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Finding aid of the Laud Humphreys Papers
Coll2007-012
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Title: Laud Humphreys papers
Dates: 1951-1988
Bulk Dates: 1968-1988
Collection number: Coll2007-012
Creator:
Humphreys, Laud (Robert Allan),
1930-1988
Collection Size: 12 archive boxes
(4.8 linear feet).
Repository:
ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives.
Los Angeles, California 90007
Abstract: Drafts, correspondence, journal articles, notes,
newspaper clippings, surveys, legal documents, memoranda, transcripts,
speeches, course curricula, subject files, ephemera, photos, and an
audiocassette tape created or collected by sociologist and Episcopalian priest,
Laud Humphreys, who is best known for his book,
Tearoom
Trade: Impersonal Sex in Public Places
--the first publication to examine
the social and sexual behaviors of men who perform sex acts with other men in
public restrooms. The majority of the collection consists of manuscripts,
correspondence, lecture material, surveys, journal articles and newspaper
clippings relating to Humphreys' career--from his doctoral work in 1968 until
his death in 1988--and research in the field of sociology and, more
specifically, homosexuality and criminology. The collection also contains
personal papers including correspondence, documents and clippings related to
his experience as an Episcopalian priest from 1955 to 1965, an altercation with
a professor at Washington University in 1968, and his trial and subsequent
imprisonment for an antiwar demonstration in Illinois in 1970.
Languages: Languages represented in the collection:
English
The collection is open to researchers. There are no access
restrictions.
Researchers wishing to publish materials must obtain permission in
writing from ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives as the physical owner.
Researchers must also obtain clearance from the holder(s) of any copyrights in
the materials. Note that ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives can grant
copyright clearance only for those materials for which we hold the copyright.
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain copyright clearance for
all other materials directly from the copyright holder(s).
Laud Humphreys papers, Coll2007-012, ONE National Gay and Lesbian
Archives, Los Angeles, California.
Donor and date of gift unknown.
Formerly boxes 103-146 and 103-097; ONE subject files. Collection
processed by Loni Shibuyama,
September 10, 2007.
Processing this collection has been funded
by a generous grant from the National Historical Publications and Records
Commission.
Born on October 16, 1930 in Oklahoma, Robert Allan (Laud) Humphreys is a
pioneer researcher in the study of homosexual behavior, combining academic
study with political activism.
Humphreys graduated from Seabury-Western Theological Seminary in
Evanston, Illinois in 1955. He took the name of "Laud" from William Laud, a
seventeenth-century Archbishop of Canterbury, and as "Laud" was ordained an
Episcopalian priest. In 1960, Humphreys married Nancy Wallace. In 1965,
Humphreys undertook graduate work in sociology at Washington University in St.
Louis. His doctoral dissertation on male-male sex in St. Louis-area public
restrooms--known in gay slang as "tearooms"--was published as
Tearoom Trade: Impersonal Sex in Public Places to
much controversy in 1970. The book won the C. Wright Mills Award of the Society
for the Study of Social Problems but was frequently denounced as covert
research and condemned for its invasion of the privacy of those having sex in a
public place. Humphreys moved on to teach at Southern Illinois University. On
May 5, 1970, he led an antiwar demonstration that invaded a draft board office,
where he destroyed a picture of President Richard Nixon. He was subsequently
convicted of destroying government property. He served three months of a
one-year prison sentence in the summer of 1972. While in jail, he was hired by
Pitzer College, one of the Claremont Colleges in Southern California, where he
became a full professor of sociology in 1975. In 1972, Humphreys published
Out of the Closets: The Sociology of Homosexual
Liberation
, one of the first scholarly accounts of the emerging gay
liberation movement. In 1980 Humphreys left his wife and two children to live
with his protégé, Brian Miller. Also in 1980, Humphreys earned California
certification as a psychotherapist and established a private counseling
practice. In his final years, he served as a consultant to police forces and
frequently provided expert testimony in court cases. He also retained his
position at Pitzer College. Humphreys died from complications of lung cancer on
August 23, 1988 in Sherman Oaks, California.
Source: Stephen O. Murray, "Humphreys, Laud (1930-1988),"
An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender,
& Queer Culture
,
http://www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/humphreys_l.html , last
accessed June 20, 2007.
Scope and Content of Collection
Drafts, correspondence, journal articles, notes, newspaper clippings,
surveys, legal documents, memoranda, transcripts, speeches, course curricula,
subject files, ephemera, photos, and an audiocassette tape created or collected
by sociologist and Episcopalian priest, Laud Humphreys, who is best known for
his book,
Tearoom Trade: Impersonal Sex in Public
Places
--the first publication to examine the social and sexual behaviors
of men who perform sex acts with other men in public restrooms. The majority of
the collection consists of manuscripts, correspondence, lecture material,
surveys, journal articles and newspaper clippings relating to Humphreys'
career--from his doctoral work in 1968 until his death in 1988--and research in
the field of sociology and, more specifically, homosexuality and criminology.
The collection is divided into four series: (1) Research, (2) Teaching and
Administration, (3) Professional Activities, and (4) Personal.
The first series, Research, compiles material related to research that
Humphreys has conducted throughout his career. This series is divided into (1)
Writings, (2) Subject Files, and (3) Reference Materials. The bulk of the
Writings subseries contains manuscripts and notes for Humphreys' published and
unpublished material. This includes manuscripts for
Tearoom Trade, Sex & Righteousness and other
articles, including an interview with Evelyn Hooker. The Subject Files comprise
mostly newspaper clippings and journal articles related to homosexuality. The
Reference Materials include surveys, interview transcripts and legal papers
used in Humphreys' research.
The second series, Teaching and Administration, consists of student
papers, lectures, notes, memoranda and course administration documents related
to Humphreys' work teaching sociology courses at Southern Illinois University
(1968-1970), State University of New York at Albany (1970-1972) and Pitzer
College (1972-1986).
The third series, Professional Activities, includes peer reviews,
speeches, memoranda, minutes, flyers, newsletters and clippings related to
Humphreys' activities outside of the university. This includes consultations
and presentations at professional conferences, such as the Society for the
Study of Social Problems. This series also includes documents related to his
professional involvement in such organizations as Alternative Lifestyles and
the National Committee for Sexual Civil Liberties.
The fourth and final series, Personal, contains personal papers,
including correspondence, documents and clippings related to his experience as
an Episcopalian priest from 1955 to 1965, an altercation with a professor at
Washington University in 1968, and his trial and subsequent imprisonment for an
antiwar demonstration in Illinois in 1970.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this
collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Gay activists--Los Angeles
Gay liberation movement--United
States--History
Homosexuality and education
Homosexuality--Psychological aspects
Homosexuality--Religious aspects
Homosexuality--Research
Homosexuality--Social aspects
Hooker, Evelyn Caldwell
Humphreys, Laud
Miller, Brian
Sociology
Sociology--Methodology
Tearoom Trade