University of Victoria Trans Archive

[Shana A]

University of Victoria Trans Archive
Posted by helenboyd – October 15, 2012

http://www.myhusbandbetty.com/2012/10/15/university-of-victoria-trans-archive/

How cool is this? University of Victoria has an archive of transgender materials - from Reed Erickson, Ari Kane, Virginia Prince, and other people who collected significant trans history.

From the Archivists:

    The Transgender Archives at the University of Victoria holds the world's largest collection of archival material related to modern transgender activism and research.

    The University of Victoria is committed to preserving the history of pioneering activists, community leaders, and researchers working for the betterment of transgender people.  Our collection began in 2007 with the generous donation by Ms. Rikki Swin of the entire contents of the extensive Rikki Swin Institute. Included were almost 500 transgender newsletters; papers and memorabilia of Virginia Prince, one of the founders of transgender activism; twenty years of history of Fantasia Fair, the longest-running TG convention (37 years and counting); key documents from activist Ariadne Kane; and papers from the founders of the International Foundation for Gender Education. Other major holdings include the personal papers of transgender pioneer, philanthropist, and activist Reed Erickson, founder of the Erickson Educational Foundation; legal documents from the Kimberly Nixon vs. Vancouver Rape Relief case; records of Vancouver transsexual support organization the Zenith Foundation; and more.


archive here:

http://transgenderarchives.uvic.ca/

[Shana A]

UVic now has the largest transgender archive in the world

'Sex is between your legs, gender between your ears'

By Katherine Dedyna, Times Colonist October 31, 2012 6:04 AM

http://www.timescolonist.com/UVic+collection+puts+LGBT/7474909/story.html

Back in 1960, men keen to dress like the women of Mad Men didn't have the Internet to curate their interests, secrets and problems. One of their only outlets was an underground magazine called Transvestia - no larger than the palm of their hands, with similarly tiny typeface.

The 57-page first issue, with a cover sketch depicting a man in boudoir attire, is now among the rarest items at the Transgender Archives at the University of Victoria - believed to be the world's largest collection concerning people who live outside conventional male-female roles.

[...]

UVic's impressive inventory of papers, plaques, photographs, newsletters, certificates, posters and tapes was the gift of Rikki Swin, a one-time Chicago manufacturer of plastic injection moulding who moved to Victoria in 2007.

She founded the Rikki Swin Institute for transgender research and education in 2001 and offered the institute's contents to UVic. With that came the archives of other leading activists such as Ari Kane and Merissa Sherril Lynn.

"We're pretty sure that we have the largest transgender collection of archival and published material in the world," Wilson said.