University of New Mexico UNM Digital Repository History ETDs Electronic Theses and Dissertations 9-1-2015 Uncommon Knowledge: A History of Queer New Mexico, 1920s-1980s Jordan Biro Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/hist_etds Part of the History Commons Recommended Citation Biro, Jordan. "Uncommon Knowledge: A History of Queer New Mexico, 1920s-1980s." (2015). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/ hist_etds/8 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Electronic Theses and Dissertations at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in History ETDs by an authorized administrator of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Jordan Biro Walters Candidate HISTORY Department This dissertation is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication: Approved by the Dissertation Committee: Virginia Scharff, Chairperson Cathleen Cahill Andrew K. Sandoval-Strausz Peter Boag UNCOMMON KNOWLEDGE: A HISTORY OF QUEER NEW MEXICO, 1920S-1980S BY JORDAN BIRO WALTERS B.A., History, California State University Sacramento, 2004 M.A., Public History, California State University, 2009 DISSERTATION Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy History The University of New Mexico Albuquerque, New Mexico July, 2015 ©2015, Jordan Biro Walters iii DEDICATION For my husband, David. May we always share the quest for knowledge together. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First and foremost, I thank all of the oral history participants from whom I’ve learned. Their narratives have given clarity of purpose to this project. The participants whom I interviewed include, Ginger Chapman, Vangie Chavez, Therese Councilor, Ronald Dongahe, Jean Effron, Zonnie Gorman, Bennett A. Hammer, Barbara Korbal, Havens Levitt, Ann Nihlen, Margaret Randall, Linda Siegle, Tanya Struble, Martha Trolin, Nancy Tucker, Helene Vann, and Rich Williams. I received financial and academic support for my oral histories from The Hammer Educational LGBT Archives Project. The Archives Project offered both resources to help me conduct oral histories and a repository space to preserve the interviews. I owe a special thanks to Barbara Korbal and Bennett A. Hammer who took me under their wing and introduced me to New Mexico’s LGBT life. I am tremendously grateful to the archivists, staff, and volunteers at the Gay, Lesbian Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society (GLBTHS) in San Francisco; the Lesbian Herstory Archives in Brooklyn; the New York and San Francisco Public Libraries; the ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives in Los Angeles; the Center for Southwest Research (CSWR), a part of the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque; New Mexico State Records and Archives in Santa Fe; and the Fray Angélico Chávez History Library, part of the Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe. Special thanks go to Director of CSWR, Mike Kelly, who first directed me to many sources on queer New Mexico, and CSWR Archivist Beth Silbergleit, my dear friend and colleague. I owe extra recognition to Marjorie Bryer, archivist at the GLBTHS. I recognize various institutions for the economic resources that made this research possible: the Feminist Research Institute at the University of New Mexico for their research v grant, the Dean’s Dissertation Scholarship at the University of New Mexico, the Southwest Oral History Association at the University of Nevada Las Vegas for a research grant, the Office of the New Mexico State Historian for the support of the New Mexico History Scholarship, and the Department of History at the University of New Mexico for the one-year Dorothy Woodward Memorial Fellowship. A network of scholars has inspired, supported, and challenged me. First, I wish to acknowledge my dissertation committee for all of their help in guiding this project to completion. I am especially indebted to my advisor, Dr. Virginia Scharff for her many edits of the project, conversations about its significance, and most importantly, for teaching me invaluable lessons on writing clearly and creatively. I also owe Virginia a debt of gratitude for all of her years of advice. Here’s to making new histories. It is because of Dr. Cathleen Cahill’s masterful example of U.S. West scholarship that weaves issues of race, gender, and power together that I have sharpened my own historical analysis. Professor Cahill has also provided countless hours of moral support. Dr. Andrew Sandoval-Strausz gave me the knowledge and confidence to identify as an urbanist. I learned the most from his seminar “Transnationalizing Urban History.” Dr. Peter Boag’s scholarship and comments on this project have pushed me to embrace the complexities and theoretical ideas surrounding queer history. Without my committee members none of this would have been possible. I have been academically nurtured at the University of New Mexico by many talented scholars. Numerous times I turned to Dr. Melissa Bokovoy and Dr. Michael Ryan for their sage advice on best practices for excellence in professionalism, research, and teaching. I am indebted to Dr. Eliza Ferguson for her mentorship of my teaching and encouragement of my scholarship. Dr. Durwood Ball and Dr. Sam Truett both provided me with guidance on comprehending the vi complexities of New Mexico history. I am thankful for professors Jason Scott Smith, Elizabeth Hutchison, Erika Monahan, Judy Bieber, Tiffany Florvil, David Prior, Caleb Richardson, Charlie Steen, Luis Campos, and Shannon Withycombe. I also need to thank the office administrators – Yolanda Martinez, Helen Ferguson, Dana Ellison, and Barbara Wafer –for all their assistance over the years. I am fortunate to have amazing colleagues and to be a part of the “UNM mafia”. Amy Scott offered sound guidance on chapter four of this dissertation and challenged me to think broadly about how my work advances historians’ understanding of the interconnected nature of post-sixties social movement politics. I have benefited from the advice of Kent Blansett on how to approach queer indigenous histories. Additionally, several scholars outside of the University of New Mexico assisted with this dissertation. Jon Hunner and Rebecca Ullrich helped with locating sources in order to tell the narrative of the rise of the national security apparatus in New Mexico. Sylvia Rodriquez offered her insights into exploring Santa Fe and Taos’ queer history across classes and ethnic groups. Conversations with Flannery Burke on homosexuality in 1920s New Mexico influenced the structure and framing of chapter one. I must especially acknowledge the generosity and support of fellow LGBT scholars. I would like to thank, Gayle Rubin for her kind and repeated offers to assist me with my project; Jerry Lee Kramer guided me with framing a non-urban LGBT project; Daniel Hurwitz, who commented on my first conference paper as a graduate student all the way to my last, has provided valuable insights on many iterations of my dissertation. I look forward to our roundtable discussion on the manuscript. Jonathan Ned Katz opened his home to LGBT scholars during the 2015 American Historical Association Annual meeting. He threw a rocking party vii where early scholars of LGBT history mixed with a new generation of LGBT historians. Nowhere else in the academic world have I felt so welcomed and supported. I have found my home. Graduate school has been both rewarding and challenging. I would not have survived it if it weren’t for lifelong friends. I am proud to have been a part of the Happy Fun-Time History Club a space where fellow graduate students celebrated friendship, commiserated on the trials of graduate school, and continued to hone our intellectual thinking. Thanks to Bryan Turo, Julian Dodson, Becky Ellis, Chris Steinke, Brandon Morgan, Ian Winchester, Scott Crago, and Jen McPherson. I have relished our gatherings and look forward to many more even as we scatter and move on from the University of New Mexico. I am lucky to have amazing friends who buoy my spirits and are inspiring thinkers. Tom O’Donnell and Chelsea Taylor Del Rio have provided astute breakdowns of the personal and the political. I treasure our adventures together including intellectual conversations, Feminist History Nerds blogging, cocktails, conferences, and elevator rides. I would be lost without my dearest friend, Jen McPherson. Your kind patience, sharp thinking, and great fun have kept me sane in the wild world of academics. I look forward to always making good trouble with you. I am eternally thankful for my family, who stood by my decision to embark on the journey of graduate school and the path to become a professor of history. My parents’ constant encouragement motivated me to stay on my path and believe in myself. My brothers Martin Biro and Nick LaSpina housed and fed me on my many research trips to New York. They also provide lots of love and care. To all of my grandparents, Alex and Ethel Biro and Mary Georgia Boyd, you have given me the greatest gift of all: unconditional love. viii UNCOMMON KNOWLEDGE: A HISTORY OF QUEER NEW MEXICO, 1920S-1980S by Jordan Biro Walters B.A. HISTORY, CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, SACRAMENTO, 2004 M.A. PUBLIC HISTORY, CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, SACRAMENTO, 2009 PH.D. HISTORY, UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO, 2015 ABSTRACT New Mexico, the heart of the American Southwest, has been home to countless gay men and lesbians throughout the twentieth century. This dissertation explores the state’s LGBTQ past and investigates the connections and