spoken word CD created by Shaashawn Dial and produced by Lindsay Snowden, and two collections of poetry books written by Shaashawn Dial.

General Subjects
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Lindsay Snowden
Collection
Location
LGBT-032 Lindsay Snowden Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-091 Adler Health Services Collection

Number of Pages
2
Date
2013

Originally called AIDS Community Alliance, Adler Health Services aims to improve the health and wellness of individuals living with HIV/AIDS as well the larger LGBTQ+ communities in South Central PA. This collection contains advertisement material for Alder Health Services.

Organizations
General Subjects
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Malinda Triller-Doran
Location
LGBT-091 Adler Health Services

LGBT History Project: LGBT-020 Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) of Central PA Collection

Number of Pages
1
Date
2013

Parents, Families, & Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) is the first and largest support organization for LGBTQ+ people, their parents and families, and allies through peer support, education, and advocacy. This collection contains material from the Central PA Chapter of PFLAG.

Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Malinda Triller-Doran
Location
LGBT-020 Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) of Central PA Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-021 LGBT Center of Central PA Collection

Number of Pages
11
Date
1990 - present

The LGBT Center of Central PA, housed in Harrisburg, PA, provides services, programs, and community space for the LGBT community in the region. These materials represent these initiatives, including the Common Roads program for youth and young adults, its predecessor BiGLYAH, and FAB (Fall Achievement Benefit). This collection also contains materials regarding the founding of the Center, publications produced by the Center and other regional LGBT initiatives (such as Central Alternative, Out and About in Central PA, and the @ The Center newsletter), news clippings regarding local LGBT issues, and other documentation of LGBT organizations and programming in Central PA.

Year
Origin
Gift of LGBT Center of Central PA
Location
LGBT-021 LGBT Center of Central PA Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-087 Curtis Royer Collection

Number of Pages
1
Date
circa 2018
This collection contains materials on Jess King, a gay-friendly candidate for the US Congress in Pennsylvania 11th District during the 2018 Congressional Election.
General Subjects
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Curtis Royer
Collection
Location
LGBT-087 Curtis Royer Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-083 Cindy Mitzel Collection

Number of Pages
2
Date
1991, 1993, 2018

Cindy Lou Mitzel was born in April 1942 in York County, PA. Growing up Mitzel knew that she felt attraction towards women, however she married a man after graduating from high school and they had three children. Mitzel has been involved in the National Organization for Women [NOW]; the Lavender Letter newsletter; the Lesbian Alliance; the Central Pennsylvania Women’s Chorus; and York Support, later known as York Area Lambda, among other women’s and gay rights activist organizations.

These documents relate to Mitzel’s involvement in York Area Lambda, originally known as York Support. The collection consists primarily of news clippings related to efforts to hold a Gay Pride Week celebration in York, Pa in summer 1991.

People
Places
General Subjects
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Cindy Mitzel
Collection
Location
LGBT-083 Cindy Mitzel Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-082 Sally Meiser Collection

Number of Pages
1
Date
1987

This collection contains a poster for the Second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, October 11, 1987.

People
General Subjects
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Sally Meiser
Collection
Location
LGBT-082 Sally Meiser Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-076 David Klinepeter Collection

Number of Pages
4
Date
1993 - 1997

David Klinepeter was born April 26, 1926 in the Harrisburg, PA area. He married Gloria Klinepeter in 1949 and with whom he had four children. His youngest son, Daniel, was diagnosed with HIV and later died of AIDS-¬related complications in May of 1993. After Daniel’s passing, both David and Gloria became active in The Names Project AIDS Memorial Quilt. Gloria helped to create panels for her son, as well as others who died of AIDS-¬related complications, and they both participated in educational outreach surrounding HIV/AIDS.

This collection documents the involvement of Klinepeter and his wife in The Names Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, and the overall AIDS crisis. This collection contains 6 series: General Information, Memorial Programs, Posters, Media, Artifacts, and Books.

Organizations
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of David Klinepeter
Location
LGBT-076 David Klinepeter

LGBT History Project: LGBT-079 Frank Taylor Collection

Number of Pages
1
Date
circa 1978

This collection contains a t-shirt from La Rose Rogue, an LGBTQ+ bar in Harrisburg, PA. La Rose Rogue was the final LGBTQ+ bar iteration at the 400 North 2nd Street location in Harrisburg, opened in 1978 by John Koch, and was open until 1990.

People
General Subjects
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Frank Taylor
Collection
Location
LGBT-079 Frank Taylor Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-078 York City Anti-Discrimination Ordinance Collection

Number of Pages
1
Date
1993

This collection contains citizen correspondence requesting that the inclusion of “sexual orientation” in the City of York’s non-discrimination ordinance be put on the ballot for a public referendum. The correspondence dates from February 1993 and is composed in large part of form letters. The City of York passed an anti-discrimination ordinance protecting sexual orientation in 1998.

Places
General Subjects
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Barry Loveland
Location
LGBT-078 York City Anti-Discrimination Ordinance

LGBT History Project: LGBT-016 Gary O'Leary Collection

Number of Pages
1
Date
circa 1985, 1991

This collection contains a 1991 Gay and Lesbian Guide to Central PA from the Gay and Lesbian Switchboard of Harrisburg (GLSH) and a Gay Trivia Game. O’Leary also donated a run of The Advocate magazine, from 1985 – 1991, which is housed in the Dickinson College Archives and Special Collection periodicals.

General Subjects
Year
Time Period
Origin
Gift of Gary O'Leary
Collection
Location
LGBT-016 Gary O'Leary Collection

LGBT History Project: LGBT-015 John R. Barns Collection

Number of Pages
9
Date
1946, 1970 - 2017

John Barns was born in Perry County, PA. He graduated from Greenwood High School in 1960 and then joined the Pennsylvania National Guard during the Vietnam War, where he was in the armored tank division. After discharging from the military, Barns worked for the State in the Department of Labor and Industry and The Department of Health. He was a state employee for 30 years. Barns was a member of Dignity/Central PA, a Roman Catholic based organization that was a place for LGBTQ+ community members of any religious background to be together in community; and a part of the Gay Switchboard of Harrisburg, a telephone service that gave information, referrals, and supportive counseling to members of the local LGBTQ+ community.

This collection contains 6 series: Newspaper and Magazine Clippings; Dignity/Central PA; Cards and Postcards; Montreal, Quebec, Canada LGBTQ+ Information; Miscellaneous; and Artifacts.

Topics
Year
Origin
Gift of John R. Barns
Collection
Location
LGBT-015 John R. Barns Collection