The timeline was created to offer a more inclusive perspective that pairs important moments in LGBTQ+ history in Delaware and across America throughout time. While this list is not exhaustive of all important historical moments in Delaware, it aims to provide context to the stories included in this project, while also illustrating the continuing challenges and successes of the Gay Rights Movement.
Delaware Focused Events
United States Focused Events
For thousands of years before the European invasion of America, the Indigenous people of Lenapehoking (the land we call Delaware) did not hold limiting beliefs or leadership roles for specific genders. In fact, they were a matrilineal community that thrived in the absence of restrictive gender roles and standards later prescribed by Christian Europeans.
In the early years of the European invasion, single, young, white men typically populated the colonies without the company of women. Scholars believe that gender imbalance likely led to same-sex sexual encounters.
The colony of Delaware is governed as part of the colony of Pennsylvania. As such, Quaker laws pertaining to the crime of “sodomy” prescribed corporal punishment and six months in a “house of correction.”
Image: A 1775 map shows Delaware, known at the time as the “Three Lower Counties,” which was part of the colony of Pennsylvania.
A Delaware statute inspired by English law calls for the death penalty for the felony crimes of “sodomy.” This law remained in effect until 1826.
The Lenape lose most of their ancestral lands due to the “Walking Purchase” deed. Many indigenous people move west or are killed by conflict or disease.
Changes in Delaware’s economic structure transformed society. The early nineteenth century saw new improvements in transportation and industry. The Industrial Revolution led to men living and working with other men, and women living and working with other women. Another kind of gender-imbalanced environment was created through these new economic opportunities.
Image: Lithograph poster of the Harlan & Hollingsworth & Company Factory in Wilmington, DE, circa 1850.
Image: Civil War soldiers from the First Delaware Regiment and Guard pose in this photo circa 1861-1865.
Articles about queer people in Delaware appear in local newspapers. While most are about Delaware men being arrested and convicted of sodomy and cross dressing, by contrast, an 1899 article in the Middletown Transcript matter-of-factly describes a well-known person of color named “Ned” Anderson who was well-liked and known to dress in “female attire-bonnet and all.”
Image: A story from the September 5, 1899, edition of The Evening Journal of Wilmington, DE.
William Dorsey Swann, a Black, queer man born into slavery, invents what are known as “drag balls” in Washington, D.C.
The concept and term “homosexuality” is introduced to America with the English translation of Psychopathia Sexualis by Richard von Krafft-Ebing. The text posited that homosexuality was caused by a mental illness.
Edward Bringhurst III is one of the earliest known queer people to have lived in Delaware. He was the youngest of four children, born to the Quaker family, the Bringhursts, who moved into the Rockwood Mansion in 1892.
Image: Edward Bringhurst III/V poses in costume on the south lawn of Rockwood in October 1903.
Dozens of letters, some romantic and some mundane, were shared between lovers and colleagues Edwina Kruse and Alice Dunbar-Nelson shortly after the turn of the century, in Wilmington, DE.
Image: Portraits of Alice Dunbar-Nelson, left, and Edwina Kruse digitally stitched together in a composite.
Delaware amends an existing law in a way that leads to queer people repeatedly convicted of “sodomy” being subject to involuntary sterilization.
Image: An undated aerial view of Delaware State Hospital.
In the 1930s and well into the 1950s, Louisa Carpenter held parties at her family home in Rehoboth Beach where queer people could meet and be themselves.
Image: An undated photograph of Libby Holman (left) and Louisa Carpenter at a horse show in Wilmington, Delaware.
The “Lavender Scare” begins as the U.S. government launches campaigns to fire communists and homosexuals, the latter of whom could be blackmailed into committing espionage.
Image: May 20, 1950, edition of The News Journal, from Wilmington, DE
The American Psychiatric Association’s (APA) first Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders is released, classifying homosexuality as a “sociopathic personality disturbance.”
Americans become involved in the Vietnam War.
Archival subscription orders show that men from all three counties in Delaware subscribed to ONE magazine, a national male homosexual magazine.
Image: A ONE magazine subscription card dated January 22, 1954.
The Daughters of Bilitis, the first lesbian rights organization, was founded.
Wilmington police consult with the state psychiatrist on how law enforcement should handle an increasing number of queer people being charged with lewdness.
Image: A September 13, 1961, edition of The Morning News coverage from Wilmington, DE.
Police increase their presence on Sussex County beaches to rid the area of “homosexuals coming from Baltimore and Washington.”
Image: A July 28, 1964, edition of The News Journal in Wilmington, DE.
On June 28, 1969, police raided the Stonewall Inn, a mafia-run gay bar, and instead of fleeing, queer people fought back. The uprising lasts multiple days with thousands of protestors publicly standing up against police discrimination and violence experienced by queer people.
Image: The sign left by police following a June 28, 1969, raid is on display at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich VIllage, New York City.
The first Pride march, the “Christopher Street Liberation Day,” is held in New York City’s Greenwich Village to commemorate the Stonewall Uprising.
The Gay Student Union (GSU) at the University of Delaware is formed.
Image: An advertisement for the Gay Student Union appeared in The Review, the University of Delaware’s student newspaper, on September 26, 1980.
APA removes homosexuality from the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.
Thanks to five years of lobbying by Robert Vane and Human Enlightenment Inc., Delaware repeals its anti-sodomy laws, effectively making homosexuality legal in Delaware.
Image: The Morning News, in Wilmington, DE, covers Robert Vane’s lobbying efforts in this edition dated February 6, 1973.
Anyda Marchant and Muriel Crawford of Rehoboth Beach co-found Naiad Press to publish Marchant’s lesbian fiction novels under the name Sarah Aldridge.
Image: Anyda Marchant (left) and Muriel Crawford pose for a photo at their home on Ann-B Street in Rehoboth Beach in 1959.
A transgender woman prisoner named Sharon Davis (born Roger) is refused a “sex-change operation” and is confined to a small hospital room in a men’s prison.
Image: A July 2, 1975, edition of The Morning News, in Wilmington, DE, covers the story of Sharon Davis.
Richard Aumiller, University of Delaware theater professor, wins his lawsuit against UD after being denied a contract renewal because of his sexuality.
Image: The Morning News, in Wilmington, DE, reports on June 22, 1977, that Richard Aumiller won his discrimination lawsuit against the University of Delaware.
Ivo Dominguez Jr. and James Welch meet at Newark’s Lobby Bar, one of Delaware’s first gay bars.
Image: The News Journal, in Wilmington, DE, publishes an article on June 23, 1986, about Ivo Dominguez Jr. and James Welch.
“50 Delawareans” March in Washington D.C.’s first National March for Lesbian and Gay Rights.
Image: The October 16, 1979, edition of the University of Delaware’s The Review Covers the “50 Delawareans” March in D.C.
The Renegade Restaurant and bar opens and burns down three months later.
Image: The News Journal, in Wilmington, DE, reports on the arson at the Renegade in this July 3, 1980, edition.
The Gay and Lesbian Alliance of Delaware (GLAD) and GLAD’s Health Issues Committee are established. A statewide hotline for gay and lesbian issues is launched.
Image: An advertisement for GLAD membership appears in the October 11, 1988, edition of The News Journal, of Wilmington, DE.
Delaware confirms its first case of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).
Image: An image of a man carrying a sign that reads “Fight AIDS NOT People with AIDS,” appears in the October 15, 1989 edition of The News Journal of Wilmington, DE.
Hen’s Teeth, Delaware’s first queer bookstore, opens in Wilmington.
Image: Hen’s Teeth Bookstore, shown in this photo circa 1984, was located at 6 E. 7th Street in Wilmington, DE.
Delaware’s first AIDS service organization, Delaware Lesbian and Gay Health Advocates (DLGHA) is founded.
Image: A July 30, 1989, edition of The News Journal, in Wilmington, DE, shares information about DLGHA.
Delaware’s first LGBTQ+ community center (the Griffin Community Center) opens in Wilmington.
Image: The original facade of 214 N. Market Street in Wilmington is shown here before the building was transformed into the Griffin Community Center.
Activist Stephen Swain, Delaware’s first person living openly with AIDS, dies.
Image: The Morning News, of Wilmington, DE, reports on Steven Swain’s death in 1986.
DLGHA spearheads the first AIDS Awareness Week in Delaware.
Image: The first annual AIDS Walk for Life was held at Rodney Square in Wilmington, DE
Former state Rep. Bradford Barnes attempts to reinstate the sodomy law, but other lawmakers block his proposal.
Image: The Morning News of Wilmington, DE, publishes an article on April 29, 1987, about state Rep. Bradford Barnes’s public apology.
DLGHA stages Delaware’s first organized Die-In at Rodney Square in Wilmington.
Image: A May 19, 1988, edition of The News Journal of Wilmington, DE, covers the “Die-In” in Wilmington.
Murray Archibald and Steve Elkins launch CAMP Rehoboth and its free monthly newsletter, Letters from CAMP Rehoboth, in response to rampant homophobia in Sussex County.
Image: Shown here are some of the very first editions from the 1990s of Letters from CAMP Rehoboth.
Rehoboth Beach police institute sensitivity training for working with the area’s queer community.
Image: The June 25, 1992, edition of Letters from CAMP Rehoboth (Volume 2, No. 5) shares details about the training.
Hate crimes are committed against three men on the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk, leaving one with permanent brain damage.
Image: A May 18, 1993, edition of The News Journal in Wilmington, DE, covers the violent Rehoboth Beach hate crimes.
President Bill Clinton signs the Defense of Marriage Act, effectively outlawing states from recognizing same-sex marriages.
Delaware Pride organizes Delaware’s first “Pride Festival” in Wilmington’s Rodney Square.
Image: The second annual Delaware Pride Festival in 1998.
Then-Governor Thomas Carper signs Senate Bill 53, increasing the penalty for crimes committed against anyone targeted solely because of sexual orientation.
Image: A July 13, 1997 edition of The News Journal of WIlmington, DE, covers the legalization of Senate Bill 53.
Matthew Shepard is abducted and murdered in Wyoming.
Image: Photo of the memorial bench for Mathew Shepard from July 2, 2010
Family Court of Delaware rules that gay couples can legally adopt.
Image: An October 16, 2001, edition of The News Journal of Wilmington, DE, covers a local courts ruling related to same-sex couples adopting children.
After more than a decade of deliberation, Delaware passes Senate Bill 121, prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Image: Former Delaware Governor Jack Markell, right, joins Steve Elkins, left, and Drew Fennell, after signing Senate Bill 121 into law.
Senate Bill 30 legalizes civil unions. Lisa Goodman and Drew Fennell become the first Delaware couple to receive a civil union.
Image: A January 2, 2012, edition of The News Journal from Wilmington, DE, reports on Delaware’s first civil unions.
House Bill 75 legalizes same-sex marriage in Delaware. Sen. Karen Peterson and Vikki Bandy become the first couple to unite in a same-sex marriage in Delaware.
Image: Karen Peterson and Vikki Bandy are greeted by a crowd of supporters after their marriage ceremony at the Clerk of the Peace’s office in Wilmington on July 1, 2013
Senate Bill 97, the Gender Identity Non-Discrimination Act, passes during the same legislative session (making Delaware the only state to pass two landmark queer rights bills in the same session).
Image: A Rainbow version of Delaware’s state flag.
The Supreme Court declares same-sex marriage legal in the U.S. (Obergefell v. Hodges).
Image: A crowd outside of the Supreme Court gathers to celebrate the legalization of same-sex marriage on June 26, 2015.
Trinity Neal becomes the first minor in Delaware to have Medicaid cover her gender-affirming care, setting a precedent for other low-income transgender youth.
Image: Trinity Neal in 2017 wearing her rainbow wig outside of her home in Wilmington, DE.
The first New Castle County Youth Pride Festival is held.
Image: The first New Castle County Youth Pride Festival organized by DeShanna Neal and Keonna Freeman.
Senate Bill 65 passes, banning harmful conversion therapy for LGBTQ+ youth.
Drag show icon Thomas “Tj” Bunting Jr. is murdered in a hate crime in Dover.
Image: The February 26, 2018, edition of The News Journal of Wilmington, DE, included coverage of the community response to the murder of Thomas “Tj” Bunting Jr.
Delaware voters elect three openly queer people to the state General Assembly: Sen. Sarah McBride, Sen. Marie Pinkney, and Rep. Eric Morrison.
Image: Sen. Marie Pinkney, left, Rep. Eric Morrison, middle, and Sen. Sarah McBride pose during a 2022 Annual Pride photoshoot.
McBride becomes the highest-ranking transgender official in the country.
Image: McBride on the State Senate floor on March 10, 2022.
I Am Me Inc., an LGBTQ+ nonprofit, is founded to offer safe social spaces with programs that uplift and unify the LGBTQ+ community.
Image: (Left to right) Angel Brown, Dyon Hill, Latoya Baker, Makena Wormley, Vonderlear Smack and Peirrce McCoy, members of the I Am Me. Inc. board, pose for a photograph at a Sunday Tea event in 2022.
Two more openly queer people are elected to the state legislature: Rep. Kerri Evelyn Harris and Rep. DeShanna Neal.
Image: State Rep. DeShanna Neal (top) and Rep. Kerri Evelyn Harris were elected in 2022.
House Bill 142 passes, banning the LGBTQ+ panic defense
Image: State Rep. Eric Morrison (left) and Senator Sarah McBride holding the signed House Bill 142 in September 2023.
