Libraries Guide to lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) resources

Sources held nationally

  • The National Archives have a useful source guide on Gay and Lesbian History.
  • Hall-Carpenter Archives (HCA) at the London School of Economics are Britain's major resource for the study of lesbian and gay activism in the UK. Over thirty lesbian and gay organisations and activists have deposited records with HCA. Further information can be found on their website. They also host a directory of lesbian and gay research in UK universities and colleges.
  • Hall-Carpenter Archives Oral History Project have collections of over 120,000 press cuttings covering all aspects of gay life from the 1930s to the present. LAGNA also has a library of approximately 500 titles on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender subjects.
  • Lesbian and Gay News Media Archive - Learning Resources Centre, Cat Hill Campus, Middlesex University, Barnet, Hertfordshire, EN4 8HT, Tel: 020 8311 6683/4933. This archive holds collections of over 120,000 press cuttings covering all aspects of gay life from the 1930s to the present. LAGNA also has a library of approximately 500 titles on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender subjects.
  • British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and it receives a copy of every publication produced in the UK. It holds some Manchester LGBT publications, such as complete sets of Mancunian Gay 1981 to 1986, Gay Life 1986, and Scene Out 1989. The library catalogue can be searched on the British Library website.
  • King's College, Cambridge has an excellent online archive including digital images of personal and academic records from the Turing Archive at King's College, Cambridge (ref PP/AMT). More information on Alan Turing is maintained by Turing's biographer, Andrew Hodges.
  • Genesis is a free online resource for women's history comprising a dataset and a guide for researchers. A search of the dataset includes links to lesbian collections. The guide for researchers includes lots of suggested institutions which may help you track down lesbian collections.
  • Archives Hub provides a gateway to thousands of the UK's archives held in higher education repositories and more. The subject index tool is particularly useful.
  • The Lesbian Archive and Information Centre (LAIC) - the Lesbian Archives Collective was established in London in 1984 and its archives were transferred to Glasgow Women's Library in 1995. Collections include lesbian periodicals such as Arena 3, The Ladder, and Sappho and newsletters of local groups from across the UK, records of the campaigner and journalist, Jackie Forster; oral histories; campaign materials; and collections from organisations such as the Camden Lesbian Centre and Black Lesbian Group.
  • TUC Library Collections - hold material relating to gay, lesbian and transgender workers and trade union.
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