Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies

Last updated
Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies
Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection University of Minnesota-Logo.jpg
Jean-Nickolaus Tretter staff with the Outfront Minnesota Collection.jpg
Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies
Location Elmer L. Andersen Library, Suite, 222 - 21st Avenue South, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Established2000
Other information
DirectorAiden Bettine
Website www.lib.umn.edu/tretter

The Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies is a collection of LGBT historical materials housed in the Special Collections and Rare Books section of the University of Minnesota Libraries. It is located underground in the Elmer L. Andersen special collections facilities on the University of Minnesota's Minneapolis campus. The Tretter Collection houses over 40,000 items, making it the largest LGBT archive in the Upper Midwest and one of the largest GLBT history collections in the United States. [1] [2] The collection, which was created by Jean-Nickolaus Tretter, is international in scope and is varied in media.

Contents

Collection

Burnt remains of book, "Le Marquis de Sade et Son Temps" which survived the Nazi book burnings of Magnus Hirschfeld's Institut fur Sexualwissenschaft. Burnt remains of book, Le Marquis de Sade et Son Temps.jpg
Burnt remains of book, "Le Marquis de Sade et Son Temps" which survived the Nazi book burnings of Magnus Hirschfeld's Institut für Sexualwissenschaft.

Although books are the core of the collection (including a large holding of gay pulp fiction), substantial sections include textiles, glassware, film, music, art works, and three-dimensional objects such as statuary, event buttons, and furniture. The collection includes unpublished manuscripts, vertical files, and periodicals in approximately 56 languages. [3] [4] Much of the material is from people and organizations in the United States during the last third of the twentieth century.

Among the significant archival holdings are:

The collection was started by Jean-Nickolaus Tretter, a Minnesota-born archivist, in the 1950s, and donated to the University of Minnesota Libraries in the early 200s when the collection grew large enough to be a fire hazard in his home. [6]

Selected items from the collection and timelines are frequently assembled and displayed worldwide. Recent displays have been at the Motor City Pride in Michigan in 2007 and 2009, and the first Moscow Pride festival in May 2006.

In 2005, the collection started its official newsletter, The Tretter Letter. [7]

In 2006, The Tretter Collection, the University of Minnesota Libraries, and the Quatrefoil Library presented the first GLBT ALMS (Archives, Libraries, Museums and Special Collections) Conference in Minneapolis. [8] [9] [10]

Tretter Transgender Oral History Project

The Tretter Transgender Oral History Project (TTHOP) is a special collection of the Tretter Collection dedicated to preserving transgender life histories in the United States. The interviews are available in English, and access to the recordings and transcripts is public and free.

The TTHOP was founded in 2015 by Andrea Jenkins who sought to shift the public conversation around trans people by documenting their lived experiences. [11] Together, the oral histories fill in gaps of the wider Tretter Collection, which contains extensive materials on white cisgender gay men but little on trans people, especially trans people of color. [12] The TTHOP contains over two hundred recordings of in-person and virtual interviews with trans individuals, making it one of the largest trans archives in the world.

The TTHOP's mission statement reads as follows: "The Tretter Transgender Oral History Project (TTOHP) is committed to collecting, preserving, and making available oral histories of gender transgression, broadly understood through a trans framework." [13]

Phase 1 interviews

The TTHOP's phase 1 was led by Andrea Jenkins, who also served as the interviewer for nearly all the conversations. 175 in-person interviews were conducted from 2015 to 2018. This phase was centered on trans and gender nonconforming people residing in the upper Midwest and with a focus on those most erased from historical memory, including trans people of color and trans elders. [14]

The interview questions were mainly interested in the personal lives and gender transition journeys of the trans individuals. Frequent themes that emerge include:

Famous individuals featured include CeCe McDonald, Laverne Cox, Aidan Key, Eli Clare, Tiq Milan, and more.

Phase 2 interviews

The TTHOP's phase 2 was led by Myrl Beam, and it was conducted from 2019 to 2021. This collection of 68 interviews focuses on the stories of trans activists. Documenting the "transformative power of trans movements," this phase is "grounded in the belief that trans movements for justice are about more than rights: they are about survival, and about creating a new, more fabulous, more livable, and more expansive world––one not structured by racialized gender norms." [15]

With an explicitly political focus, the second phase mainly asks interviewees to connect their personal life experiences with trans politics and other social movements. Frequent themes that emerge include:

Famous individuals interviewed include Dean Spade, Marci Bowers, Masen Davis, and more.

Funding

The TTHOP is largely funded by the Tawani Foundation. Other funders include the Headwaters Foundation for Justice Community Innovation Grant, the Humanities Innovation Lab at the Minnesota Humanities Center, and individual donors.

Awards, honors and media recognition

In 2016, The Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection was the inaugural recipient of the Newlen-Symons Award for Excellence in Library Services and Outreach to the GLBT Community. [16]

"The Newlen-Symons Award recognizes the tremendous impact of the Tretter Collection and its leadership in collecting and preserving the record of the GLBT community, from the University of Minnesota campus and beyond," said American Library Association President Sari Feldman. "Through preservation, collection development and advocacy, the Tretter Collection embodies how libraries can transform lives and communities." [17]

In 2017, The Tretter Collection won the Diversity Award presented by the Society of American Archivists. The Society of American Archivists annually recognizes outstanding contributions, leaders, and achievers in advancing diversity within the archives profession. Tretter was honored for its dedication to filling in the gaps of the GLBT archival record and for striving to include marginalized voices from within the GLBT community. [18]

See also

Related Research Articles

Richard John Baker v. Gerald R. Nelson, 291 Minn. 310, 191 N.W.2d 185 (1971), was a case in which the Minnesota Supreme Court decided that construing a marriage statute to restrict marriage licenses to persons of the opposite sex "does not offend" the U.S. Constitution. Baker appealed the decision, and on October 10, 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed the appeal "for want of a substantial federal question".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Baker and Michael McConnell</span> Advocates of marriage rights for gay couples

Richard JohnBaker and James Michael McConnell are the first same-sex couple in modern recorded history known to obtain a marriage license, have their marriage solemnized, which occurred on September 3, 1971, and have it legally recognized by any form of government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GLBT Historical Society</span> American non-profit LGBT historical society

The GLBT Historical Society maintains an extensive collection of archival materials, artifacts and graphic arts relating to the history of LGBTQ people in the United States, with a focus on the LGBT communities of San Francisco and Northern California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ rights in Minnesota</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people in the U.S. state of Minnesota have the same legal rights as non-LGBTQ people. Minnesota became the first U.S. state to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in 1993, protecting LGBTQ people from discrimination in the fields of employment, housing, and public accommodations. In 2013, the state legalized same-sex marriage, after a bill allowing such marriages was passed by the Minnesota Legislature and subsequently signed into law by Governor Mark Dayton. This followed a 2012 ballot measure in which voters rejected constitutionally banning same-sex marriage.

The Transgender Oral History Project is an initiative by and for the transgender community. TOHP collects interviews and produces multimedia content featuring stories of transgender-identified people, and exists to empower trans folks through sharing stories of their lives. The Transgender Oral History Project is also active in the community, hosting events in many states including Massachusetts, Illinois, Iowa, Seattle, Philadelphia, and New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Minnesota Libraries</span>

The University of Minnesota Libraries is the library system of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus, operating at 12 facilities in and around Minneapolis–Saint Paul. It has over 8 million volumes and 119,000 serial titles that are collected, maintained and made accessible. The system is the 17th largest academic library in North America and the 22nd largest library in the United States. While the system's primary mission is to serve faculty, staff and students, because the university is a public institution of higher education its libraries are also open to the public.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The OUTWORDS Archive</span> American LGBTQ+ digital archive organization

The Outwords Archive (OUTWORDS) records and archives on-camera interviews with elders from the LGBTQ+ community throughout the United States. The archive headquarters are based in Los Angeles, with the entirety of their digital collection provided to the public for free through their official website. The nonprofit's stated mission is to "capture, preserve, and share the stories of LGBTQIA2S+ elders, to build community and catalyze social change."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Libraries and the LGBT community</span> Library services to the LGBT community

In the post-Stonewall era, the role of libraries in providing information and services to LGBTQ individuals has been a topic of discussion among library professionals. Libraries can often play an important role for LGBTQ individuals looking to find information about coming out, health, and family topics, as well as leisure reading. In the past 50 years, advocate organizations for LGBTQ content in libraries have emerged, and numerous theorists have discussed various aspects of LGBTQ library service including privacy concerns, programming, collection development considerations and librarian/staff education needs, as well as special services for juvenile and teen patrons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transgender Archives at the University of Victoria</span>

The Transgender Archives at the University of Victoria is the "largest transgender archive in the world".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quatrefoil Library</span> Non-profit LGBTQ library in Minneapolis

Quatrefoil Library is a member-supported, 501(c)(3) non-profit library and community center for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. It is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where it was founded by David Irwin and Dick Hewetson in 1983. It is the second LGBT lending library in the United States, and the oldest such library in the Upper Midwest. In the beginning, it was not only an educational resource center but also a safe space for LGBT people. The library houses over 15,000 books, 7,000 DVDs, a collection of first editions and rare books, and books in braille. It hosts poetry readings, panel discussions, book launches, and other events, open to all.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrea Jenkins</span> American writer and politician (born 1961)

Andrea Jenkins is an American politician, writer, performance artist, poet, and transgender activist. She is known for being the first Black openly transgender woman elected to public office in the United States, since January 2018 on the Minneapolis City Council and as the council's president from January 2022 to January 2024.

The Archives, Libraries, Museums and Special Collections (ALMS) Conference is an international event focussed on the work by public, private, academic, and grassroots organisations which are collecting, capture and preserving archives of LGBTQ+ experiences, to ensure their histories continue to be documented and share

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Twin Cities Pride</span>

Twin Cities Pride, sometimes Twin Cities LGBT Pride, is an American nonprofit organization in Minnesota that hosts an annual celebration each June that focuses on the LGBT community. The celebration features a pride parade which draws crowds of nearly 600,000 people. The parade was designated the Ashley Rukes GLBT Pride Parade in honor of the late former parade organizer and transgender LGBT rights activist. Other Twin Cities Pride events include a festival in Loring Park and a block party spanning multiple days.

Richard LaFortune, also known as Anguksuar, , is a two spirit activist, author, community organizer, and artist based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. LaFortune was an early organizer of the Native American LGBT community in the 1980s and co-founded the Two Spirit Press Room (2SPR).

The Digital Transgender Archive (DTA) is an online resource based at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, in collaboration with more than sixty international colleges, universities, nonprofit organizations, and private collections. It was established to enable researchers to locate and make use of transgender-related materials in digital and physical collections. It serves as a finding aid for archival materials and an online hub for born-digital materials and digitized historical materials. According to the archive's website: "In order to address these significant barriers to the accessibility of trans history, the DTA virtually merges disparate archival collections, digital materials, and independent projects with a single search engine. With rich primary source materials and powerful search tools, the DTA offers a generative point of entry into the fascinating and expansive world of trans history."

Tretter is a German and Austrian surname. Notable people with the surname include:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phillipe Cunningham</span> Transgender city council member for Minneapolis

Phillipe M. Cunningham is a former city council member for Minneapolis Ward 4 and the first transgender man of color to be elected to public office in the United States. Cunningham won the council position in the 2017 Minneapolis City Council election and lost it in the 2021 election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean-Nickolaus Tretter</span> American LGBTQ archivist (1946–2022)

Jean-Nickolaus Tretter was an American activist and LGBT archivist who created the Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies, housed by the University of Minnesota.

References

  1. ↑ Marcotte, Mike (2020-10-08). "Serve Our Society: Tretter Collection | Lavender Magazine". Lavender Magazine. Archived from the original on 2021-06-13. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  2. ↑ Birkey, Andy (10 November 2010). "Tretter Collection Celebrates 10 Years of Preserving LGBT Community". The Column. Archived from the original on 24 January 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
  3. ↑ "Log Cabin Will House Its Archival Material at the University of Minnesota's Tretter Collection". Georgia Log Cabin. Retrieved 25 February 2015.[ permanent dead link ]
  4. ↑ "Lavender Legacies Guide: United States: Minnesota". Society of American Archivists. Archived from the original on 10 June 2024. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
  5. ↑ "Collection: Stuart Ferguson Papers". archives.lib.umn.edu. Archived from the original on 2024-06-10. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  6. ↑ Jackson, Zoë. "Jean Tretter, local LGBTQ archivist and advocate, dies". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on 2022-12-10. Retrieved 2022-12-10.
  7. ↑ "Special Collections, Rare Books, and Manuscripts" (PDF). University of Minnesota Libraries. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-03-15. Retrieved 2014-01-15.
  8. ↑ "GLBT ALMS 2006 Conference Program". GLBT ALMS 2006 Conference Program. 2006.
  9. ↑ Cook, Elizabeth (2006-05-24). "Anderson Library Hosts International GLBT Materials Archiving Conference". Minnesota Daily. Archived from the original on 2024-06-10. Retrieved 2016-06-19.
  10. ↑ Keim, Adam (2008). "Chapter 7 : In conclusion". History of Quatrefoil Library (PDF). Golden Valley, MN: Friends of the Bill of Rights Foundation. pp. 104–105. ISBN   9780966882827. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2024-06-10. Retrieved 2023-02-20.
  11. ↑ Golden, Erin. “Former Minneapolis Council Aide Brings Transgender Issues to the Forefront.” Star Tribune, April 27, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20160408204635/http://www.startribune.com/former-mpls-council-aide-brings-transgender-issues-to-the-forefront/301372761/.
  12. ↑ Vecoli, Lisa. “The Tretter Collection: What We Have, What’s Missing, and the Challenges of Trans History.” TSQ: Transgender Studies Quarterly 2, no. 4 (November 1, 2015): 607–13. https://doi.org/10.1215/23289252-3151529.
  13. ↑ “The Tretter Transgender Oral History Project.” University of Minnesota Libraries. Accessed November 17, 2024. https://www.lib.umn.edu/collections/special/tretter/transgender-oral-history-project.
  14. ↑ “The Tretter Transgender Oral History Project.”
  15. ↑ “The Tretter Transgender Oral History Project.”
  16. ↑ SBIRES (2017-07-21). "The Newlen-Symons Award for Excellence". Round Tables. Archived from the original on 2024-06-10. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  17. ↑ HCHO (2016-01-15). "GLBTRT selects the Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection at the University of Minnesota Libraries for the Newlen-Symons Award for Excellence". News and Press Center. Archived from the original on 2024-06-10. Retrieved 2018-06-30.
  18. ↑ "2017 Fellows and Award Recipients | Society of American Archivists". www2.archivists.org. Archived from the original on 2024-06-10. Retrieved 2018-07-28.

44°58′23″N93°14′35″W / 44.973147°N 93.243047°W / 44.973147; -93.243047

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.