 Logo | |
 The bar's exterior, 2023 | |
 | |
| Address | 9630 16th Ave SW White Center, Washington United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 47°30′59.5″N122°21′17.5″W / 47.516528°N 122.354861°W |
| Owner |
|
| Type | Gay bar |
| Opened | January 2018 |
Lumber Yard Bar is a gay bar in White Center, in the U.S. state of Washington. Nathan Adams and Michale Farrar opened the bar in 2018. The business relocated in 2021, the result of arson.
The lumberjack-themed, [1] queer-friendly Lumber Yard Bar operates along 16th Avenue Southwest in White Center. The interior has sanded wood and a skylight with planted succulents. [2]
In 2018, Christopher Frizzelle of The Stranger wrote: "Logs are omnipresent: logs wrapped around the cords of Edison bulbs, logs chained to walls, log benches, log stools, log pictures, etc. The menu includes 'wood pellets' (olives in cheese breading served with marinara) and a mashed potato bar." [3]
The LGBT-owned [4] bar opened in January 2018. [5] It claims to be, and has been described as, [6] [7] White Center's first gay bar. [1] [8] Owned by Nathan Adams and Michale Farrar, [9] [10] Lumber Yard has hosted drag shows, [11] [12] show tune sing-alongs, [13] and viewing parties for television shows such as RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars. [14] As of 2023, Lumber Yard hosted lesbian karaoke as well as 'tacos and trivia' weekly, and has a monthly event dedicated to kink. [15]
A fire in July 2021, later classified as arson, [16] [17] forced the business to close and relocate. [18] [19] The owners called the incident a hate crime. [20] A GoFundMe fundraising campaign led by White Center Pride was successful in raising $100,000 for Lumber Yard. [21] In 2022, the bar hosted an Mpox vaccine clinic in collaboration with local public health officials. [22] [23]
In January 2024, Lumber Yard was one of several bars raided by the Joint Enforcement Team (JET), a coalition of Seattle Police, Fire, and the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB), among other groups. [24] [25] [26] The raid prompted a backlash and a policy review. [27] [28]
Esquire included Lumber Yard in a 2022 list of the 32 best gay bars in the United States and said, [29] "Comfortable and fun for leather daddies, trans women, bears and cubs, and lipstick lesbians alike, Lumberyard is a throwback to an earlier era, but in the best possible way. The original was burned down in an anti-gay hate-crime a few years back, but the revival has just opened across the street and is bigger and better, with a new performance space." [30] Christopher Frizzelle included Lumber Yard in The Stranger 's 2018 and 2023 overviews of Seattle's best LGBT establishments. [3] [15] In a 2023 overview of the metropolitan area's queer establishments, Seattle Gay News said Adams and Farrar "[offer] an experience that calls back to the pair's love for hosting". [31]
The LGBT community is a loosely defined grouping of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals united by a common culture and social movements. These communities generally celebrate pride, diversity, individuality, and sexuality. LGBT activists and sociologists see LGBT community-building as a counterweight to heterosexism, homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, sexualism, and conformist pressures that exist in the larger society. The term pride or sometimes gay pride expresses the LGBT community's identity and collective strength; pride parades provide both a prime example of the use and a demonstration of the general meaning of the term. The LGBT community is diverse in political affiliation. Not all people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender consider themselves part of the LGBT community.
The Stonewall Inn is a gay bar and recreational tavern at 53 Christopher Street in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It was the site of the 1969 Stonewall riots, which led to the gay liberation movement and the modern fight for LGBT rights in the United States. When the riots occurred, Stonewall was one of a relative few gay bars in New York City. The original gay bar occupied two structures at 51–53 Christopher Street, which were built as horse stables in the 1840s.
The Black Cat Tavern is an LGBT historic site located in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. In 1967, it was the site of one of the first demonstrations in the United States protesting police brutality against LGBT people, preceding the Stonewall riots by over two years.
LGBT culture in Portland, Oregon is an important part of Pacific Northwest culture.
New York City has been described as the gay capital of the world and the central node of the LGBTQ+ sociopolitical ecosystem, and is home to one of the world's largest and most prominent LGBTQ+ populations. Brian Silverman, the author of Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day, wrote the city has "one of the world's largest, loudest, and most powerful LGBT communities", and "Gay and lesbian culture is as much a part of New York's basic identity as yellow cabs, high-rise buildings, and Broadway theatre". LGBT travel guide Queer in the World states, "The fabulosity of Gay New York is unrivaled on Earth, and queer culture seeps into every corner of its five boroughs". LGBT advocate and entertainer Madonna stated metaphorically, "Anyways, not only is New York City the best place in the world because of the queer people here. Let me tell you something, if you can make it here, then you must be queer."
Seattle has a notably large LGBT community, and the city of Seattle has protected gay and lesbian workers since the passage of the Fair Employment Practice Ordinance in 1973. Seattle's LGBT culture has been celebrated at Seattle Pride which began in 1977 as Gay Pride Week. Gay cabaret traveled in a circuit including Seattle and San Francisco since the 1930s. Seattle had gay-friendly clubs and bars since the 1930s including The Casino in Underground Seattle at Pioneer Square which allowed same-sex dancing since 1930, and upstairs from it, The Double Header, in continuous operation since 1933 or 1934 until 2015, was thought to be the oldest gay bar in the United States.
Cherdonna Shinatra is the stage name of Jody Kuehner, a Seattle-based, American dancer, drag queen and performance artist. Kuehner won the Stranger Genius Award in Performance in 2015.
Vancouver's LGBT community is centered on Davie Village. Historically, LGBT people have also gathered in the Chinatown and Gastown neighborhoods. Former establishments include Dino's Turkish Baths, a gay bathhouse on Hastings, and the city's first drag bar, BJ's, on Pender Street.
Seattle Eagle, or The Eagle, is a gay bar in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, in the U.S. state of Washington.
Madison Pub is a gay bar in Seattle, Washington, United States.
Queer Bar is a bar catering to the queer community in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, in the United States. Queer Bar hosts drag shows regularly.
LGBT culture in St. Louis is characterized by a long history of progressive activism as well as racial divisions and the city/county divide. St. Louis city is relatively liberal with multiple gayborhoods and several LGBT organizations. In 2019, Realtor.com dubbed St. Louis the 8th most LGBT-friendly city. Due to hostile legislation at the state level, however, it has become common for LGBT residents to relocate to Illinois for better protections and healthcare access.
Union Seattle, or simply Union, is a gay bar and cocktail lounge in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, on Union Street between 10th and 11th Ave, in the U.S. state of Washington.
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted inequities experienced by marginalized populations, and has had a significant impact on the LGBT community. Gay pride events were cancelled or postponed worldwide. More than 220 gay pride celebrations around the world were canceled or postponed in 2020, and in response a Global Pride event was hosted online. LGBTQ+ people also tend to be more likely to have pre-existing health conditions, such as asthma, HIV/AIDS, cancer, or obesity, that would worsen their chances of survival if they became infected with COVID-19. They are also more likely to smoke.
Julia's on Broadway, or simply Julia's, is a restaurant in Seattle's Capitol Hill, in the United States. It is associated with a small chain of restaurants in the metropolitan area called Julia's.
LGBT Pride Month, often shortened to Pride Month, is a month, typically June, dedicated to celebration and commemoration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) pride. Pride Month began after the Stonewall riots, a series of gay liberation protests in 1969.
Neighbours Nightclub is a nightclub on Seattle's Capitol Hill, in the U.S. state of Washington. Neighbours is the city's "oldest LGBTQ+ club currently operating".
The Comeback Seattle was an LGBT-friendly bar and nightclub in Seattle's SoDo neighborhood, in the U.S. state of Washington. Described as a gay bar and queer sports bar, The Comeback hosted drag shows and RuPaul's Drag Race viewing parties. The short-lived bar opened in early 2022 and closed on April 30, 2023. It was co-owned by Floyd Lovelady, a former general manager of the gay bar and nightclub R Place, as well as John Fish.
Tin Table is a restaurant in Seattle, Washington. Hallie Kuperman opened the restaurant in Capitol Hill's Oddfellows Hall in 2009, across from the Century Ballroom, which she also owns. Described as a "upscale" pub, the restaurant serves Pacific Northwest cuisine.
LGBT-, or queer-owned businesses are businesses owned and often operated by members of the LGBTQIA+ community. They may also be described as being owned by specific subgroups, such as gay-, lesbian-, or trans-owned businesses.
Media related to Lumber Yard Bar at Wikimedia Commons