News

Log Cabin Will House Its Archival Material at the University of Minnesota's Tretter Collection

Tretter Collection Among Top GLBT Historical Archives

March 1, 2006

(Minneapolis, MN) – Log Cabin Republicans will house its historical archives in the Tretter Collection at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.

"We're excited to announce this agreement with the Tretter Collection," said Log Cabin President Patrick Guerriero who visited the Tretter Collection last summer. "This is an important step in safeguarding material related to Log Cabin's history so future historians will have a clear picture about the role of gay conservatives in the fight for equality."

"Log Cabin's Board of Directors decided on the Tretter Collection after a search process that included several other institutions around the country. This is the best facility to house Log Cabin's historical material," said Log Cabin Board Chairman Tim Schoeffler. "We're grateful for the opportunity to have our work preserved for generations to come."

The Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies houses over 30,000 items in a wide variety of media related to GLBT communities and the fight for equality. The international collection has items that go back as far as 4,000 years. The collection also maintains recent materials, including current editions of GLBT periodicals. While books are the core of the collection, the archives also include historical papers, letters, memoirs, photos, and other items.

"It's important we create a historical legacy to pass along to future generations," said Collection historian and archiver Jean Tretter. "We're happy the work of Log Cabin will be a part of the legacy of the GLBT movement."

"With some of Log Cabin's founders and early leaders passing on, it was critical for us to find a place capable of preserving the documents that tell our story," said Leonard Olds of Laguna Beach, CA, a longtime member and leader of Log Cabin. "Our history was in danger of being lost. Now I'm happy to say it will be preserved so that when the history books are written about the GLBT movement, gay conservatives can be included in that story."

"This discussion about preserving Log Cabin's history drives home the fact that everything we do is much bigger than us," added Guerriero. "When we stand up as conservatives for basic fairness and equality for gay Americans, we aren't just seeking our own equality. We're seeking to secure equality for future generations of gay and lesbian Americans so that they don't have to endure the struggles that we and, to a much greater extent, those generations that went before us, have had to endure. This is a proud day for Log Cabin Republicans."

Log Cabin leaders and chapter organizers around the country will send items to the Tretter Collection archives. These items and all others in the collection are available for viewing at the Tretter Collection facilities at the University of Minnesota's Minneapolis campus.

The University of Minnesota Libraries is one of the university's and the state's greatest intellectual and capital assets. Housed in 14 facilities on three Twin Cities campuses, the University Libraries' collections contain 6.2 million print volumes, making it the 15th largest research library collection in North America.