Western History and Genealogy

Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender

The contemporary struggle for GLBT rights may have begun at New York's Stonewall Inn and come of age on San Francisco's Castro Street, but the Coasts have no monopoly on the history of the movement. Colorado was a battleground during the Amendment 2 era in the early 1990s. The Western History/Genealogy Department of the Denver Public Library is proud to house organizational records of Equality Colorado and other pioneering community groups, as well as collections of personal papers of notable gay Coloradans.

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Catalog Book Set

GBLT Archives

• Denver NeVaar - Sister Who Papers, 1981-2010

  Manuscripts and correspondence related to the public access television show titled "Sister Who Presents..."; newspaper articles by Sister Who; newsletter "Sister Who's Perspective;" printouts of website sisterwho.com; and scrapbook pages with notes and color photographs of his travels. Representing Denver NeVaar's personal life are manuscripts with handwritten notes, correspondence, photographs, resumes, and journals. The journals reflect his thoughts on identity and Sister Who. Personal material focuses on his relationships with friends and lovers as well as his search for spirituality. Collection remains open for additional material.
  Call Number: C MSS WH749

• Colorado Aids Project Records, 1979-2005

  The collection documents the growth of the Colorado AIDS Project (CAP) from early 1980s through 2005. Includes broad range of documents from Board of Directors' minutes, Executive Director files, annual reports, fund raising records, financial papers, educational pamphlets, internal office documents. Also contains correspondence and newspaper articles about Julian Rush, Executive Director, prior to his joining Colorado AIDS Project. Audio and visual material includes public service announcements, television news segments, photograph fund raising events.
  Call Number: C MSS WH868

• Dee Farrell Papers, 1986-1993

  Correspondence, newspaper clippings, memorabilia, fliers, brochures, notices pertain to Gay Games II and Gay Games III and marches on Washington in 1987 and 1993 for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Equal Rights.
  Call Number: C MSS WH1183

• Anthony Palange Papers, 1950s-2003

  The collection contains manuscripts of plays, novels, poetry and operas written by Palange. Also included are video and audio tapes; transcripts and legal documents from Palange's lawsuit for censorship against Denver Community Television (DCTV); personal correspondence.
  Call Number: C MSS WH1230

• Colorado Out Spoken and Lambda Report Programs, 1983-2001, 1990-1994

  Videocassettes and audiocassettes
  Call Number: C MSS WH1230

• Ellis McFadden Papers, 1987-2003

  The collection focuses on McFadden's volunteer and philanthropic activities in the Denver gay community; papers comprise correspondence, programs, photographs, memos, pamphlets and newsletters that originated from various gay organizations in Denver, Colorado.
  Call Number: C MSS WH638

• Equality Colorado Records, 1973-2001

  Correspondence, meeting minutes, financial documents, press releases and newspaper clippings comprise the bulk of the collection. The subject files of the collection remain in the original order. Surveys, projects, and research are included, interfiled with the subject files alphabetically. Papers of groups that were precursors of Equality Colorado form a small portion of the collection. Newsletters published by Equality Colorado are included in the collection. Photographs, sample newsletters and articles about and generated by other organizations constitute a portion of the collection.
  Call Number: C MSS WH1787

Cowgirl Becker

Other Colorado GLBT Archive Collections

• History Colorado
  Evans v. Romer (US Supreme Court, 1996), 1990 - present; Metropolitan Church of the Rockies; and AIDS in Colorado, 1981 - present. There is an extensive periodical collection on microfilm, several manuscript collections, and oral history interviews on file; see guide and card catalog for holdings.
• Terry Mangan Library
  The Terry Mangan Library is a community library of approximately 5,000 volumes. Holdings include books, periodicals, and primary source material documenting local gay and lesbian history.