Resources for LGBTQ+ History at Oberlin College

This topical resource guide presents an overview of the Oberlin College Archives' collections that relate to LGBTQ+ history. It will be useful for those interested in researching LGBTQ+ history at Oberlin College or queer history at liberal arts colleges more generally. It contains links to finding guides for collections related to LGBTQ+ topics, including student organizations, faculty materials, administrative papers, course descriptions, alumni activities, and student work. Each link is followed by a brief annotation related to the resource. The collections are organized by record group. The records included in this guide are held in the Oberlin College Archives. 

RG 0, College General Records, 1834-present

Series 10, Weekly Calendars, list events occurring on campus. Events from the LGBU (later LGBTU), Trans Awareness Week, the Gay Conference, and Drag Ball are listed, among many other events that are LGBTQ+ related. These calendars were printed through the early 2000s. While the events are not described in detail, they provide insight into the frequency of recurring events like film screenings and organization meetings.

RG 09/006 Physical Education Department, 1880-2024, undated

Subgroup II. Instruction and Evaluation, Series 1. Curriculum contains files related to the Sex Education courses from the 1930s and 1940s. Many of these materials contain descriptions of the course curriculum for the Sex Ed courses, curriculum development, instructional materials, and copies of student exams and questions. The materials indicate the dominant perspectives of homosexuality at the time of their creation. Student questions include inquiries about homosexuality and bisexuality.

RG 09/018, Experimental College (ExCo), 1968-2007

Experimental College course catalogs from the 1968 to 2007 list student-led courses related to queer history, culture, and programming. Select ExCos include “Topics in Alternative Lifestyles for Women: Lesbianism” from 1983, “Queer Women in Film and Television” from 2004, and “Drag Ball: History, Planning and Gender Performance!” from 2008. The ExCo catalogs demonstrate student initiatives to develop courses on topics related to LGBTQ+ identities spanning 1982-2008.

RG 12, Office of the Dean of Students Records, 1928-2024

Contains files on the Special Committee on Gay and Lesbian Concerns 1988-1989, organized by Dean Langeler in response to homophobic incidents on campus. It includes correspondence from Dean Langeler to the chairs of campus LGBT organizations. There is also a folder containing communication and planning materials for the 1980 “Sexuality Workshop." These files relate mostly to matters concerning the Dean of Students’ involvement in LGBTQ+ issues during the second half of the 20^th century.

RG 12/07/05, Multicultural Resource Commons Collection

The files contained in the Multicultural Resource Commons (MRC) Collection reflect the printed materials from the binders and files of the office. Many papers in this collection are from the binders of the LGBT Community Coordinators, a staff role in the MRC that organized and supported programming and students. There are also floppy disks, CDs, photographs, etc., with labels that relate to LGBT programming.

RG 19, Student Life

RG 19/00/01, Student Life: Student Publications, 1858-present

Organized alphabetically, these student publications include; Ample Cleavage, a feminist publication that includes discussion of lesbian and queer sexuality in several entries; COPAO, Committee on Privilege and Oppression, which published Leslie Feinberg’s writings and materials for trans allyship; the Drag Ball Bible, a publication that contains information about Oberlin’s Drag Ball in the late 90s; Disorientation, an annual publication for new students that contains information about queer resources on/around campus throughout the 2010s-2020s; The Grape, a satirical newspaper that often features queer articles or discussing queer events on campus, though it is not the main focus of the publication; Ruby Tuesday, a feminist publication that may be of interest to those researching the intersection of feminism and queerness; SNAP, a journal featuring articles and editorials, some humorous, about queer topics at Oberlin and in general society; Undisclosed Recipients, a radical queer publication from 1999; The Voice is a political publication that includes articles and opinions that are related to LGBTQ topics during the magazine’s run; Zami Zine, a zine published by the student org Zami to highlight the voices of queer people of color at Oberlin College; the Archives has copies from 2000 and 2002, and other publications that contain mention of LGBTQ topics. These materials document creative production (essays, stories, poems, art, and resource guides) from students.

RG 19/03/05 Student Life: Women's Center, 1971-2002

The Women’s Center records span from the 1970s to 1983. It includes the charter of the organization from 1971. Other logbooks and minutes from meetings show discussions about collaborative efforts with the Gay Union, as well as information on conferences and talks from the 1970s that include presentations on lesbian issues; one talk is called “Women and Gay Oppression”. There are also notes from a meeting of LIPS (Lesbians into Preserving Sappho) in 1979. These records may be of interest to people researching the intersection of feminism and women’s collectives with lesbian history at Oberlin College.        

RG 19/05, Student Life: Student Papers, 1908-2024

Several student research papers included in this collection are related to LGBT topics, including one entitled “The Birth of a ‘Gay Mecca’: A Queer History of Oberlin College, 1954-1983” by Deborah Cane. Other student papers may be found in the LGBTU collection in RG 19/03/10. These papers illustrate topics in queer studies that were of academic interest to students throughout Oberlin’s history. 

RG 19/07, Student Life: WOBC Radio Station Records, 1942-2011, undated

The WOBC Radio Station Records contain guides for the radio shows over the years.  These guides list shows related to LGBT topics, such as This Way Out, an international lesbian and gay news show that occurred throughout the early 1990s. This collection includes five tapes of This Way Out in SG II Series 1. There are three reels of Drag Ball interviews and shows from 1997 as well.

RG 19/03/10, Student Life: Cultural and Diverse Organizations, 1908-2024

This subset of the student life records contains charters for various queer organizations on Oberlin's campus, including OUTRAGE/oberlin, Gay Liberation, Queer Issues Support Team (QIST), Queers and Allies of Faith, LILAC, and Zami. 

RG 19/03/10/001, LGBTU Collection, 1971-2006, undated

Contains records from the Oberlin College Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Union, which served Oberlin's students from 1971 through the early 2000s under several different names. The materials contained in the LGBTU Collection date from 1973 to 2001. They reflect portions of the LGBTU’s operations. Most of the materials are from the late 1980s and 1990s. A majority of the files consist of printed materials, such as meeting minutes, administrative materials, records related to programming, posters, and publications that were collected by the LGBTU's librarian. The posters are primarily undated. Publications include Hotlines a newsletter for queer residents of Lorain County. Box 8 contains the LGBTU’s annual budgets and invoices spanning 1973 to 1995. 

RG 20, Alumni Association Records, 1839-present

Subgroup II contains records of the Lambda Alumni Association, the queer alumni group, and several volumes of their publication, the White Squirrel Alumni Newsletter. This newsletter contributes valuable information about campus events, research prizes, and activities of Oberlin alumni and current students.

RG 30, Personal Papers

RG 30/048, Daniel Chapin Kinsey Papers, 1922-1970, undated

Daniel Kinsey was an instructor and coach at Oberlin College between 1929 and 1959. The academic teaching files include the curriculum, class notes, and publications related to the Sex Education courses taught by Kinsey in the 1930s. The files, housed in Box 5, contain questions from students about homosexuality. Similar materials from the first half of the 20^th century can be found in the Physical Education Department collection.

RG 30/231, Paula Goldsmid Papers, 1970-1983

These personal papers contain files related to LGBTQ issues. There is an exco syllabus called “Gay Literature”, a publication detailing a lesbian music performance that occurred in 1978, and some files from the Women’s Collective. Goldsmid was the Associate Dean in the College of Arts and Sciences and served on the Women’s Studies Committee.

RG 30/286, John Young Papers

The John Young Papers exist as an unprocessed accession. They contain photographs from the 2000 Drag Ball and the 1999 OLA Steering Committee Meeting at Oberlin. The collection also includes miscellaneous printed material related to the OLA and the LGBTU from Young's time on the steering committee. As an unprocessed accession, they are currently restricted. Access by permission of the Archivist only.

RG 30/360, Jan Allyson Cooper Papers 1979-1997

Jan Cooper's papers primarily consist of records related to her work with the Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Concerns Committee (LGBCC) and the Oberlin Lambda Alumni group. The papers include transcripts of oral histories of members of Oberlin's queer community. 

RG 30/413, William P. Norris Papers, 1980-2017

These papers contain Professor William Norris’ files from his time as a professor of Sociology at Oberlin College and faculty chair of what was then the LGBU, including research into LGBTQ issues on Oberlin’s campus and beyond, talks given by Norris on LGBTQ research, Norris’ notes and materials for instruction on LGBTQ topics, and materials related to the LGBU. Subgroup VII. Committees and Other Professional Activity has files from the meetings of the Great Lakes College Association on LGBTQ topics in the later 1990s 2000s. Several series contain general materials collected by Prof Norris related to LGBT issues in the greater Cleveland area (printed materials, clippings). Subgroup V. Research and Subject Files Series 5. Subseries 1. LGBTQ Issues at Oberlin College contains information about Domestic Partner rights at Oberlin College, materials related to the campus response to Gilbert Meilander’s 1994 article, as well as information from Norris’ time as faculty chair of the LGBU. A paper written by Norris and Jan Cooper entitled “Becoming a Gay Mecca: Institutionalizing Queer Life at a Highly Selective Midwestern Liberal Arts College” discusses the history of LGBTQ issues at Oberlin College. This collection provides insight into early Oberlin courses that discussed LGBTQ issues.

RG 44, Subject Files: LGBTQ+, 1960-Present (5f)

These subject files contain articles, newspapers, posters, catalogs, brochures, and miscellaneous materials related to LGBTQ+ topics, events, student groups, etc at Oberlin College. The materials are collected in four chronological folders for general college-related LGBTQ topics, and an additional folder that collects materials from the student groups on campus. There is a collection of material related to the efforts to increase gender-neutral housing and bathrooms on campus in the early 2000s and late 2010s, as well as the response to new Ohio legislature in 2024/2025.

RG 46, Poster Collection, 1877-2024

This collection contains posters related to LGBTQ+ events from the 1980s to 2000s. Posters from events held by student groups and some supported by the Multicultural Resource Center are filed in a folder labeled “Gender, Identity, and Sexuality”. An inventory of the poster titles and dates can be found on ArchivesSpace.