February 11
7pm to 8:30pm EST
Online event
Join Old North Illuminated on Zoom for a fascinating conversation with historian Jen Manion about queer and trans histories from early America. Questions of gender identity and sexuality are nothing new. Long before people identified as transgender or lesbian, there were female husbands — people assigned female at birth who transed gender, lived as men, and entered into legal marriages with women.
Early America is filled with histories of queer pioneers, from female husbands to sailors, children, and prisoners. During the early republic and antebellum period, these stories were featured in newspapers, magazines, and children’s literature. In this talk, historian Jen Manion will examine these queer and trans stories that appeared in print. They will explore questions like:
How were queer and trans people represented in print media at the time?
What can these stories tell us about the lives of queer and trans people?
What were their experiences like prior to medicalization and the invention of modern categories such as homosexual and transgender?
To register for this virtual event, click the Tickets button and make a donation of any amount to Old North Illuminated, the nonprofit that preserves and interprets Old North Church Historic Site. A Zoom link will be sent to you before the event.
