Title: Allen Young Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1962-2000

Creator:

• Young, Allen, 1941-

Call Number: Mss 520; Audio 1390A; PH Mss 520

Quantity: 8.8 cubic feet (22 archives boxes), 7 tape recordings, 59 photographs, and 5 negatives

Repository:

Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Abstract:

Papers of Allen Young, a New Left journalist and prominent gay liberation writer and activist. Young wrote extensively on the social action movement and radical activities in the late 1960s and wrote and edited a handful of pioneering books about gays and lesbians in the 1970s. These include his 1971 gay manifesto “Out of the Closet,” “Lavender Culture: Vision of Lesbians and Gay Men,” and “The Gay Report,” by Young and Karla Jay. The bulk of the collection consists of incoming correspondence and a small amount of outgoing correspondence from 1963 to 2000. The letters illuminate his fellow activists' thoughts on social and political issues ranging from the impact of AIDS on the gay community in the 1980s and 1990s to the persecution of gays in Communist Cuba. Other topics covered include environmental activism, communal living, and the natural landscape of western Massachusetts. Also included are article drafts, manuscripts, reviews, subject files, and other materials relating to Young's books and his career as a writer. In addition there are taped interviews with writer Allen Ginsberg and California gay liberation activist Mother Boats.

Note:

There is a restriction on access to and use of this collection; see the Administrative/Restriction Information portion of this finding aid for details.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00520

 ↑ Bookmark this ↑

 ↑ Bookmark this ↑

Allen Young is best known for his work as a New Left journalist and prominent gay liberation writer and activist. He was born in Liberty, New York, on June 30, 1941. He attended Columbia University, where he was active in left-wing causes and organizations, and received a history degree in 1962. He then attended both Stanford University and the Columbia Journalism School, receiving a master's degree from each institution.

Young began his journalism career by working on the local newspaper while still a student in high school. As an undergraduate he was editor of the college newspaper, the Columbia Daily Spectator. After graduation from journalism school, he spent three years in South America freelancing for the Christian Science Monitor, the New York Times and several other American newspapers. During these years Young was also a frequent contributor to Leftist publications and an outspoken critic of American foreign policy.

Returning to the United States in 1967, he worked briefly as a reporter for the Washington Post. He resigned to join Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and to become a staff writer and editor for Liberation News Service (LNS), a newly formed but widely influential press service for underground newspapers and Leftist publications. Young was instrumental in developing the radical politics and analysis that became the hallmark of LNS reporting. He wrote extensively on the social movement and radical activities of the late 1960s. He also served as the press spokesman for SDS at several of its national conventions.

Young left the staff at LNS in 1970 to work full-time in the emerging gay liberation movement. He joined the New York Gay Liberation Front, an organization of radical lesbians and gay men, and participated in the first mass action by gay people, the June 1970 Christopher Street Gay Pride March. In 1973 he moved to a gay commune, Butterworth Farm, located near Royalston, Mass. While Young continued to write on a variety of subjects from a New Left perspective, the gay movement and the struggle against sexism became his primary concern. Besides contributing to various publications, he co-edited with Karla Jay three gay-themed anthologies, including one of the first gay liberation books to be published. His 1981 book Gays Under the Cuban Revolution was the culmination of Young's long-time criticism against gay persecution under Cuba's Communist rule. He lectured at several colleges and was a frequent speaker at demonstrations and meetings. He was also active in the fight against Seabrook Nuclear Power Plant in New Hampshire.

Young's activism decreased in 1979 when he took a full-time job as a newspaper reporter at the Athol Daily News. He grew increasingly involved with local social and environmental concerns, serving as a longtime member of the Millers River Watershed Council and Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust. He also founded the North Quabbin Diversity Awareness group.

In 1983, he founded Millers River Publishing Company, which published about a dozen books on subjects ranging from tourism to poetry before going out of business. He later worked as vice-president for public relations at Athol Memorial Hospital. His particular interests in land preservation and natural resources prompted him to write two popular guidebooks to the North Quabbin region of Massachusetts. Young, the only remaining member of the commune he helped create in 1973, celebrated 30 years at Butterworth Farm in 2003.

Allen Young's articles have appeared in scores of publications, including the Advocate, Fag Rag, Gay Community News, Gay Sunshine, the Guardian, In These Times, Mother Jones, New Left Review, Ramparts, and R.F.D. He has authored or edited the following:

• Out of the Closet: Voices of Gay Liberation  (with Karla Jay). New York: Douglas, 1972. (20th anniversary edition out)
• Allen Ginsberg: Gay Sunshine Interview . Bolinas, Calif.: Greg Fox Press, 1974.
• After You're Out: Personal Experiences of Gay Men and Lesbian Women  (with Karla Jay). New York: Link Books, 1975.
• The Gay Report: Lesbians and Gay Men Speak Out About Sexual Experiences and Lifestyles  (with Karla Jay). New York: Link Books, 1975.
• Lavender Culture: Visions of Lesbians and Gay Men  (with Karla Jay). New York: B.J. Publishing Group, 1979.
• Gays Under the Cuban Revolution . San Francisco: Grey Fox Press, 1981.
• More than sand and sea: images of Cape Cod /quotations edited by Allen Young; wood engravings by G. Brender a Brandis. Carlisle, Ont.: Brandstead Press, 1982.
• Millers River Anthology , Millers River Publishing Co., 1987.
• North of Quabbin: a guide to nine Massachusetts towns : Athol, Erving, New Salem, Orange, Petersham, Phillipston, Royalston, Warwick, Wendell . Millers River Pub. Co., 1983.
• North of Quabbin Revisited: A Guide to Nine Massachusetts Towns North of Quabbin Reservoir . Athol, Mass.: Haley's Antiques and Publishing, 2002.

The emphasis of the collection is on the New Left, gay liberation, and underground literary circles in which Young traveled and is arranged in four series: CORRESPONDENCE, WRITINGS, SUBJECT FILES, and MISCELLANY. The bulk of the collection consists of incoming correspondence and a small amount of outgoing correspondence between 1963 and 2000. Some letters, particularly those found in the writings series under Gays Under the Cuban Revolution, are written in Spanish.

The CORRESPONDENCE series (1962-2000) includes chronologically arranged letters, telegrams, form letters, and cards. The bulk of the series is incoming correspondence, although computer printouts of outgoing correspondence are available from circa 1987 to 1992 and a small amount of outgoing correspondence can be found interspersed within the incoming correspondence. The correspondents are family members, personal friends, underground newspaper editors, radical journalists, gay and lesbian liberation writers and editors, and activists in the student, anti-war and gay movements. Eric Foner, Eric Levine, Michael Meeropol, and Michael Klare were among Young's most important correspondents in the 1960s and 1970s. Topics of primary concern include the Left at Columbia University, campus protests, the anti-war movement, American foreign policy, sexual orientation, the Cuban revolution, the underground press, AIDS, Butterworth Farm commune in western Massachusetts, and the historical and political developments within the gay and lesbian liberation movements. Several letters and telegrams from the Christian Science Monitor, the New York Times, and other newspapers for which Young was a free-lance reporter comment on Young's articles and outline future assignments. There is a fair amount of correspondence with Young's parents, his sister Diane, and his aunt and uncle, Anne and Paul Levin, which provide insight into Young's background and family life. Included are several letters from his parents (1972-1973) when Young acknowledged his sexual orientation. The body of outgoing correspondence illuminates his views on a variety of topics ranging from anti-nuclear activism and communal living to gay rights and local politics.

The WRITINGS series (1962-1995) is organized chronologically by publication date. Materials include uncorrected proofs of The Gay Report, After You're Out and Gays Under the Cuban Revolution. A large body of research material for Lavender Culture is also included. Subject files, correspondence, reviews, and other materials related to Young's monographs can be found in this series. Among the other writings are his Columbia Journalism School papers and newspaper articles on Latin America, newspaper clippings on gay liberation, his 1971 gay manifesto “Out of the Closet,” and his “Orange Juice” columns (circa 1980) from Gay News. Computer printouts of Young's writings (circa 1988-1994) include eulogies, journal entries, and miscellaneous press releases and article drafts. Young's biographical article, “Red Diaper Babies” (presented at a Sixties Generation Conference in 1994), and a narrative family history provide personal information about Young's background. Seven audio cassettes include interviews with Allen Ginsberg (1972, 1982) and Mother Boats (1978). Ginsberg talks about a variety of topics, including his sex life, concerns about totalitarianism of the Left, a gay march on Washington, and his trip to Nicaragua. Mother Boats, a gay liberation figure from Berkeley, Calif., talks about his experiences as a “fascist” student at Oregon State University, his sexual experiences in the Navy, and his involvement in the California-based Gay Liberation Front and Committee for Homosexual Freedom.

The SUBJECT FILES series is arranged alphabetically and contains clippings, correspondence, and other miscellaneous materials used in Young's writings and personal life. A large body of clippings and organizational information about gay culture can be found in this series. Also included are materials about gays in prison, including incoming correspondence from inmate Eddie Rastellini, the subject of articles by Young. Information about the movie, “Improper Conduct,” in which Young was interviewed but did not make the final production, is available.

The MISCELLANY series consists of biographical material and field notes compiled while studying contemporary politics in Latin America. There are also photographs depicting people and places in Latin America as well as photographs of Young. Two folders of writings by others, primarily on gay liberation, include a compilation of articles by David Thorstad titled “Gay Liberation and Socialism.”

Butterworth Farm collection, 1958-2012 (bulk 1973-2004), New York Public Library

Allen Young interview, 2013 July 20-21, on Archive-It for WHS

Access Restrictions

Access to the collection requires the written permission of Allen Young until January 1, 2041 or his death, whichever is earlier.

Use Restrictions

Copyright to the collection is retained by Allen Young until January 1, 2041 or his death, whichever is earlier, at which time all rights are granted to the State Historical Society of Wisconsin.

Acquisition Information

Presented by Allen Young, Orange, Massachusetts, 1979-2001. Accession Number: M79-434, M79-509, M79-559, M80-82, M80-163, M80-560, M84-243, M88-135, M88-300, M89-059, -398, M92-134, M93-185, M95-170, M96-091, M2000-127, M2001-006

Processing Information

Processed by Bradley Connors and Joanne Hohler, May 1980; Susan Bertocchi, Carolyn Mattern, and Menzi Behrnd-Klodt, October-December 1980; and Nicole Saylor (practicum student), May 2003.

Mss 520	Series: Correspondence
	Incoming
Box   1 Folder   1-9	1962-1966
Box   2 Folder   1-7	1966-1972
Box   3 Folder   1-7	1973-1974
Box   4 Folder   1-6	1974-1976
Box   5 Folder   1-6	1976-1977
Box   6 Folder   1-8	1978-1980, undated
Box   9 Folder   1-5	1963-1975
Box   10 Folder   1-4	1977-1981
Box   11 Folder   1-4	1981-1982
Box   12 Folder   1-5	1982-1985
Box   13 Folder   1-5	1986-1990
Box   14 Folder   1-5	1990-1993
Box   15 Folder   1-3	1994-1998
	Professional/Philanthropic
Box   15 Folder   4	1979-1998
Box   15 Folder   5	1999-2000
	Outgoing Correspondence
Box   16 Folder   1	Anne and Paul Levin, 1967-1990
Box   16 Folder   2	1987-1992
	Series: Writings	⇧
Box   16 Folder   3	“The Indian Institute of Mexico and its Activities in Chiapas,” 1962
	M.A. Thesis: “Revolutionary Parties in Contemporary Columbia,” 1963
Box   7 Folder   1	Early draft
Box   16 Folder   4	With revisions
Box   7 Folder   2	Columbia International Fellows Program Papers, 1964
Folder   3	Out of the Closet, 1971
Box   16 Folder   6	Out of the Closets: Voices of Gay Liberation, 1972
Audio 1390A No.   1-3	Interview with Allen Ginsberg, 1972
Mss 520 Box   7 Folder   4	Transcript, 1972
	After You're Out: Personal Experiences of Gay Men and Lesbian Women
Box   16 Folder   7	Manuscript, 1975
Box   17 Folder   1-2	Manuscript (continued)
Audio 1390A No.   4-5	Interview with Mother Boats, 1978
Mss 520 Box   7 Folder   5	Sexuality Survey and Other Papers regarding Collaboration with Karla Jay, 1976-1977
Box   8 Folder   1	The Gay Report [advance uncorrected proofs], 1978
Box   17 Folder   3	The Gay Report: Lesbians and Gay Men Speak Out About Sexual Experiences and Lifestyles, 1979
Box   7 Folder   6	Interview with Andy Kopkind
	Lavender Culture: Visions of Lesbians and Gay Men, 1979
Box   7 Folder   7	Outline
Box   17 Folder   5	Articles for consideration
Box   17 Folder   6-7	Working folder
Box   18 Folder   1-2	Working folder
Box   18 Folder   3	Materials relating to the , 1994 edition
	Gays Under the Cuban Revolution, 1981
Box   18 Folder   4	Latin American correspondence, 1971-1975
Box   18 Folder   5	Research materials, correspondence
Box   19 Folder   1	Uncorrected proof
Box   19 Folder   2	Point Counter-point chapter proof
Box   19 Folder   3	Book reviews, 1981-1983
Box   19 Folder   4	Book-related correspondence, 1980-1986
Box   7 Folder   8	Labor and Christian Democracy in Chile (with James Petras), undated
Box   19 Folder   5-6	“Orange Juice” columns in Gay News, 1980
Box   19 Folder   7	Correspondence regarding More Than Sand Images of Cape Cod, 1987
Box   20 Folder   1	Allen Ginsberg , 1982 interview and essay
Audio 1390A No.   6-7	Recording, 1982
Mss 520 Box   20 Folder   2	North Quabbin Region Guidebooks, 1986-1988
Box   20 Folder   3	“Red Diaper Babies” (Young biography), 1994
Box   7 Folder   9	News clippings, 1964-1965
Box   7 Folder   10	Miscellaneous writings, undated
Box   20 Folder   4	Eulogies, journal entries, miscellaneous writings, 1988-1994
Box   20 Folder   5	Young narrative family history, 1995
Box   16 Folder   5	Published articles by Young, 1963-1967
Box   17 Folder   4	Published and unpublished articles by Young, 1977-1979
	Series: Subject Files	⇧
Box   20 Folder   6	Chiltern Mountain Club
Box   20 Folder   7	Columbia Journalism School questionnaire, 1988
Box   20 Folder   8	(Environmental) Conservation, 1975-1979
Box   20 Folder   9	Gay health
Box   20 Folder   10-11	Gay clippings
Box   21 Folder   1	Gay community news clippings, 1979
Box   21 Folder   2-3	Gay miscellany
Box   21 Folder   4	Gay organizations
Box   21 Folder   5	Glazier, Lyle--poetry
Box   21 Folder   6	Improper Conduct, the movie, mid-1980s
Box   21 Folder   7	Millers River Publishing
Box   21 Folder   8	National Council on Crime and Delinquency, 1972-1973
Box   21 Folder   9	New Right
Box   21 Folder   10	Programs participated in
Box   22 Folder   1	Eddie Rastellini
Box   22 Folder   2	Sexual survey for gay men
Box   22 Folder   3	Spirituality
Box   22 Folder   4	John Stolenberg interview and correspondence
Box   22 Folder   5	Stonewall Syndicate correspondence
Box   22 Folder   6	Transcript of conversation with Karla and Rose, undated
	Series: Miscellany	⇧
Box   7 Folder   11	Biographical material
Box   7 Folder   12-13	Field notes, 1962-1965
Box   7 Folder   14	Notebooks, 1965
Box   7 Folder   15	Miscellany
Box   7 Folder   16	Articles of incorporation (New Media Workshop), 1968
Box   7 Folder   17	Gay Liberation and Socialism, edited by David Thorstad, 1973
Box   7 Folder   18	Writings by others, 1974, 1980, undated
PH Mss 520	Photographs Physical Description: 59 photographs and 5 negatives