We welcome any questions, thoughts or comments about this subject guide at research@chicagohistory.org.
This guide was created with the help of Rebekkah LaRue, a Library and Information Science student at Dominican University and CHM Spring 2021 intern.
LGBTQIA+ history is a part of Chicago's history, so in addition to these resources, know that books and collections about general Chicago history may also contain information about LGBTQIA+ people. Unfortunately, they (and other non-privileged people) are often not as discussed as they should have been, a concept known as archival silence.
This is just a starting point. While archival silence is a consideration for the Chicago History Museum's research collections, we have significant holdings by and about the city's LGBTQIA+ residents. To find more, please use the subject heading and keyword search tips found on this page.
Explore other collections and resources about LGBTQIA+ history in Chicago and Illinois.
Trans Metadata Collective's "Metadata Best Practices for Trans and Gender Diverse Resources"
Digital Exhibits
Chicago History Museum also has several digital exhibits that center on Black history and feature items from our research collections.
You can also explore our list of online resources about Chicago.
The material in CHM collections may contain offensive language or negative stereotypes reflecting the culture or language of a particular period or place. These items are presented as part of the historical record. The Chicago History Museum has an institution-wide initiative to critically consider the language used to describe people and materials, and we invite you to read more about our related projects.
The following guide includes just a few of the many identity terms that people use. Every individual person will have their own identity terminology that they use and, if knowable, it is important to use the term that an individual identifies with to avoid causing harm.
Library of Congress Subject Headings and Homosaurus
The Chicago History Museum relies on subject headings authorized by the Library of Congress to organize its catalog records. This controlled vocabulary facilitates the uniform access and retrieval of items in libraries and archives worldwide. Researchers can search headings in CHM's online catalog ARCHIE either in the general keyword search, by limiting the "All Fields" to "Subject," or by using the Advanced Search.
In addition to Library of Congress Subject Headings, CHM implemented the use of Homosaurus. Homosaurus is a controlled vocabulary focused on LGBTQIA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual, and others) terminology. While the Library of Congress is considered a standard resource within the library and information science communities, it is often written from the “straight, white, Christian male” perspective. This can lead to an exclusion of certain terminology and slow changes to the canon. Subject headings from Homosaurus were used when there was not a viable or inclusive subject heading from the Library of Congress.
For example, a commonly used subject heading from Homosaurus is “LGBTQ people”. This is often used as an umbrella term to tag resources that discuss various LGBTQIA+ topics and individuals. There is not a Library of Congress subject heading that can be used as an inclusive plurality like “LGBTQ people” or “Queer people”. Instead, LOC defaults to outdated and limiting terminology such as “Gays” or “Sexual minorities”. There are other instances where LOC provides subject headings that are not necessarily wrong but are not the most accepted or preferred terminology, such as the use of “Female impersonators” to mean “Drag queens”. In cases such as this, CHM felt that the terminology found in Homosaurus was a better indicator of the information the resources discuss as well as the communities they represent.
CHM recognizes the limitations of these and other subject headings, noting that names and terms used may be inadequate or misleading. Furthermore, some headings are predicated on assumptions that might contradict an individual’s sense of identity and/or a researcher’s intentions. While CHM librarians are working to mitigate harmful language, these subject headings currently provide a way to isolate records within ARCHIE.
Headings that appear frequently in ARCHIE include:
| Gay men |
| Lesbians |
| LGBTQ people |
| LGBTQ (as either an adjective or modifier to a broader term) |
| Sexual orientation |
| Transgender people |
Note: This list is not comprehensive, but meant instead as a suggested starting point.
Neighborhoods
In Chicago, as in other cities, various LGBTQIA+ communities and safe spaces have grown in specific geographic areas. We often think of these places in terms of their colloquial neighborhood names, like Boystown. But, these neighborhoods often have shifting boundaries and names, so they are hard to pin down throughout time. Neighborhood names often show up in keyword searches, but CHM uses the city-sanctioned and numbered community area names in its subject headings, so we always suggest searching by those as well. The City of Chicago website contains an Official Community Area map, where you can match an address or intersection to a Community Area. For instance, today's Boystown borders are within the community areas of Lakeview (6), so if you were searching for materials about Boystown, in addition to a general keyword search for "Boystown," you should also do a subject search for the community area names listed.
Keywords
There is a long history of white, wealthy, male and Christian supremacy in official controlled vocabularies like Library of Congress, and often subjects, people and events associated with marginalized groups are left out of these official lists. We try to mitigate this in a few ways through our critical cataloging efforts. One is by creating our own local headings, and another is making sure people and events are named in the title or description so that you can still find them when using our general default search. If you are not finding resources using general topics, try the general search using the people, places, or events you have in mind, in addition to the identity terms listed below.
Sex and gender are often treated interchangeably, however, they are two very separate entities. Below are brief definitions highlighting the differences between sex and gender and the corresponding identity terminology. Understanding these nuances is an important first step for any researcher.
The following terminology can be used when searching ARCHIE for materials, and may also be prevalent in the historic materials themselves.
| Terminology | Definition |
| Sex | A combination of bodily characteristics including chromosomes, hormones, internal and external reproductive organs, and secondary sex characteristics. As a result, there are many more sexes than just male and female, just like there are many more genders than just male and female, as well. (x) |
| Gender | Often expressed in terms of masculinity and femininity, gender is largely culturally determined and is assumed from the sex assigned at birth. (x) |
| Sexual Orientation | The desire one has for emotional, romantic, and/or sexual relationships with others based on their gender expression, gender identity, and/or sex. (x) |
| Gender Expression | The external manifestations of gender, expressed through such things as names, pronouns, clothing, haircuts, behavior, voice, body characteristics, and more. (x) |
| Gender Identity | One’s internal, deeply held sense of gender. Some people identify completely with the gender they were assigned at birth (usually male or female), while others may identify with only a part of that gender, or not at all. Some people identify with another gender entirely. Unlike gender expression, gender identity is not visible to others. (x) |
Language is an ever-evolving landscape. At CHM, we try to always be mindful of how language, specifically identity terminology, changes and evolves. Below is a list of LGBTQIA+ terminology that has fallen out of use in the common vernacular but may still be present in historic research materials.
|
Identity Term |
Definition |
Issues |
|---|---|---|
|
Homosexuality, Lesbianism |
A medical term used to describe someone who has a romantic and/or sexual orientation towards someone of the same gender. The terms "gay" and "lesbian" are now more generally used. |
|
|
Sexual Minority |
A term used to describe people whose sexual identity, orientation, or practices differ from the majority of the surrounding society (i.e., heterosexual, cisgender, vanilla) |
|
|
Transvestite |
An outdated term for "crossdresser." Someone who wears clothes associated with a different gender. This activity is a form of gender expression and is not always done for entertainment purposes. Many crossdressers may not wish to present as a different gender all of the time. |
|
|
Transsexual |
Someone who has undergone, or wishes to undergo, gender affirmation surgery (previously sex reassignment surgery). This is an older term that originated in the medical and psychological communities. Many transgender people do not identify as transsexual, although the term is preferred by some. |
|
|
Hermaphrodite |
A term used in reproductive biology to describe an organism that has both male and female reproductive organs. Should NOT be used to describe intersex individuals. |
|
Below is a brief list of LGBTQIA+ identity terminology. The list is in no way definitive or all-encompassing but can act as a strong starting point. It is important to note that every individual has their own identity terminology that they prefer and if it is knowable, the preferred terminology should be used at all times.
Some of these terms are historic and problematic but still useful for discovery because they are part of item titles and/or names of organizations and institutions. We include these because they are part of the history of this topic, and will still often be included in historic documents themselves in addition to title and organization names. If you have suggestions for other search terms, please let us know (research@chicagohistory.org) and we will add them to our list.
Drabinski, E. (2013). Queering the Catalog: Queer Theory and the Politics of Correction. The Library Quarterly: Information, Community, Policy. 83(2), 94-111. https://doi.org/10.1086/669547.
The Intersex Society of North America. (2008). Is a person who is intersex a hermaphrodite? https://isna.org/faq/hermaphrodite/.
It Gets Better. (2021). LGBTQ+ Glossary. https://itgetsbetter.org/blog/lesson/glossary/.
Mizzi, R. C., & Walton, G. (2014). Catchalls and Conundrums: Theorizing “Sexual Minority” in Social, Cultural, and Political Contexts. Paideusis, 22(1), 81–90. https://journals.sfu.ca/pie/index.php/pie/article/view/410/216.
Petchesky, R. P. (2009) The language of “sexual minorities” and the politics of identity: a position paper. Reproductive Health Matters, 17(33), 105-110. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0968-8080(09)33431-X.
Rawson, K. J. (2009). Accessing Transgender: Desiring Queer(er?) Archival Logics. Archivaria, 68, 123–140. https://archivaria.ca/index.php/archivaria/article/view/13234.
Soldani, B. (2016). Here's exactly why the word 'transvestite' is offensive. Special Broadcasting Service (SBS). https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/voices/article/2016/07/29/heres-exactly-why-word-transvestite-offensive.
Stonewall. (n.d.). Glossary of terms. https://www.stonewall.org.uk/help-advice/faqs-and-glossary/glossary-terms.
Trans Student Educational Resources. (2020). Definitions. TSER. https://transstudent.org/about/definitions/.
Vice Media Group. (2018.). The Gender Identity Terms You Need To Know. Refinery29. https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/lgbtq-definitions-gender-sexuality-terms.