Louise Lawrence Transgender Archive

Solano Pride and Louise Lawrence Transgender Archive invite you to join us for a “Trans History Double Header Day” on Saturday, July 11.

Visit the Solano Pride Center’s new exhibit “I Live the Life I Love Because I Love the Life I Live: A Celebration of Trans People of Color” AND visit the Louise Lawrence Transgender Archive in Vallejo for a personal tour by the exhibit’s curator Ms. Bob Davis.

The exhibit will be open at the Solano Pride Center
11:30 am – 3:00 pm.

Guided Tours of the LLTA will be scheduled at
12:30 – 2:00 pm
2:00 – 3:30 pm
3:30 – 5 pm.
Space is Limited. Registration is required for the LLTA Tours.

Suggested donation of $20.
NOTAFLOF.
Participants are responsible for their own transportation.

Can’t make it on July 11 but still want to see the Exhibit? It will be available for viewing at the Solano Pride Center from July 8-Aug 7, Mon-Fri 11a-4p.

The Exhibit is made possible by the LEF Foundation.

"The history of marginalized communities is elusive, imperiled and best preserved by the community itself."

The goal of the Louise Lawrence Transgender Archive (LLTA or simply Louise) is to increase the understanding of transgender people and encourage new scholarship by making transgender historical materials available to students, scholars and the public.

The archive is named in honor of Northern California transgender pioneer Louise Lawrence, who began living full-time as a woman in 1942, first in the Berkeley, CA, then San Francisco. She, along with Virginia Prince and others, published the first incarnation of Transvestia in 1952. Louise’s address book was the initial subscription list and she was instrumental in developing the trans community’s connection to pioneering sex researchers such as Alfred Kinsey and Harry Benjamin. MORE BIOGRAPHICAL INFO HERE

Louise Warmly Welcomes You

A Message from Ms. Bob Davis

Founder and director of Louise Lawrence Transgender Archive

For over 35 years I have been fascinated by the history of my trans community, the people who formed it and those who preceded it. The first transgender magazine I bought was the premiere issue of Female Mimics International in 1979. By the early 1990s I had accumulated a rich trove of transgender history, information that many in the community wanted to see. I began to share the archive by writing history columns for trans community publications such as Lady Like, Transgender Community News and Transgender Tapestry. Many of these articles are available at the Transgender Forum archive www.tgforum.com. I have presented lectures on trans history at conferences such as the 2nd International Congress on Crossdressing, Sex and Gender, California Dreamin’, and Fantasia Fair (2014). By 2000, scholars of transgender history had begun requesting access to my archive because of its depth and the rarity of its holdings.

The LOUISE LAWRENCE TRANSGENDER ARCHIVE is the next logical step, a community-based institution that will make this important collection available to scholars and the public. The history of marginalized communities is elusive, imperiled and best preserved by the community itself. The LLTA will preserve transgender history and encourage its study.

An Interview with Ms. Bob with David Perry’s 10 Percent Show

WELCOME TO THE LOUISE LAWRENCE TRANSGENDER ARCHIVE
A film by Lorin Murphy featuring Ms. Bob Davis, Founder, LLTA

Official Selection - San Francisco Transgender Film Festival 2025

Previous Museum Exhibitions

I Live the Life I Love Because I Love the Life I Live

A Celebration of Trans People of Color

Presented by LLTA & GLBT Historical Society

November 2025

A Pride of Transgender Posters

Presented by LLTA at The Vallejo Museum June 2025

Doris Fish: Ego As Artform

Presented by LLTA & GLBT Historical Society March 2023

Reprised at The Vallejo Museum June 2024

Center Stage

Contributing Partner

Vacaville Museum Jan-June 2026

Online Exhibitions

ETVC Newsletter Archive

Educational Transvestite Channel (ETVC) was founded in 1982, making it one of the country’s oldest continuously active, independent transgender social and support groups. Unlike groups with restrictive membership policies, ETVC has always been inclusive; open, and welcoming to anyone transgender, trans-curious, or trans-allied. They established a support group for couples, published educational materials, and partied with other San Francisco LGBTQ organizations such as The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, The Imperial Court of San Francisco, and the trans-masculine support group FTM International.

VISIT THE ETVC ARCHIVES

Denise was a member of the nascent, mid-20^th century transgender community and her scrapbooks include almost 100 candid photographs of other cross-dressers, photos they would share only with their special friends. Some of these photos also appeared in Transvestia, an early transgender community periodical, where they illustrated autobiographical articles exploring gender identity.

Explore the Exhibit

LLTA Photo Galleries

Feminine Presentation

Masculine Presentation

Professional Female Impersonators

Professional Male Impersonators

Trans Activism

LLTA Photo Gallery

With gratitude for the support of:

Horizons Foundation

LEF Foundation / California

Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence

Small Change Foundation

St. Francis Lutheran Church Endowment

LLTA is a sponsored project of the GLBT Historical Society

DONATE NOW TO SUPPORT THE LLTA

Your donation to the LLTA is tax deductible thanks to our partnership with the GLBT Historical Society of San Francisco. Please help us carry out our mission to preserve our transgender history.

"The history of marginalized communities is elusive, imperiled and best preserved by the community itself."

The goal of the Louise Lawrence Transgender Archive (LLTA or simply Louise) is to increase the understanding of transgender people and encourage new scholarship by making transgender historical materials available to students, scholars and the public.