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The Boys of Fairy Town: Sodomites, Female Impersonators, Third-Sexers, Pansies, Queers, and Sex Morons in Chicago's First Century
The Boys of Fairy Town is a history of gay Chicago told through the lives of the men who were there—queer men who lived from the mid-nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth. Illustrating the various stages in the evolution of Chicago's queer community, this book reveals the complex lives of men who were sometimes invisible to the mainstream, but at other times quite visible to it. Some of the men, such as reporter John Wing, were public figures. Others became notorious. Guy T. Olmstead, for example, shot his lover in the back in front of scores of witnesses. Most—like Henry Gerber, who created the first "homophile" organization in the United States—were ordinary men who were unknown during their lives.
The stories are diverse and riveting. Shoplifters James Janes and Frank Smith were arrested for pilfering articles of women's clothing in a Loop department store while bodybuilder Eugen Sandow who could live openly with his partner, composer and pianist Martinus Sieveking, because his overt masculinity camouflaged his bedroom activities. Strip-tease artists Quincy de Lang and George Quinn were arrested and put on trial by a leader of Chicago's "social purity movement," and African American ragtime pianist Tony Jackson's most famous song, "Pretty Baby," was written about one of his lovers and would later be covered by scores of singers. What emerges is a complex portrait of a virtually unknown history of one of the most vibrant cities of the United States.
The stories are diverse and riveting. Shoplifters James Janes and Frank Smith were arrested for pilfering articles of women's clothing in a Loop department store while bodybuilder Eugen Sandow who could live openly with his partner, composer and pianist Martinus Sieveking, because his overt masculinity camouflaged his bedroom activities. Strip-tease artists Quincy de Lang and George Quinn were arrested and put on trial by a leader of Chicago's "social purity movement," and African American ragtime pianist Tony Jackson's most famous song, "Pretty Baby," was written about one of his lovers and would later be covered by scores of singers. What emerges is a complex portrait of a virtually unknown history of one of the most vibrant cities of the United States.
299 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
August 23, 2021
Ideas of gender and sexuality shift drastically across history. The word “homosexual” was only coined in 1869. In fact, the notion of sexual orientation didn’t really exist in the 1800s. Rather, society judged all sexual activities as legitimate by whether they were reproductive or not. From this perspective, “all nonprocreative different-sex erotic acts” (using contraceptives, oral sex, etc.) were considered just as “perverted as same-sex erotic acts” (10). Masturbation, in particular, was seen as a form of perversion because it was non-reproductive.
In the 19th century doctors felt that male masturbation was a form of self-abuse because it sapped men’s “vigor” and “sexual potency.” They believed that masturbating too frequently would lead to irreversible damage, causing insanity which would make men devolve into effeminate “inverts.” John Harvey Kellogg (most famously associated with the breakfast cereal) believed that “only a man with no self-restraint would engage in such a debilitating activity as masturbation” (125). He believed that “real men” didn’t masturbate, and that people who masturbated had “feminized” themselves and was “on the same sociopolitical, cultural, and psychological rung as a woman” (125). Physician George Beard believed that men who masturbated became “women in their tastes, conduct, character, feeling, and behavior” (126). By 1900, masturbator and sexual invert were used interchangeably (126).
The predominant medical opinion was that “degenerates,” “psychopaths,” and “inverts” were people who couldn’t control their sexual urges. Sexologist Dr. G Frank Lydston popularized the notion that queer men, like women, were “unable to control their emotions and sexual longings” (210). The queer man became the face of the “sexual psychopath” or the “sex moron” because of his “presumed lack of control” (210).
In their crusade to stop non-reproductive sex acts – including homosexuality – doctors would institutionalize boys and men, practice castration, and invented devices to keep men from masturbating so as to “keep them from becoming queer” (126). One device was a metal ring with spikes, another was a metal pouch that prevented men from touching themselves.
The renowned department store Sears became the best seller of one of these devices: the Heidelberg Belt. This device supposedly helped people from the “debilitated condition of the sexual organs” (126). The belt sent current from a battery to restore the body and prevent loss of vigor to preserve male heterosexuality. The marketing was about curing masturbation and – in turn – homosexuality which was seen as a degenerative disorder/behavior that arose from the loss of male vigor.
In the 19th century doctors felt that male masturbation was a form of self-abuse because it sapped men’s “vigor” and “sexual potency.” They believed that masturbating too frequently would lead to irreversible damage, causing insanity which would make men devolve into effeminate “inverts.” John Harvey Kellogg (most famously associated with the breakfast cereal) believed that “only a man with no self-restraint would engage in such a debilitating activity as masturbation” (125). He believed that “real men” didn’t masturbate, and that people who masturbated had “feminized” themselves and was “on the same sociopolitical, cultural, and psychological rung as a woman” (125). Physician George Beard believed that men who masturbated became “women in their tastes, conduct, character, feeling, and behavior” (126). By 1900, masturbator and sexual invert were used interchangeably (126).
The predominant medical opinion was that “degenerates,” “psychopaths,” and “inverts” were people who couldn’t control their sexual urges. Sexologist Dr. G Frank Lydston popularized the notion that queer men, like women, were “unable to control their emotions and sexual longings” (210). The queer man became the face of the “sexual psychopath” or the “sex moron” because of his “presumed lack of control” (210).
In their crusade to stop non-reproductive sex acts – including homosexuality – doctors would institutionalize boys and men, practice castration, and invented devices to keep men from masturbating so as to “keep them from becoming queer” (126). One device was a metal ring with spikes, another was a metal pouch that prevented men from touching themselves.
The renowned department store Sears became the best seller of one of these devices: the Heidelberg Belt. This device supposedly helped people from the “debilitated condition of the sexual organs” (126). The belt sent current from a battery to restore the body and prevent loss of vigor to preserve male heterosexuality. The marketing was about curing masturbation and – in turn – homosexuality which was seen as a degenerative disorder/behavior that arose from the loss of male vigor.
April 19, 2018
#1 Edelweiss
Many thanks go to Jim Elledge, Chicago Review Press, and Edelweiss for the free copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.
Before I started the book I was upset by the title. It seemed too harsh. But as I delved deeper it made sense. To quote the author during the time period of this book,"queer men were a diverse group with types". These types are discussed in the chapters and many of the men popular in the Chicago area from 1837-1946 were interviewed. No one expressed being insulted. In fact the group went from being called "sodomite" to feeling much more original.
Societal expression and reaction are discussed including "the specter of castration" for deviants and criminals.
I learned quite a lot reading this book. I had no idea Chicago had such a sizable homosexual population. They were typically a happy, well-adjusted group of men, not the uncontrollable, isolated, depressed loners history would like us to believe.
Fairy Town is full of colorful stories. I'd recommend it.
Many thanks go to Jim Elledge, Chicago Review Press, and Edelweiss for the free copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.
Before I started the book I was upset by the title. It seemed too harsh. But as I delved deeper it made sense. To quote the author during the time period of this book,"queer men were a diverse group with types". These types are discussed in the chapters and many of the men popular in the Chicago area from 1837-1946 were interviewed. No one expressed being insulted. In fact the group went from being called "sodomite" to feeling much more original.
Societal expression and reaction are discussed including "the specter of castration" for deviants and criminals.
I learned quite a lot reading this book. I had no idea Chicago had such a sizable homosexual population. They were typically a happy, well-adjusted group of men, not the uncontrollable, isolated, depressed loners history would like us to believe.
Fairy Town is full of colorful stories. I'd recommend it.
May 13, 2019
I wish I would’ve liked this book better. It was a lot of different stories about queer life in Chicago a long time ago. It was an interesting history, but a lot of it was very depressing, especially when it showed how many gay men could not be openly gay outside of small accepting social circles. Life wasn’t easy for these queer men who dared to try to be themselves.Some faced very cruel prison sentences.
It also served as a very crucial reminder especially in these precarious times, of how important it is that as queer people we never allow ourselves to go back to this. Ever. We can NEVER EVER go back to this.
This book is even pre-LGBT rights though. ( It goes up to Kinsey) Most of the people in this book didn’t even think that having actual rights was even possible and really just wanted to be left alone to live their lives as they wished in their small communities.
Important history, but I really wanted it to be less dry. It took me forever to read, but I’m glad I stuck with it. Only 3 stars though.
It also served as a very crucial reminder especially in these precarious times, of how important it is that as queer people we never allow ourselves to go back to this. Ever. We can NEVER EVER go back to this.
This book is even pre-LGBT rights though. ( It goes up to Kinsey) Most of the people in this book didn’t even think that having actual rights was even possible and really just wanted to be left alone to live their lives as they wished in their small communities.
Important history, but I really wanted it to be less dry. It took me forever to read, but I’m glad I stuck with it. Only 3 stars though.
February 12, 2020
Who knew that Chicago was the American sister to Weimar era Berlin? Spanning decades before the Pansy Craze through it's polar opposite, the post-pansy scare, Jim Elledge's deeply-researched account of Chicago's queer scene during these 100 years puts Chicago back on the queer historical map.
Too often Chicago plays the understudy to her gayer sisters on the coasts, but Jim Elledge gives us reason to reconsider why Chicago has played such a pivotal role in the development of Queer America. From female impersonators who freely walked through the loop, to "pansies" - men who wore men's clothing but also make-up, queer life in Chicago was open and much popularized during the roaring 10s and 20s.
Elledge's book will make you reconsider what you know about Queer America and help you see that before Chicago became the conservative Midwestern city, it was the working class sexually progressive city that gave voice to men who went against the gendered grain.
Too often Chicago plays the understudy to her gayer sisters on the coasts, but Jim Elledge gives us reason to reconsider why Chicago has played such a pivotal role in the development of Queer America. From female impersonators who freely walked through the loop, to "pansies" - men who wore men's clothing but also make-up, queer life in Chicago was open and much popularized during the roaring 10s and 20s.
Elledge's book will make you reconsider what you know about Queer America and help you see that before Chicago became the conservative Midwestern city, it was the working class sexually progressive city that gave voice to men who went against the gendered grain.
October 10, 2018
The author seemed to attempt to tell both general trends as well as personal stories of queer men in Chicago, while failing to do a great job in either. The author also failed to recognize trans history, including people in the historical accounts vitally in the book. There was one person (who we might now recognize as a trans woman) who specifically made requests upon her death indicating she didn’t want her gender identity questioned. The author, however, consistently used masculine pronouns etc. in telling her story.
Overall, I had high hopes for this book, but was generally underwhelmed.
Overall, I had high hopes for this book, but was generally underwhelmed.
January 18, 2024
Heartbreaking history which, upsettingly, is rapidly becoming our modern day reality. I was outraged by the treatment of queer people in the past but was reminded that these punishments have been recycled and even amplified these days.
Treating queer people like less than human or perverts merely for existing and being different. Bans on self expression and gender nonconformity.
Our queer history is glossed over and hidden which makes it easier to try (once again) to erase us. This is filled with such sad stories but also highlights the resilience of the queer community.
Treating queer people like less than human or perverts merely for existing and being different. Bans on self expression and gender nonconformity.
Our queer history is glossed over and hidden which makes it easier to try (once again) to erase us. This is filled with such sad stories but also highlights the resilience of the queer community.
July 19, 2022
I appreciated the archival information in this book even though the writing wasn’t anything special. My one qualm regards the way the writer avoids addressing big age gaps in the sexual relationships he describes. I understand the reluctance to suggest any relationship between men/boys is predatory because of pervasive harmful stereotypes of queer men as pedophilic. That being said, there were multiple situations described in the book that were presented as worth celebrating or at least morally/ethnically neutral, but which concerned me bc they involved an adolescent/young teenager and an adult man having sex. I really would have appreciated a nuanced discussion of the complex dynamics of young men being introduced into queer culture by older men, and the potential for harm therein.
January 17, 2026
So happy there was a chapter on Frankie “Half Pint” Jaxon. I had no idea he was Chicago based.
July 6, 2021
Chicago queer culture (1850-1940). Highly recommend this book to anyone who’s interested in learning more about LGBTQ history.
September 23, 2018
I don't remember how I came across this title, but I'm sure glad I did. It was a great collection of stories about the men of Chicago who made up the homosexual/transgender/transexual community at the turn of the century. It was fascinating to read about Chicago through a different lens but even more interesting to read about these real people and the lives they lived (or hid) at the time. The author did wonderful research to come up with the details to make each and every man and woman he highlighted come to life. I highly recommend this book for those open to it. And if you're not open to it, then it's your loss. This is an amazing historical non-fiction and serves as a great reminder how far the LGBTQ community has come and yet how long they still have to go. Plus I think many people seem to think the gay rights movement is some newer, more current issue at hand, but this book gives great examples of how this is a fight that's been going on for a long time.
Fair warning, some graphic photos inside so be aware when and where you choose to read this book. Having said that, maybe we shouldn't be so prudish about seeing a dick pic once in a while. Hmm?
Fair warning, some graphic photos inside so be aware when and where you choose to read this book. Having said that, maybe we shouldn't be so prudish about seeing a dick pic once in a while. Hmm?
September 5, 2019
This is a very interesting history of gay life in Chicago from the time of the Chicago Fire up until just before the Stonewall Riots. It provides stories of individuals who thrived and were destroyed by outside forces. Elledge traces the swinging pendulum of "tolerance" and persecution. (Not surprisingly, some of the worst of the latter occurred under the aegis of J. Edgar Hoover, the cross-dressing monomaniac who terrorized the nation as the tyrant at the helm of the FBI for decades.) This book shows how the tides of understanding are affected by individuals and events that have little to do with the targeted population. (There is nothing more dangerous to the gay community than a closeted homosexual.) This is well-written and researched and an important read for those trying to understand the increased bigotry in our country.
July 14, 2022
I wish it had focused more on the lives of other queer people in Chicago, not just cis men and other assigned men at birth. That’s not why I’m giving this book two stars though; I know the title alone indicates this won’t focus on women. I’m merely starting off by saying that it would’ve been nice had the book included more gender expansive, queer stories.
What disturbed me about the book itself is how frequently the author discussed underage boys engaging in sexual activity and the older men preying on them. I understand that such activity may have been more prevalent in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and that, from a historical perspective, should be mentioned when describing queer life at the time; however, the author seemed almost obsessively interested with this piece of the story.
What disturbed me about the book itself is how frequently the author discussed underage boys engaging in sexual activity and the older men preying on them. I understand that such activity may have been more prevalent in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and that, from a historical perspective, should be mentioned when describing queer life at the time; however, the author seemed almost obsessively interested with this piece of the story.
September 21, 2018
I loved this book. I learned so much about the ‘fringe’ culture in the late 19th and early 20th century. Plus I now have new jazz artists of the age I listen too and a new appreciation for the songs I already love. I no longer assume that high pitches voice in a song is a woman nor the discussion of a log is a dirty comment from a woman to her lover. Homosexuality didn’t spring into our culture in the 21st century, it was all around us!!
June 23, 2019
I appreciate that this book exists, but the writing is very dry. He's telling stories of some very interesting people, and yet I was bored throughout the book. I did find the stories of transgender people living in the 1800s in Chicago very interesting. Also, I didn't know Eugen Sandow was gay, so that was a surprise. But this book reads like a dissertation. I learned a few things, and it made me think so it was worth reading, but it was a slog to get through.
December 6, 2022
2 / 4 : If you have time, read
[Windows into the gay life in Chicago post-Civil War to the 1960s]
Fairy Town's main interest is in following the development of queer identity. As implied in the title, that history is not straight forward, progress comes and progress goes, and sexual identity remains flexible.
John Bull's diary entries start the book with a bang, offering an intimate insight further chapters don't quite reach.
NON-FICTION
[Windows into the gay life in Chicago post-Civil War to the 1960s]
Fairy Town's main interest is in following the development of queer identity. As implied in the title, that history is not straight forward, progress comes and progress goes, and sexual identity remains flexible.
John Bull's diary entries start the book with a bang, offering an intimate insight further chapters don't quite reach.
NON-FICTION
October 24, 2018
I enjoyed this book a lot because it taught me a lot about queer, Chicago history which was its initial aim. I thought the book was well-researched with a lot of good information about the leadership, politics and mindset of Chicago/ans in regards to queerness throughout the first century of the city. I enjoyed learning about Towertown in/near what is now the Gold Coast and Mag Mile and I also enjoyed learning about he South Side Levee area in/around Bronzeville. It was interesting to see that in some ways for a small period in time Chicago seemed to be a leader in queer culture as opposed to the east and west coasts which dominate now. I was also intrigued by the language/linguistics that have been in queer culture that I didn't realize were as old as they are, such as, trade, feminine naming, referring to each other by familial names/structures etc - it reminds me that for so long, and even now to an extent, the queer community was something that was closely guarded and information regarding it was "passed down" to others and some of the language we still use to this day exemplifies that reality. I liked that the author introduces us to so many people, most of which, I had never heard of before. I know that this book is about men, but I would have loved even just a little insight into the queer women of the time, but I suppose that's for another book/author. I also would have liked a map drawn over the areas like Towertown, the Madison Ave. vice district and the south side levee with their current neighborhoods to assist in understanding, but also noting the rather radical change pretty much all of these neighborhoods have undergone. At some points it could be a little repetitive and confusing as we're learning about individuals at different times throughout this first century, but we're then having to recall what were the time frames of certain people referenced earlier - and with so many names, often coming in response to one name, it could be overwhelming. However, I think overall, it was a great introduction to a lot of Chicago history and queer history and queer Chicago history which I am glad to know as a queer Chicagoan.
September 4, 2021
I really enjoyed the solid historical research in this book. As a queer former Chicagoan, it was fascinating to trace the geography of Chicago's queer past and to locate our history in neighborhoods and on streets familiar to me. Elledge does a great job of integrating the stories of individuals with wider historical events, situating us at the intersection of the personal and the political. However, I feel like the erasure of trans experiences was a serious issue. Of course, many people who did and do drag identify as cisgender gay men; however, there are individuals in the pages of this book whose gendered experiences seem to lie well outside of identifying with their birth sex. But Elledge forecloses the possibility, at one point explicitly, that the desire of people assigned male at birth to live their lives as women was anything other than internalized homophobia. This book feels like part of a tradition of erasing trans people from "gay" history and liberation. The author deliberately fends off the possibility that any of the queer individuals in these pages could be understood as transgender, which seems to go beyond a passive exclusion of trans individuals to actively trying to chase them out of "gay" history.
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November 16, 2025A 2018 Chicago Writers Association Book of the Year Honorable Mention
Lambda Literary Award LGBTQ Nonfiction Finalist
A history of gay Chicago told through the stories of queer men who left a record of their sexual activities in the Second City, this book paints a vivid picture of the neighborhoods where they congregated while revealing their complex lives. Some, such as reporter John Wing, were public figures. Others, like Henry Gerber, who created the first “homophile” organization in the United States, were practically invisible to their contemporaries. But their stories are all riveting. Female impersonators and striptease artists Quincy de Lang and George Quinn were arrested and put on trial at the behest of a leader of Chicago’s anti-“indecency” movement. African American ragtime pianist Tony Jackson’s most famous song, “Pretty Baby,” was written about one of his male lovers. Alfred Kinsey’s explorations of the city’s netherworld changed the future of American sexuality while confirming his own queer proclivities. What emerges from The Boys of Fairy Town is a complex portrait and a virtually unknown history of one of the most vibrant cities in the United States.
Lambda Literary Award LGBTQ Nonfiction Finalist
A history of gay Chicago told through the stories of queer men who left a record of their sexual activities in the Second City, this book paints a vivid picture of the neighborhoods where they congregated while revealing their complex lives. Some, such as reporter John Wing, were public figures. Others, like Henry Gerber, who created the first “homophile” organization in the United States, were practically invisible to their contemporaries. But their stories are all riveting. Female impersonators and striptease artists Quincy de Lang and George Quinn were arrested and put on trial at the behest of a leader of Chicago’s anti-“indecency” movement. African American ragtime pianist Tony Jackson’s most famous song, “Pretty Baby,” was written about one of his male lovers. Alfred Kinsey’s explorations of the city’s netherworld changed the future of American sexuality while confirming his own queer proclivities. What emerges from The Boys of Fairy Town is a complex portrait and a virtually unknown history of one of the most vibrant cities in the United States.
February 18, 2021
Like a lot of histories about those who marginalised in their time, this is building on scant records. Elledge has mined the work of those researching the topic thoroughly, and the stories here are illuminating and moving. This is a community of joy, love and, of course, pain that comes to life in scattered glimpses through time.
Unfortunately, where there is scant information, we tend to fill the gaps with our own assumptions. This is difficult with gender, where social assumptions are always changing. Elledge's consistent uses of terms like "female impersonator" - even for those living as women - tend to flatten a conversation about gender. Similarly, while there are frequent hints of racial divides and bridges across them (including hints that interracial relationships were more likely to attract prosecution than same-gendered ones) Elledge does not explore the racial politics of "fairy town", leaving frustrating gaps.
Unfortunately, where there is scant information, we tend to fill the gaps with our own assumptions. This is difficult with gender, where social assumptions are always changing. Elledge's consistent uses of terms like "female impersonator" - even for those living as women - tend to flatten a conversation about gender. Similarly, while there are frequent hints of racial divides and bridges across them (including hints that interracial relationships were more likely to attract prosecution than same-gendered ones) Elledge does not explore the racial politics of "fairy town", leaving frustrating gaps.
July 2, 2023
Astonishingly transphobic and homophobic for a queer history book.
The author frequently ignored OBVIOUS trans woman and misgendered and dead named them.
One story was about a woman who went stealth for decades only being found after her death. And his answer to why? "*She* wanted to maintain a relationship with men and this was the only way"
It frequently mentioned topics such as r&pe pedophelia and racism but did disturbingly nothing to talk about how harmful these actions and thoughts are.
The idea of referencing old slurs is ok with me. But he frequently used them and it felt in very poor taste.
I got only about a third through before I couldn't take it anymore and stopped.
Overall this book at best left a bad taste in my mouth and at worst made me uncomfortable and go into a depressive anxious spiral.
Don't reccomend for anyone especially if your interested in queerness, Chicago or the general feeling of happiness.
The author frequently ignored OBVIOUS trans woman and misgendered and dead named them.
One story was about a woman who went stealth for decades only being found after her death. And his answer to why? "*She* wanted to maintain a relationship with men and this was the only way"
It frequently mentioned topics such as r&pe pedophelia and racism but did disturbingly nothing to talk about how harmful these actions and thoughts are.
The idea of referencing old slurs is ok with me. But he frequently used them and it felt in very poor taste.
I got only about a third through before I couldn't take it anymore and stopped.
Overall this book at best left a bad taste in my mouth and at worst made me uncomfortable and go into a depressive anxious spiral.
Don't reccomend for anyone especially if your interested in queerness, Chicago or the general feeling of happiness.
July 11, 2018
In his latest book, Elledge paints a portrait of life in gay Chicago from the 1840s through the 1940s. He profiles various queer men from the unknown to the historically significant and the complex lives they experienced as misunderstood and mischaracterized people. Queer men with background as female impersonators, activities, musicians, performers, doctor, and military are featured to present a queer slice-of-life. Elledge also gives consideration to queer men of color and their involvement in the jazz and blues scene in Bronzeville. As a current Chicago resident, it is fascinating to learn about the history of highlighted Chicago neighborhoods and how they have changed over the decades. Elledge offers an intriguing unknown history that signified Chicago’s role in fostering an underground queer culture that would bloom during the city’s second century.
March 11, 2022
Not quite as in-depth or all-encompassing as the brilliant queer history Gay New York: Gender, Urban Culture, and the Making of the Gay Male World 1890-1940, Jim Elledge's The Boys of Fairy Town is an important history of queer culture in Chicago around the Civil War through the 1940s. Instead of a grand narrative, the book is structured around a set of case studies of different queer people, some famous (or infamous) at the time, others completely anonymous, their names lost to history. Fairy Town gives a great overview of a culture that spent centuries fighting for its existence.
May 7, 2024
An intriguing cross-section of LGBT personalities known to have lived in the "Windy City" in the early part of the last century. The narratives are well researched and the writing style is quite involving. I was easily drawn in and enjoyed the content. Though I was hoping for a broader view, the choices made were still provocative and interesting and did give great insight despite the specificity.
May 20, 2018
A great read. Elledge compiled a number of interesting stories about the queer men who lived in Chicago. I liked how well rounded the subjects were. There was a mix of people who were famous, infamous, poor, unknown, African American, immigrants etc. and each had different personalities and experiences.
June 27, 2018
Elledge does a great job of bringing the queer history in Chicago between the mid 19th Century, through early 20th Century until the late 4o's to light by using a number of prime reference sources. Rather than taking a general look at the "Pansies era," he focuses on individuals who were just living their gay life at this time. It is a welcome addition to the history.
July 18, 2018
There are a couple of truly exceptional stories/chapters in here. It was also fun to visit some of Chicago's sites from this historical perspective. But much of the book suffers under the repetition both of how gay men expressed themselves (and were allowed to) and how their lives were impacted as a result. Still, an enjoyable read and if no one has written a novel about Towertown yet, I should.
June 20, 2019
What an amazing piece of history. A gay man in Chicago in the 1840s kept a diary and it is summarized in part here. An important review of not only gay life in Chicago from 1840 to 1940, but of gay life in the USA during this time period. The book is in part a collection of the author's essays arranged chronologically. This gives the book a range from scholarly to compelling narrative.
August 3, 2019
Despite the title, this is actually a good book covering gay history for 100 years, 1840 to 1940. There were three areas of town where gay men congregated: Tower Town just west of the water tower, west Madison Street and the south side near Bronzeville. Men wore dresses and played on the stage in the late 1800s. This an important historical archive for gay history.
June 9, 2019
A rather dry academic text with interesting threads from larger anecdotes that sometimes were not fully realized. With that said, an overall interesting work about queer life in the early days of Chicago, something I admittedly had very little knowledge of and was glad to learn more about!
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August 18, 2019i've realized that, a lot of the time, it's pretty pointless for me to try to assign a star rating to these types of reads so they're just going to be marked as 'read' from now on unless i have something more interesting to say
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