The GLBT Historical Society, which hosts the GLBT History Museum at 4127 18th St. in the Castro, has announced that it will be moving its extensive archives from their current location at Mission & New Montgomery to 989 Market St., near Sixth.
According to an announcement made by the society yesterday, “We were running out of space at our Mission Street location—and a rent hike at the end of the lease prompted us to look for a new home.”
After a year of searching, the GLBT Historical Society found a suitable location for their archives that will provide more space for their collections, researchers, visitors, and staff. The nonprofit notes that its archives preserve over 100 years of GLBT documents, artifacts, and stories.
"But the move will not be cheap," the society states on an Indiegogo campaign created to raise money for the process. "Archives must be handled by expert movers, and the sheer volume of irreplaceable papers, recordings, film, photographs, art and artifacts is challenging. The total cost will exceed $35,000."
It should be noted that the GLBT History Museum, which recently celebrated its five-year anniversary in the Castro, isn't going anywhere. But the off-site archives are set to be transferred in a two-month process starting in May.
For more details, check out the GLBT Historical Society's Indiegogo page, which features Executive Director Terry Beswick and Managing Archivist Joanna Black, plus some notable artifacts from the archives (which include the original rainbow flag, over 1,000 t-shirts, and a whole lot more).
