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Dictionary of Sydney

The Dictionary of Sydney
Subjects
Sydney's People
Sydneysiders
Gay Lesbian and Transgender

The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.

Gay Lesbian and Transgender

Subject

Drag and cross dressing

Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras

Gay men

Lesbians

Sumner Locke Elliott

Sydney's Rainbow Crossings

Webber, Iris

Fairyland: A Novel

Lesbian Network

Lesbians on the Loose

Miscellaneous Acts Amendment (Same Sex Relationships) Act 2008

Rainbow crossing, Summer Hill

Rainbow crossing, Taylor Square

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

Wicked Women

Canterbury Castle

Women's Liberation House

Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras

Bruno Gmunder Media Group

Campaign Against Moral Persecution Incorporated

Chameleons social club

Chez Ivy

Clover Businesswomen's Club

DIY Rainbow

Diamond Horseshoe Club

Gay Counselling Service of New South Wales

Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby

Green Park Diner

Jewel Box

Kandy's Garden of Eden

Karen's Kastle

Les Girls

Lesbian Space Project

Order of Perpetual Indulgence, Sydney House

Pollynesians

Purple Onion

Queer Screen

Ruby Red's

Safe-Sex Sluts

Sexually Outrageous Women

Stork Club

Stray Dags

Sydney Gay Liberation

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras

The Annexe

Ziegfeld Club

Bate, Stanley

Carlotta

Carmen

Carmen, Edmund

Carter, Andrew

Denison, Edwin

Dykes, Jim

Elliott, Sumner Locke

Falleni, Eugenia

Foy, Harry

Harding, Alex

Higgs, Kerryn

Hurly, Tom

Johnson, Ken (Kandy)

Jones, Margaret

Lang, Samantha

Lascaris, Manoly

Lygon, William (Lord Beauchamp)

Maddocks, Sydney

McQuade, Neville

O'Donnell, Dawn

O'Reilly, Benjamin

Poll, Christabel

Richter, Ivy

Ware, John

Webber, Iris

Yate, William

Ivy's Birdcage

Gay and Lesbian Holocaust Memorial

'Lesbian Brides' marching group, Mardi Gras 1994

'Lost, Sweetheart?' 1940s

'Youth Tells Why He Masquerades As Girl', Adelaide 'Truth', 27 June 1942

A chalk rainbow in Bourke Street not far from the site of the original Rainbow Crossing 14 April 2013

After the Mardi Gras, Sydney 1994

After the Rainbow Crossing was removed commemorative rainbow ribbons were tied to nearby barriers, Taylor Square April 2013

Albury Hotel float, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade, 1983

Alleged man-woman Winifred Wilson / George Rocake, 1921

Asian Lesbian and Gay Pride Group, Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras, 1993

Beside a cafe in Marrickville, another DIY rainbow 14 April 2013

Billiard Room meeting, Drag Trade at Blackmarket March 25 1983

Capriccio's Club, Oxford Street, Darlinghurst 1981

Carlotta, Kings Cross 1970-71

Carmen photographed for Drag Queen & Transgender Artists 'Safe Drinking' campaign poster 1998

Cross-dressing report in 'Melbourne Truth' 1932

Crowds waiting at Taylor Square for the Mardi Gras parade 3 March 2013

DIY Rainbow event at Newtown Square 26 April 2013

Dawn O'Donnell, her partner Aniek Baten and French fashion designer Jean-Paul Gaultier judge the Mardi Gras Parade, 2000

Dykes on bikes, Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras, 1993

Eugene Falleni, Long Bay Photographic Description Book, 1928

Eugenia Falleni, alias Harry Crawford, criminal record number 741LB, 16 August 1928. State Reformatory for Women, Long Bay, NSW

Fred Nile demonstrating at the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras, 1999

Gay Choir, Macquarie Street, 1981

Gay Pride march, Parramatta 1983

Gay and Lesbian Holocaust Memorial, Green Park, Darlinghurst 2003

Gay and Lesbian Holocaust Memorial, Green Park, Darlinghurst c2005

Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras 1981

Hat, Gay Mardi Gras, 1984

In North Ryde a family chalked a rainbow crossing on their driveway 1 May 2013

Iris Eileen Mary Webber 20 November 1941

Iris Webber 20 November 1941

It takes balls to be a fairy, Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras 1983

James Brechney and friend Wladi drawing the original DIY Rainbow, Commonwealth Lane, Surry Hills 11 April 2013

Kandy and friends performing at Ken's Karate Klub, Kensington 1981

Kerryn Phelps and Jackie Stricker at Mardi Gras 2002

Lea Sonia, Tivoli, July 1941

Lesbians On The Loose magazine celebrating 20 years of publication, 2010

Long Bay Description Card for Eugenia Falleni 1920-40

Long Bay Gaol photograph of Eugenia Falleni, 1920

Mardi Gras #12, Sydney 1994

Mardi Gras #3, Sydney 1994

Mardi Gras #5, Sydney 1994

Mug shot of Eugenie Falleni 1920

Mug shot of Neville McQuade (18) and Lewis Stanley Keith (19), North Sydney Police Station, early June 1942

New South Wales Police marching in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, 1999

Outside the Hordern Pavilion on the morning after the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras party, 1992

Police Gazette notice about arrest of Eugenie Falleni, 1929

Police record of John Tighe alias Wilson, 30 June 1880

Police record of William Smith, 1880

Poppy King float, Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras 1999

Portrait of Reverend William Yate c1840

Rainbow Crossing at Taylor Square 27 February 2013

Sleaze Ball 1986

Sleaze Ball 1986

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras 2003

The front path of Benledi House in Glebe was chalked with a rainbow 30 April 2013

The original Rainbow Crossing in Oxford Street at Taylor Square 2013

The permanent Rainbow Crossing installed by Ashfield Council on the public square in Lackey Street, Summer Hill 26 September 2015

Tom Hurly at the Parramatta Lunatic Asylum 1861

William Lygon, 7th Earl of Beauchamp, and Governor of New South Wales 1899

William Lygon, 7th Earl of Beauchamp, and Governor of New South Wales 1899

Dianne Minnis on the first Mardi Gras parade and protest in 1978, recorded 2009

Judy Burnett on drag venues in Sydney in the 1970s, recorded 2009

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Gay Lesbian and Transgender

Drag and cross dressing

Cross dressing has aroused wildly varying attitudes in Sydney over the course of its history. Once subject to extreme legal punishment, drag no longer causes consternation in the streets, and is still part of life in the city.

Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras

The spectacular Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in 1983 had its origins in the brutal police response to a much smaller parade in 1978. The subsequent public furore and political activism caused draconian laws to be changed and eventual acceptance of the special place the Mardi Gras holds in Sydney's cultural life.

Gay men

Long demonised and persecuted, gay men have been part of Sydney life since first settlement. Two centuries have seen attitudes and perceptions change dramatically.

Lesbians

While desire and sexual encounters between women have been part of life in Sydney for centuries, their history has been largely unknown until recently. Attitudes to lesbians varied from moral condemnation to medical and psychiatric discourses of disorder, until the political and cultural organisations of lesbian feminism and gay liberation ushered in an era of lesbian pride and a vibrant social and cultural scene.

Sumner Locke Elliott

Sumner Locke Elliott, actor, playwright and novelist, lived in Sydney until 1948 and thereafter in the United States. In the 1960s after a successful career as a playwright he decided to reinvent himself as a novelist and of his ten novels five are based on his life in Sydney between the 1920s and 1940s. He won the Miles Franklin Award in 1963 and the Patrick White Award in 1977.

Sydney's Rainbow Crossings

On 25 February 2013, Sydneysiders woke to a rainbow crossing painted at the intersection of Taylor Square and Oxford Street, Darlinghurst - the starting point of Sydney's first ever Gay Mardi Gras march in 1978. Despite community support for the crossing, it was removed on 10 April sparking a do-it-yourself movement of pop-up rainbow crossings chalked on streets, footpaths and driveways all over Australia.

Webber, Iris

Iris Webber was a busker and petty criminal active in Sydney from the early 1930s until her death in 1953. She gained notoriety for her fierceness on the streets and in the courtroom, and for her relationships with women.

Fairyland: A Novel

Autobiographical novel by Sumner Locke Elliott that was published in 1990, the year before his death. The main character is a writer coming to terms with his homosexuality in Sydney in the 1930s and 1940s.

full record »

Lesbian Network

Lesbian periodical published in Rozelle.

full record »

Lesbians on the Loose

Monthly magazine first published in 1989 by Avalon Media.

full record »

Miscellaneous Acts Amendment (Same Sex Relationships) Act 2008

Legislation to amend previous Acts in relation to same sex and other de facto relationships.

full record »

Rainbow crossing, Summer Hill

Permanent crossing in the Lackey Street Piazza provided by Ashfield Council as a symbol of the gay community.

full record »

Rainbow crossing, Taylor Square

Rainbow crossing on Oxford Street painted as a symbol of the gay community for the Mardi Gras of 2013. A huge success it was however removed within 2 months because of road safety concerns.

full record »

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

Film which follows the journey of three drag performers from Sydney to Alice Springs.

full record »

Wicked Women

Radical lesbian sex magazine.

full record »

Canterbury Castle

Group house that became part of lesbian culture in Sydney in the 1970s.

full record »

Women's Liberation House

Activity and referral centre for Sydney's gay women at 25 Alberta Street Sydney. It later operated from a house in Chippendale.

full record »

Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras

full record »

Annual parade and festival celebrating gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer culture.

Bruno Gmunder Media Group

German publishing company which specialises in gay entertainment worldwide.

full record »

Campaign Against Moral Persecution Incorporated

Gay and lesbian action group which began in Sydney in September 1970.

full record »

Chameleons social club

Social club for Sydney's gay community in the 1960s and 70s.

full record »

Chez Ivy

Wine bar on Oxford Street popular with lesbians in the 1960s.

full record »

Clover Businesswomen's Club

Gay social club for women at Drummoyne.

full record »

DIY Rainbow

Protest movement that emerged in 2013 via social media in response to the removal of a temporary rainbow-painted pedestrian crossing at Taylor Square which had been created by the City of Sydney for the 35th Sydney Mardi Gras celebrations. Activists create rainbows and rainbow coloured crossings with chalk in public places to show support for equal rights and marriage equality.

full record »

Diamond Horseshoe Club

Club located in Oxford Street,Woollahra, where Lea Sonia would often appear in drag.

full record »

Gay Counselling Service of New South Wales

Lesbian women's group established when Sydney lesbians broke away from CAMP New South Wales because of sexism from male members.

full record »

Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby

Organisation which advocates on behalf of lesbians and gay men providing referral and educative resources on gay and lesbian rights to the media, policy makers and the community.

full record »

Green Park Diner

Long-running Oxford Street eatery popular with the gay community.

full record »

Jewel Box

Kings Cross nightclub which featured 'drag' acts.

full record »

Kandy's Garden of Eden

Drag venue at 95 Enmore Road Enmore.

full record »

Karen's Kastle

Nightclub in Redfern featuring drag shows

full record »

Les Girls

Legendary Kings Cross 'drag' show. The Carousel Club was purpose built by underworld figure Abe Saffron to house the show.

full record »

Lesbian Space Project

Collective formed in 1986 to raise funds to allow community grants for lesbian projects.

full record »

Order of Perpetual Indulgence, Sydney House

Sydney chapter of international organisation which uses Catholic imagery and drag to highlight sexual intolerance and satirise issues of gender and morality.

full record »

Pollynesians

Gay social club of the 1960s and 70s.

full record »

Purple Onion

Nightclub at 83 Anzac Parade Kensington famous in the 1970s for elaborate drag shows.

full record »

Queer Screen

Organisation of filmmakers and students who produce the Mardi Gras Film Festival.

full record »

Ruby Red's

Lesbian bar and dance venue on Crown Street in the 1970s and 80s.

full record »

Safe-Sex Sluts

Voluntary group who distribute condoms and information to promote safe sex in the gay community.

full record »

Sexually Outrageous Women

Radical lesbian group which challenged lesbian feminist notions of female sexuality.

full record »

Stork Club

Nightclub in Sylvania Waters which featured drag shows.

full record »

Stray Dags

Lesbian rock band in the 1980s.

full record »

Sydney Gay Liberation

Radical homosexual organization advocating unity and militant action by all oppressed groups such as homosexual, women and blacks.

full record »

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras

Not for profit member based group that organises the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade and Festival as well as number of other events throughout the year.

full record »

The Annexe

Nightclub in Kings Cross which featured 'drag' acts.

full record »

Ziegfeld Club

Nightclub in King Street Sydney which operated from 1920 and was a well known venue for drag acts.

full record »

Bate, Stanley

English composer who whilst openly gay, was also married to composer Peggy Glanville-Hicks.

full record »

Carlotta

full record »

Transgender Australian cabaret performer and entertainer who became the most famous member of the Les Girls show, in Sydney's Kings Cross. Carlotta is the stage name of Carol Spencer.

Carmen

full record »

Māori transgender performer or drag queen who performed in Kings Cross and Wellington, New Zealand.

Carmen, Edmund

Convict flogged for wearing women's clothing.

full record »

Carter, Andrew

Activist who, with Richard Johnson, founded the Australian AIDS Memorial Quilt to commemorate those who had died and to promote compassionate learning about those living with the disease.

full record »

Denison, Edwin

Sailor who was involved in a sex scandal in Sydney

full record »

Dykes, Jim

American-born pastor who moved to Sydney in 1983 and helped to raise community awareness of HIV AIDS, establishing the Ankali Project.

full record »

Elliott, Sumner Locke

full record »

Novelist, playwright and actor who won the Miles Franklin Literary Award in 1963 and the Patrick White Literary Award in 1977.

Falleni, Eugenia

full record »

Italian-born woman who dressed as a man and was twice married. In 1920 she was convicted of murdering her first wife Annie Birkett.

Foy, Harry

Nightclub dancer and entertainer.

full record »

Harding, Alex

Writer, composer and actor who migrated to Sydney from England and became a prominent writer in the gay theatre scene.

full record »

Higgs, Kerryn

Author of the first lesbian novel published in Australia.

full record »

Hurly, Tom

full record »

Resident of Parramatta Lunatic Asylum in 1861 who identified as male. Probably Irish, from Limerick, on arrival in Sydney they were still wearing 'woman's wearables'. The Asylum staff did not force Hurly to dress as a woman.

Johnson, Ken (Kandy)

full record »

Gay female impersonator, drag performer and entrepreneur, owner of Purple Onion nightclub and Ken's Karate Klub at Kensington gay sauna, among others.

Jones, Margaret

Gay activist who acted on the growing tension between men and women in the gay movement by forming a women's association.

full record »

Lang, Samantha

Film director and screenwriter.

full record »

Lascaris, Manoly

Greek life partner of writer Patrick White, whom he met when they were both servicemen during World War II.

full record »

Lygon, William (Lord Beauchamp)

full record »

Governor of New South Wales 1899-1901.

Maddocks, Sydney

Public servant and administrator who was instrumental in building up Sydney's tramway system, but whose career ended in scandal.

full record »

McQuade, Neville

full record »

Young man who was arrested in Sydney for dressing as a woman several times in the 1940s, charged with vagrancy and offensive behaviour.

O'Donnell, Dawn

full record »

Professional speed skater who later owned a number of gay and lesbian venues across Sydney and was a major figure in the gay and lesbian scene.

O'Reilly, Benjamin

full record »

Female impersonator and burlesque performer whose stage name was Lea Sonia.

Poll, Christabel

Co-founder of mixed gay and lesbian organisation Campaign Against Moral Persecution Incorporated (CAMP Inc).

full record »

Richter, Ivy

Entrepreneur and bar owner who established two pioneering drag bars - Chez Ivy in Bondi Junction in 1962 and Ivy's Birdcage on Oxford Street in 1967. In an interview with Sydney's Pride History Group, Richter described the widespread homophobia experienced by her patrons in both their family lives and careers:

...they'd cry, they'd get a few drinks...It was hard, if you couldn't work properly and if you couldn't go home, it was bloody hard.

She also described what it was like for the community during the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the early 1980s:

It was just like one after the other. Terrible. I had a black dress just for going to funerals.

full record »

Ware, John

Gay activist.

full record »

Webber, Iris

full record »

Lesbian criminal figure who achieved notoriety between the 1930s and 1950s and became known for her dramatic courtroom appearances.

Yate, William

full record »

Missionary and writer whose scandalous behaviour saw him dismissed from the Church Missionary Society.

Ivy's Birdcage

Popular club above Taylor Square on Oxford Street which featured drag shows. It was the second venue opened by entrepreneur, Ivy Richter. Her first was at Bondi Junction called Chez Ivy's. Richter described the venue:

...it was $2 to go in. You bought your own grog. And so we had, in one corner was the band, round the other were these lovely round tables and chairs, there was a seat built in all the way along and a dance floor...And then you'd go up to the next floor. And that's when we had all the birdcages up and the stage up one end....

The club closed down after two fires.

full record »

Gay and Lesbian Holocaust Memorial

full record »

Memorial, in the form of a pink triangle and black poles, which commemorates the gay men and lesbian women murdered, tortured or persecuted because of their sexuality, particularly by the Nazis during World War II.

'Lesbian Brides' marching group, Mardi Gras 1994

full record »

By

Contributed By

City of Sydney Archives

[061\061352]

(C. Moore Hardy Collection)

'Lost, Sweetheart?' 1940s

full record »

Contributed By

Private collection

'Youth Tells Why He Masquerades As Girl', Adelaide 'Truth', 27 June 1942

full record »

Contributed By

Private collection

A chalk rainbow in Bourke Street not far from the site of the original Rainbow Crossing 14 April 2013

full record »

By

Contributed By

After the Mardi Gras, Sydney 1994

full record »

By

©

Rennie Ellis Photographic Archive

After the Rainbow Crossing was removed commemorative rainbow ribbons were tied to nearby barriers, Taylor Square April 2013

full record »

By

Contributed By

Albury Hotel float, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade, 1983

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097560]

Alleged man-woman Winifred Wilson / George Rocake, 1921

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a1176001 / MLMSS 7198, 2/05/1921]

(From 'Frank Fahy - Scrapbook of an undercover policeman, 1920-1952', Mitchell Library)

Asian Lesbian and Gay Pride Group, Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras, 1993

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3118081]

Beside a cafe in Marrickville, another DIY rainbow 14 April 2013

full record »

By

Contributed By

Billiard Room meeting, Drag Trade at Blackmarket March 25 1983

full record »

By

Satoshi Kinoshita

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-an24795316]

Capriccio's Club, Oxford Street, Darlinghurst 1981

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097655]

Carlotta, Kings Cross 1970-71

full record »

By

©

Rennie Ellis Photographic Archive

Carmen photographed for Drag Queen & Transgender Artists 'Safe Drinking' campaign poster 1998

full record »

By

Contributed By

City of Sydney Archives

[066\066416]

(C. Moore Hardy Collection: 66416)

Cross-dressing report in 'Melbourne Truth' 1932

full record »

Contributed By

Private collection

Crowds waiting at Taylor Square for the Mardi Gras parade 3 March 2013

full record »

By

Hasitha Tudugalle

Contributed By

[https://www.flickr.com/photos/hasitha_tudugalle/8524122410]

DIY Rainbow event at Newtown Square 26 April 2013

full record »

By

Newtown graffiti

Contributed By

[https://www.flickr.com/photos/newtown_grafitti/8683823464]

Dawn O'Donnell, her partner Aniek Baten and French fashion designer Jean-Paul Gaultier judge the Mardi Gras Parade, 2000

full record »

By

Contributed By

City of Sydney Archives

[061\061304]

(C.Moore Hardy Collection)

Dykes on bikes, Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras, 1993

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097600]

Eugene Falleni, Long Bay Photographic Description Book, 1928

full record »

Contributed By

State Archives & Records New South Wales

[NRS 2496, No 741,[3/6004]]

Eugenia Falleni, alias Harry Crawford, criminal record number 741LB, 16 August 1928. State Reformatory for Women, Long Bay, NSW

full record »

Contributed By

Sydney Living Museums

[35369]

(Justice & Police Museum Collection)

Fred Nile demonstrating at the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras, 1999

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097645]

Gay Choir, Macquarie Street, 1981

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097667]

Gay Pride march, Parramatta 1983

full record »

Contributed By

Private collection

Gay and Lesbian Holocaust Memorial, Green Park, Darlinghurst 2003

full record »

By

Christopher League

Contributed By

[http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisleague/4527656165/]

Gay and Lesbian Holocaust Memorial, Green Park, Darlinghurst c2005

full record »

Courtesy:

City of Sydney Council

Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras 1981

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097633]

Hat, Gay Mardi Gras, 1984

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097670]

In North Ryde a family chalked a rainbow crossing on their driveway 1 May 2013

full record »

By

Contributed By

Iris Eileen Mary Webber 20 November 1941

full record »

Contributed By

State Archives & Records New South Wales

[NSW Photobook, image of Iris Webber 20 November 1941 No 163/139, [6/19668]]

(Detail from New South Wales Police Photo Book. Iris Eileen Mary Webber. 20 November 1941. No 163/139)

Iris Webber 20 November 1941

full record »

Contributed By

State Archives & Records New South Wales

[6/19668 (detail)]

(New South Wales Police Photo Book. Iris Eileen Mary Webber. 20 November 1941. No 163/139)

It takes balls to be a fairy, Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras 1983

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097593]

James Brechney and friend Wladi drawing the original DIY Rainbow, Commonwealth Lane, Surry Hills 11 April 2013

full record »

By

Contributed By

Kandy and friends performing at Ken's Karate Klub, Kensington 1981

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097662]

Kerryn Phelps and Jackie Stricker at Mardi Gras 2002

full record »

By

Contributed By

City of Sydney Archives

[061\061192]

(C. Moore Hardy Collection: 61192)

Lea Sonia, Tivoli, July 1941

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[ON 388/Box 035/Item 245]

Lesbians On The Loose magazine celebrating 20 years of publication, 2010

full record »

By

Contributed By

[http://www.flickr.com/photos/simple_dog/4393259661/]

Long Bay Description Card for Eugenia Falleni 1920-40

full record »

Contributed By

State Archives & Records New South Wales

[NRS 2493 [11/3128], State Reformatory for Women, Long Bay, description card, Side B]

Long Bay Gaol photograph of Eugenia Falleni, 1920

full record »

Contributed By

State Archives & Records New South Wales

[NRS 2496 [3/6006 p.499, 1920], State Reformatory for Women, Photo description books.]

Mardi Gras #12, Sydney 1994

full record »

By

©

Rennie Ellis Photographic Archive

Mardi Gras #3, Sydney 1994

full record »

By

©

Rennie Ellis Photographic Archive

Mardi Gras #5, Sydney 1994

full record »

By

©

Rennie Ellis Photographic Archive

Mug shot of Eugenie Falleni 1920

full record »

Contributed By

Sydney Living Museums

(Justice & Police Museum ; FP07_0031_005)

Mug shot of Neville McQuade (18) and Lewis Stanley Keith (19), North Sydney Police Station, early June 1942

full record »

By

New South Wales. Police Dept.

Contributed By

Sydney Living Museums

[31234]

(Justice & Police Museum Collection, Historic Houses Trust of NSW)

New South Wales Police marching in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, 1999

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097609]

Outside the Hordern Pavilion on the morning after the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras party, 1992

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a467010 / PXD 695/10]

(Mitchell Library, Courtesy of the photographer)

Police Gazette notice about arrest of Eugenie Falleni, 1929

full record »

Contributed By

State Archives & Records New South Wales

[NRS 10958 Police Gazette NSW, 1920 [1/3252, p.474]]

Police record of John Tighe alias Wilson, 30 June 1880

full record »

By

New South Wales. Police Dept.

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a2299157 / MLMSS 224, 157]

(from New South Wales. Police Dept. - Records, 1820-1894, Mitchell Library)

Police record of William Smith, 1880

full record »

By

New South Wales. Police Dept.

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a2299161 / MLMSS 224, 161]

(from New South Wales. Police Dept. - Records, 1820-1894, Mitchell Library)

Poppy King float, Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras 1999

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097638]

Portrait of Reverend William Yate c1840

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-an11197585]

Rainbow Crossing at Taylor Square 27 February 2013

full record »

By

Newtown graffiti

Contributed By

[https://www.flickr.com/photos/newtown_grafitti/8512917134]

Sleaze Ball 1986

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3391497]

Sleaze Ball 1986

full record »

By

With kind permission of

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097673]

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras 2003

full record »

By

Courtesy:

City of Sydney Council

[003/003307]

The front path of Benledi House in Glebe was chalked with a rainbow 30 April 2013

full record »

By

Contributed By

The original Rainbow Crossing in Oxford Street at Taylor Square 2013

full record »

By

Contributed By

...

full record »

By

Contributed By

Tom Hurly at the Parramatta Lunatic Asylum 1861

full record »

On leaving this room we saw a little dapper man approaching, dressed in neat frock coat and trowsers., and somewhat shabby white hat. A visitor we enquired? "No," replied Mrs. Statham, "that is one of our characters--it is a woman who fancies herself a man, and whom we humor by allowing her to dress according to her ideas." This strange character took off her hat, and introduced herself as Tom Hurly, offering us a pinch of snuff, and shaking us heartily by the hand. There was a world of humor in the merry twinkle of the lady's eye, and the rich brogue in which she spoke. At our suggestion she proudly sat to Mr. Terry for her portrait, which we here present, vouching for its accuracy. In reply to our queries, she stated that she had three wives, and she named them all. She said she had been in the country over a hundred years, having been sent from Limerick in "woman's wearables' as she did not then know her own "karacter." " Tom" was very amusing and chatted freely while her portrait was doing, and we left her, proud and important that she had been so noticed. Poor woman! her's is an extraordinary case;- we have never heard of any other instance of such an extraordinary delusion. She is in general quiet, but occasionally breaks out, and has to be confined. If her fancy of dressing as a man were denied her, without doubt she would be in a.constant state of excitement and violence.'

By

Frederick Charles Terry

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(The Australian Home Companion and Band of Hope Journal, 1 June 1861, p3 )

William Lygon, 7th Earl of Beauchamp, and Governor of New South Wales 1899

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By

Freeman Studios

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a593005 / ON 219/123]

(Mitchell Library)

William Lygon, 7th Earl of Beauchamp, and Governor of New South Wales 1899

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By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a593004 / ON 268/Box 5]

(Mitchell Library)

Dianne Minnis on the first Mardi Gras parade and protest in 1978, recorded 2009

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By

Courtesy:

City of Sydney Council

Judy Burnett on drag venues in Sydney in the 1970s, recorded 2009

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By

Courtesy:

City of Sydney Council

Sydneysiders