During the Revolutionary War, Deborah Samson and an unknown number of women dressed as men in order to fight. Using the alias “Robert Shurtleff,” Sampson served with the 4th Massachusetts Regiment for two years before being injured and…

The Gay Liberation Front (GLF) was founded in the immediate aftermath of the June 28, 1969 uprising at the Stonewall Inn in New York City. Often referred to as the Stonewall Riots, the event consisted of a series of violent altercations between the…

In the years after World War II, the U.S. government launched the second “Red Scare,” when individuals such as Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin instigated widespread panic regarding the spread of communism. Along with communists, homosexuals…

In the years after World War II, the U.S. government launched the second “Red Scare,” when individuals such as Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin instigated widespread panic regarding the alleged spread of communism throughout the U.S. Along…

Anti-war sentiment rose across the country in the midst of the Vietnam War for a variety of reasons, including pacifism, anti-imperialism, solidarity with the Vietnamese, and even a desire by some young people not to be drafted. Many anti-war…

In 1994, the military adopted a new policy regarding LGBTQ+ service members: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. In the past, military regulations stated that homosexuality or other LGBTQ+ identites necessitated an immediate discharge from military service.…

The following list of terms and language may be helpful for students (and educators!) when reviewing and analyzing documents in the "Military History and the LGBTQ+ Community" Collection

These questions, designed for flexible use across the many sources in the Military History and the LGBTQ+ Community collection, can provide the foundation for a deeper examination of the documents and themes featured here. The questions can be…

Use the following list for more information on military history and the LGBTQ community:

Albert Cashier, born Jennie Irene Hodgers, enlisted in the Union Army in 1862. Historians have found evidence that hundreds of soldiers, including Cashier, were born female and enlisted as men during the Civil War. This portrait was taken during the…