New York City, NY, USA
A museum, a library, and a community center all dedicated to lesbian history and culture. The mission of the Lesbian Herstory Archives is to accumulate and preserve information regarding lesbian lives and to provide access to this information with no sexual, political, or academic requirements.
In addition to a wide selection of books, journals, and press materials, the archives include historical artifacts and personal belongings, such as diaries, videos, posters, photographs, and clothes. The archives also host various exhibits and special events.
After separating from the Gay Academic Union (GAU), Joan Nestle, Deborah Edel, and other women established an organization that focuses on lesbian culture, and so in 1974, the Lesbian Herstory Archives was founded.
Throughout the years, the archives expanded, more women joined the organization and donated their personal materials. This is the world’s largest selection of materials made by and about lesbians and their communities, and currently, the archives include about 11,000 books, 1,300 periodical titles, historical items, and photographs. Read more...
Seneca Falls, NY, USA
The first Women’s Rights Convention held on July 19-20, 1848 in Seneca Falls, New York. 300 women and men discussed the civil, social, and religious rights of women, and presented a Declaration of Sentiments that became the foundation for the campaign for equal treatment for women in the US.
The Women’s Rights National Historical Park consists a visitor center as well as a cultural and education center, housing the Suffrage Press Print-shop and the iconic statue of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Frederick Douglass, Lucretia Mott, and other attendees of the 1848 Women’s Rights Convention.
At the museum, the visitors can learn about the history of the movement, especially its roots in the first convention at Seneca Falls. Also, there are temporary exhibits, lecture series, and special events, such as outdoor movie nights and performances.
You can take the automobile route of the ‘Votes for Women History Trail’ which links four historical properties related to the establishment of women’s suffrage: the Wesleyan Methodist Church, where the Seneca Falls Convention was held; The Elizabeth Cady Stanton House; The Richard Hunt House; and the restored home of Thomas and Mary Ann M’Clintock, which in it the first convention was planned. The house contains exhibits about the family’s Quaker faith and their belief in women’s rights and anti-slavery. Read more...
