Photos: www.HistoryProject.org; Tommy Tish Collection.

Published May 28, 2010, in Timelines, newsletter of the History Project, an archive of Boston's GLBT history. History Defies Easy Conclusions: Gay bar photographs from the early 1970s by Mark T. Krone As a volunteer at The History Project, it's a privilege to sift through the treasures of the generous donors who let us into their lives. I can think of no other field where the axiom "the personal is political" is truer than GLBT history. By illuminating the struggles, triumphs, celebrations and ordinariness of everyday life, our donors come out to history. The tender care of The History Project ensures that these individuals and the artifacts of their lives will never be pushed back into the closet. The very existence of these artifacts--from bar matchbooks to political manifestos--is a loud reminder that we were and are everywhere. That Boston's GLBT history is often neglected does not make it fringe history; it is Boston's history. But it is the neglect of many mainstream historians that adds a feeling of urgency to the work I do. No matter how simple or mundane the work is, I always feel honored to do it. Recently, I was asked to sort through a collection of photographs from the late-1960s/early-1970s given to The History Project by Tommy Tish. The goal was to determine which photos belonged together. Whether they were taken on the same night? Were the same people in different photos? Did background interiors provide clues to location or time? Fortunately, many displayed the month and year they were developed on the photograph's white borders, a common practice at that time. The largest group of photos was taken at a bar on Halloween. That year, Halloween fell on a Friday, which no doubt added to the celebratory mood. By current standards, the bar would probably not pass muster. The walls were wood paneled in some areas, making it look like a 1950s rec room. Wallpaper covered other areas. Cool in its day, the wallpaper depicted road signs: STOP!, SLOW DOWN!, DEER CROSSING. There were no light shows, no monitors, and no DJs. In a nod to Halloween, a few orange and black balloons hang on the walls. A few men are in drag, which looks sophisticated and adds to the festive atmosphere. The drag seems to me somehow more earnest than comedic. A shirtless, hunky young man with a mustache sits at a table with a trophy in front of him, apparently a contest winner. The modest decorations and appointments of the bar suggest a simpler, more closeted bar scene. However, the open, exuberant sex depicted in some of the pictures portrayed a more libertine time, reminding me that history defies easy conclusions. Either way, the photos capture the warm, amber glow of a Boston bar on Halloween in the early 1970s, where a group of men enjoyed a night out.