Collection Guide
Collection Title:
Collection Number:
Get Items:
Finding aid of the Jeanne Córdova Papers and
Photographs
Coll2008-064
No online items
View entire collection guide
Search this collection
Table of contents
Title: Jeanne Córdova papers and photographs
Dates: 1949-2008
Bulk Dates: 1970-1999
Collection number: Coll2008-064
Creator:
Córdova, Jeanne, 1948-
Collection Size: 21 linear feet + 1 linear foot
(unprocessed, awaiting conservation). (9 archive boxes + 3
archive cartons + 8 flat archive cartons + 1 map drawer + 1 box
[unprocessed])
Repository:
ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives.
Los Angeles, California 90007
Abstract: Photo albums, diaries, correspondence, minutes,
manuscripts, clippings, posters, memorabilia, audiotapes, computer files and
other material from lesbian activist, writer and publisher, Jeanne Córdova. In
the early 1970s, Córdova began her career as a leader in the Los Angeles gay
and lesbian and feminist movements by becoming President of the Los Angeles
chapter of the Daughters of Bilitis; founding the publication,
The Lesbian Tide; and becoming Human
Rights Editor and columnist for the
Los Angeles Free Press. In 1973, she was a
key organizer of the first National Lesbian Conference, and in 1981, she
founded the
Community Yellow Pages, currently the
nation's largest and most comprehensive LGBT directory. Her collection includes
organizational records from publications she founded and several activist
organizations she led; manuscripts and clippings of articles and books she
wrote; personal diaries and correspondence with former lovers. Her collection
also includes extensive photo albums with detailed annotation documenting her
life and major events in the gay and lesbian liberation movement.
Languages: Languages represented in the collection:
English
The collection is open to researchers, with some restrictions. Access to
materials marked "restricted" in the container list is restricted during the
lifetime of Jeanne Córdova. Researchers wishing to access this material must
obtain prior permission from Ms. Córdova. Researchers may apply for permission
through ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives or directly from Ms.
Córdova.
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).
Jeanne Córdova papers and Photographs, Coll2008-064, ONE National Gay
and Lesbian Archives, Los Angeles, California.
The Jeanne Córdova collection comes from a series of donations from
Jeanne Córdova in September - November, 2008.
Collection processed by Loni Shibuyama,
November 24, 2008. An additional 1 linear
foot of deteriorated and damaged materials remains unprocessed, awaiting
preservation and conservation.
Processing this collection has been funded by generous grants from
Jeanne Córdova and the National Historical Publications and Records
Commission.
Jeanne Robert Córdova was born on July 18, 1948 in Bremerhaven, Germany.
Daughter of Federico Benito and Joan McGuinness, Jeanne is one of twelve
siblings. In the 1950s, the family immigrated to New York and eventually
relocated to Southern California. As a child, she attended Catholic school in
West Covina and, in 1966, entered the Immaculate Heart of Mary convent in Santa
Barbara, California. While she was a postulant, she began questioning her
sexuality and subsequently became dissatisfied with the Catholic Church. She
left the convent a year later, going on to earn Bachelor's and Master's degrees
in social work from the University of California, at Los Angeles (UCLA.)
In 1970, Córdova began her activist career by joining and, soon after,
becoming President of the Los Angeles chapter of the lesbian rights
organization, Daughters of Bilitis (DOB). In 1971, the DOB newsletter, which
Córdova edited, evolved into
The Lesbian Tide, the first of five
publications she founded. Throughout the 1970s to the 1990s, she was a key
organizer or active participant in several events and organizations, including
the 1971 West Coast Lesbian Conference; the 1973 National Lesbian Conference at
UCLA; the 1977 International Women's Year Conference in Houston, Texas; the
1978 National Lesbian Feminist Organization Conference; a national gay and
lesbian caucus at the 1980 Democratic National Convention, in which she served
as a convention delegate; the No on California Proposition 64 (LaRouche)
campaign in 1986; and numerous other gay and lesbian and women's rights causes.
In addition, she founded or served on the board of several organizations,
including the Stonewall Democratic Club, Connexxus Women's Business Alliance,
Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Press Association, Gay and Lesbian Community
Services Center, and ONE Institute and International Gay & Lesbian
Archives.
Córdova also has an extensive writing and publishing career. In addition
to her work with
The Lesbian Tide, she was also Human Rights
Editor and columnist for the
Los Angeles Free Press (1973 - 1976). She
contributed works to numerous periodicals and anthologies, and in 1976, she
wrote her first book,
Sexism: It's a Nasty Affair. In 1981, she
founded the
Community Yellow Pages, which would
eventually become the United States' largest and most comprehensive LGBT
directory. In 1990, her second book was published,
Kicking the Habit: A Lesbian Nun Story, an
autobiography recounting her experience in the convent. In addition to
Community Yellow Pages, she founded and
published
Square Peg Magazine in 1992, a magazine
devoted to queer culture and literature.
In August 1995, Córdova married her partner, Lynn Harris Ballen, in a
wedding ceremony in the Hollywood Hills. After selling
Community Yellow Pages, Córdova and Ballen
moved to Mexico in 1999. In 2007, they returned to Southern California. Jeanne
Córdova remains active in the gay and lesbian and Chicana/Latina movements. In
2008, she founded LEX, The Lesbian Exploratorium, a non-profit organization
devoted to culture and history; and she is currently working on a memoir
entitled
When We Were Outlaws. As of November 2008,
Córdova continues to live with Ballen at their home in Altadena,
California.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Jeanne Córdova papers and photographs comprise scrapbooks,
photographs, diaries, organizational records, correspondence, manuscripts,
clippings, posters, memorabilia, computer files, audiotapes and other materials
documenting organizations and publications which Córdova founded; her
leadership in the gay and lesbian and feminist activist movements from the
1970s through the 1990s; her published and unpublished books, articles and
essays; her education and experience in a convent; and her relationships with
family, friends and former lovers.
The collection is divided into eight series: (1) Publishing, (2)
Activism and Politics, (3) Writings, (4) Personal, (5) Scrapbooks and
Photographs, (6) Posters, (7) Memorabilia and (8) Audiotapes and Computer
Files. The Publishing Series consists of organizational records from three of
the five publications Córdova founded:
The Lesbian Tide (1971,)
Community Yellow Pages (1981) and
Square Peg (1992.) The Activism and Politics
Series comprises correspondence, clippings, organizational records and other
papers documenting Córdova's numerous activities in the gay and lesbian and
feminist movements, including, but not limited to, organizing national lesbian
conferences, serving on the boards of several organizations, and political
campaigning. The Writings Series comprises manuscripts, notes, clippings and
correspondence related to Córdova's published and unpublished works, including
two unpublished memoirs,
The Apostles and
Anicha. The Personal Series consists of
diaries, correspondence, date books, student papers, real estate records,
financial records and other papers documenting Córdova's life from her time in
a convent (1966-1967,) to her health complications, to her relationships with
her family, friends and former lovers. The Scrapbooks and Photographs Series
consists of material collected throughout Córdova's life, including her
childhood in Germany (1948-1954.) The Posters Series consists of three posters,
including "An Evening of Women's Music with Cris Williamson, Margie Adam, Meg
Christian, Holly Near." The Memorabilia Series comprises buttons, t-shirts and
other material from Córdova's activities in politics and the gay and lesbian
movement. The final Audiocassettes and Computer Files Series comprises 10
audiocassettes and 34 floppy disks (5 1/4 in.) containing manuscripts, personal
diary entries and other writings.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this
collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Córdova, Jeanne, 1948-
Community Yellow Pages
Daughters of Bilitis
Feminism
Feminists
Gay activists--United
States--California
Gay liberation
movement--California--Los Angeles
Homosexuality--Periodicals
Homosexuality--Political aspects
Homosexuality--Religious
aspects
Lesbian authors--United States--20th
century
Lesbian feminism
The Lesbian Tide
Lesbians--Civil rights
Los Angeles Free Press
Multiple issues of
Community Yellow Pages,
Square Peg and
Lesbian News were separated from the Jeanne
Córdova Collection and entered into the ONE National Gay & Lesbian
Archive's periodicals database.