Opening the Archives: Finding LGBTQ+ History in the CBH Collections
When author Hugh Ryan researched his 2019 book When Brooklyn Was Queer, he delved deep into the archives at the Center for Brooklyn History. Queer history is rarely neatly labeled in finding aids or research guides. And so Hugh brought a queer lens to an array of seemingly unrelated collections — from Coney Island postcards to Brooklyn Navy Yard oral histories.
He began by focusing on neighborhoods like Park Slope, Downtown Brooklyn, and DUMBO. Each discovery led to another, as fragments came together to reveal a larger, often hidden, history.
Join Hugh and CBH Archives Manager Dee Bowers for an evening in the Othmer Library, where they’ll revisit the archival journey behind When Brooklyn Was Queer and display some of the original materials Hugh uncovered. Together, they’ll discuss the collections these items came from, offer a behind-the-scenes look at researching queer history in the archives, and guide attendees on how to use the CBH collections themselves.
This program is one in our series of workshops exploring the CBH collections. Please note: space is limited.
Pictured above photo of Ann Moses at the Brooklyn Navy Yard; detail from "The Race" by Edwin Casey
Participants
Hugh Ryan is an award-winning historian, the author of The Women's House of Detention and When Brooklyn Was Queer, and co-host (with Peopermint) of the Queer History 101 Book Club for Allstora. He teaches creative nonfiction in the Bennington Writing Seminars MFA.
Dee Bowers (they/them) has worked as an archivist at Brooklyn Public Library for almost a decade and is currently the Archives Manager at BPL's Center for Brooklyn History. A fourth generation Brooklynite, they are devoted to making the borough’s history accessible for all.
