32. Stealing Horses & Hearts: Trans Vagabonds of the Wild West

In this episode of History is Gay, Leigh and guest host Ashten Hope slap on some cowboy boots and head to the wild west to tip our hats to a slew of badass transgender pioneers. We’ll first meet Harry Allen, a handsome horse-stealing and heart-stealing trans man who was both loved and hated by papers and police across the pacific northwest. Then we’ll dance with the dazzling and talented Mrs. Nash, who’s baking and sewing charmed many a soldier boy. Lastly, prepare to be lassoed by the legendary Charley Parkhurst who was known as one of the best “whips” in all the west. Grab your horse and your headphones and get ready to ride into the fantastic lives of these frontier queers.

But first, let me introduce to you our new friend and guest host for this rootin’ tootin’ episode, Ashten Hope!

Ashten is a teacher in Texas, an avid birder, and runs a cryptid club! They also like to hike with their dog and read comics.

You can find more from Ashten on twitter at @AshtenHope!

A Closer Look at Our Trans Vagabonds of the Wild West

Harry Allen/Harry Livingston (aka Nell Pickerell)

Really, this is just going to be a slew of photos from the IMMENSE pile of newspaper articles we found on him. And when we say pile….

This isn’t even all of them!!!

Harry Allen was a frequent figure in the papers, with scandalous headlines especially focused around his many dramatic relationships. 1908.

Allen was known for his fashion. Truly an icon. We, too, would wear cowboy outfits great deal if we had them, Harry.

Honestly….we’ve seen worse headlines written about trans people in 2020 so….

Harry Allen: a scoundrel of the worst kind! Wearing the WRONG CLOTHES!

And finally, a joke that didn’t make it into the edit of the episode because it just works better visually, behold:

Who wore it better? Harry Allen, the original Florida Man. From Seattle.

Mrs. Nash

The only depiction there is of Mrs. Nash, from New York’s National Police Gazette, February 15, 1879

Charley Parkhurst

Illustration of Charley, showcasing the reason for his “One-Eyed Charley” nickname.

Charley with journalist J. Ross Browne, in an illustration from the 1865 edition of Harper’s Monthly

Charley Parkhurst’s tombstone in Watsonville, CA

The plaque on the Soquel fire station wall that marks and commemorates Charley/Charlie’s voting registration.

If you want to learn more about our wild west trans heroes, check out our full list of sources and further reading below!

Online Articles:

• Knute Berger. “Meet Nell Pickerell, transgender at-risk youth of yesteryear”. Crosscut, June 29, 2014.

• “Those Daring Stage Drivers”. CA Department of Parks and Recreation, 2008.

• A Note on the Historical Accuracy of the Jocker

• Janna Bommersbach. “Homos on the Range: How Gay Was the Wild West?”. True West Magazine, November 1, 2005.

• Sabrina Imbler. "The Forgotten Trans History of the Wild West". Atlas Obscura, June 21, 2019

• Livia Gershon. "The Forgotten Gender Nonconformists of the Old West". JStor Daily, April 27, 2018.

• Curt Eriksmoen. “Two tales of transgender behavior in 1800s Dakotas”. Inforum, October 15, 2016.

• “The Mysterious Mrs. Nash”. Midwestern Scout, April 20, 2016.

• An Essay from 19th Century U.S. Newspapers Database: Newspapers and the Press

• The History of Print from 1850-1899

• David Ng. “‘Out West’ at the Autry examines the history of homosexuals and transgender people in the Old West”. Los Angeles Times, Dec 15, 2009.

• Metroactive Features: Charley Parkhurst

Books and Print Articles:

• Re-Dressing America’s Frontier Past by Peter Boag

• Margaret Walsh. “Women’s Place on the American Frontier”. Journal of American Studies, Vol. 29, No 2. August 1995

• Peter Boag. “Go West Young Man, Go East Young Woman: Searching for the Trans in Western Gender History” in Western Historical Quarterly, Vol. 36, No. 5 (Winter 2005).

• Peter Boag. “The Trouble with Cross-Dressers: Researching and Writing the History of Sexual and Gender Transgressiveness in the Nineteenth-Century American West”, Oregon Historical Quarterly, Vol. 112, No 3. (Fall 2011)

• Elizabeth Reis. “Transgender History at a Crossroads: A Close Reading of a ‘Queer’ Story from 1857”. Early American Studies, Vol. 12, No. 3 (Fall 2014).

Newspaper Articles (where publicly available online, we have provided links!):

• “Thirty Years in Disguise: A Noted Old Californian Stage Driver is Discovered, After Death, To Be a Woman”. New York Times, January 9, 1880. Online.

• “A Woman By Nature – A Man By Choice”. Philadelphia Times, May 6, 1900: 18. Online.

• “Goes By the Name of Harry” Seattle Daily Times, Oct 12, 1901: 5.

• “Dolly Quappe’s Suicide. Loved a Masquerading Girl”. Los Angeles Times, Dec 26, 1901. Online.

• “Nell Pickerell in Court: Her Trial for Throwing a Spitoon at a Saloon Man is Continued”. Seattle Daily Times, Aug 4, 1902: 14.

• “Girl Tries to End Her Life: Pearl Waldron Falls in Love with Notorious Nell Pickerell.”. Seattle Daily Times, Nov 4, 1903: 3.

• “Nell Sees It All”. Seattle Daily Times, Jun 28, 1904: 3.

• “Nell Pickerell Again.”. Seattle Daily Times, Jul 10, 1904: 7.

• “Nell Pickerell Wanted on a Serious Charge”. Seattle Daily Times, Jan 23, 1906: 17.

• “Nell Pickerell Did Not Register: Girl Who Affects Man’s Attire Made No Effort to Be Recorded as a Voter”. Seattle Daily Times, Jan 28, 1906: 2.

• “Woman Declines to Act as Stool Pigeon” Seattle Daily Times, Mar 31, 1906: 7.

• The Notorious Nell Pickerell in Town”. The Ellensburgh Capital, Feb 13, 1907. Online.

• “Nell Pickerell in the Toils Again” Seattle Daily Times, Mar 23, 1907: 2.

• “Deadly Love Trap of the Youth Who is a Girl”, The Seattle Sunday Times, Jan 12, 1908.

• “Strange Story of a Seattle Girl”, San Diego Union and Daily Bee, Mar 22, 1908.

• “Nell Pickerell Tended Bar in Montana Town”. Seattle Daily Times, Apr 27, 1908

• “How Catherine Madden Fell a Victim to Strong Drink; Why Nell Pickerell Will Not Wear Women’s Clothing”. The Spokesman Review, Oct 22, 1911: 24. Online.

• “Nell Pickerell Returning to Jail”. The Spokesman Review, Nov 15, 1911: 5. Online.

• “Nell Pickerell Denies Her Sex; Woman Who Dresses in Male Attire Starts Story She Is a ‘Real Man’; Rumor Causes Sensation”. The Spokesman Review, Nov 22, 1911: 6. Online.

• “Fighter, Bootlegger and ‘Bad Man’ is Miss Pickerell For Love of Whom Three Women Have Killed Themselves”. Tacoma Times, April 12, 1912. Online.

• “Woman Jailed”. Seattle Daily Times, Apr 22, 1912: 19.

• “Trousered Woman Bites Policeman”. Seattle Daily Times, July 22, 1915: 2.

• “Woman is Freed”. Seattle Daily Times, Aug 19, 1915: 11.

• “Nell Pickerell Stabbed”. Seattle Daily Times, Sept 27, 1916: 5.

• “Nell Pickerell May Die of Wounds”. Seattle Star, Sept 27, 1916. Online.

• “Nell Pickerell Asks $50 Pay for Services”. Seattle Daily Times, Jul 1, 1917: 19.

• “Nell Pickerell is Dead: Masqueraded as Man, Attracting Attention Here.” Seattle Daily Times, Dec 22, 1922: 11.

• “Nell Pickerell Dead". Seattle Star, Dec 28, 1922. Online.

Until next time, stay queer and stay curious!

31. The Gaymother of Rock n' Roll, O.G. Electric Lady: Sister Rosetta Tharpe

Holy crap, y’all! It’s already AUGUST. Somehow this year has simultaneously lasted forever and also gone by way too quickly. We’re back in your podcatchers today with a new episode, this time introducing you all to the Godmother (or Gaymother) of Rock n’ Roll, the original stadium rockstar, and badass Black woman guitar virtuoso, Sister Rosetta Tharpe! Think Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry invented rock n’ roll? Think again! Sister Rosetta was shredding on guitar way before them, and it’s time she gets the credit she is due. She broke boundaries wherever she went, straddling the line between worldly and chaste, secular and gospel, and loved both men and women.

But first, let me introduce to you our friend and fantastic guest host for this episode, Aubree Calvin!

You can also find more from Aubree online below:

• www.aubreecalvin.com

• Aubree Writes on Facebook

• @BreeinTX on Twitter

Aubree, or Bree to her friends and enemies alike, is a black, queer trans woman on the edge of turning 40. A southerner for most of her life, Aubree has family roots across the south. She loves studying politics, history, and learning about all aspects of queer culture. Aubree started her podcast, Southern Queeries, because she’s tired of society ignoring the south's diverse communities. Professionally, Aubree is a community college government professor and part time writer. When not talking, teaching, or writing, Aubree’s spending her free time with her wonderful wife and daughter.

Aubree and Leigh met through the Friends of Nancy facebook group (RIP Nancy Podcast), and we’re excited to have her join us for this episode and more!

You can hear more from Aubree on her brand new podcast with co-host India Bastien, Southern Queeries, all about LGBTQ life in the south! The first episodes just dropped, and are fantastic!

A Closer Look at Sister Rosetta Tharpe

publicity photo of Sister Rosetta in 1938 shortly after she had been signed to decca records, photo by james j. kriegsmann

Rosetta and marie, photographed together as a duo

Rosetta and Marie Knight signing autographs in st. louis after a show, 1947.

You could (and still can) actually purchase a record of the entire wedding ceremony/concert!

Please be delighted with us to listen to a portion of the wedding ceremony, where you can hear the absolute showmanship and pageantry! The preacher even continually pokes fun at the idea of Rosetta “obeying” Russell!

A selection of Rosetta’s music and performances:

Sister Rosetta Tharpe in an excerpt from the 1964 Granada television production of the Blues and gospel train. Filmed in the then disused Chorlton railway st...

Sister Rosetta Tharpe - Up Above My Head (I hear music in the air) unknown performance date (appox. around the 1960's) on the show TV Gospel Time with the Ol...

Finally, in 2018, Rosetta was inducted into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame. This video has some fantastic footage and info! Check it out:

If you want to learn more about Sister Rosetta Tharpe, check out our full list of sources and further reading below!

Film:

• The Godmother of Rock & Roll: Sister Rosetta Tharpe, by Mick Csaky, 2014. You can watch it in entirety below on Vimeo:

Online Articles:

• “The Most Elaborate Wedding Ever Staged: Sister Rosetta Tharpe at Griffith Stadium”

• Marie Knight Dies at 84: gospel vocalist sang with Sister Rosetta Tharpe

• Her Gospel Truth

Books and Print Articles:

• Shout, Sister, Shout!: the Untold Story of Rock and Roll Trailblazer Sister Rosetta Tharpe by Gayle Wald

• Singing in my soul black gospel music in a secular age, Jackson, Jerma A. author, 2004 “Chapter 4: With Her Spirituals in Swing Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Gospel, and Popular Culture

• The Fan Who Knew To Much: Aretha Franklin, The Rise of the Soap Opera, Children of the Gospel Church and Other Meditations by Anthony Heilbut

• Pentecostals in America “Chapter 3:Gender, Sexualities, and Pentecostalism” Arlene Sanchez Walsh 2018

• Rocking the Closet: How Little Richard, Johnnie Ray, Liberace, and Johnny Mathis Queered Pop Music . Vincent L. Stephens Series: New Perspectives on Gender in Music Copyright Date: 2019 Published by: University of Illinois Press

• “From Spirituals to Swing: Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Gospel Crossover” by Gayle Wald in American Quarterly vol 55

Until next time, stay queer and stay curious!