Baybrick Inn Records, 1982-1987

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Summary

Title:
Baybrick Inn records
Dates:
1982-1987
Creators:
Hewitt, Lauren
Abstract:
The collection contains records from the Baybrick Inn (also known as the Bay Brick Inn, Clementina’s, or Clementina’s Baybrick Inn), a popular South of Market guest house, bar and club primarily for women that was open from 1982-1987. There are administrative records, including correspondence; publicity materials, including event calendars and press releases; demo tapes and information from the entertainers -- primarily musicians and comedians-- who performed at Bay Brick; and photographs.
Extent:
1.85 linear feet (1 carton, 1 manuscript box, 2 half-manuscript boxes, 1 oversized folder)
Language:
Preferred citation:

Baybrick Inn records. GLBT Historical Society

Background

Scope and content:

This collection consists of materials related to the business operations and entertainment offerings of the Baybrick Inn. The collection has been arranged into five series: Administrative; Publicity; Entertainers; Photographs; and Audiotapes. Materials include: manuals and procedural documents related to bar operations; inventory lists and stock sheets; an employee handbook; awards; correspondence from patrons and collaborators; photocopies of articles and advertisements from newspapers and magazines; marketing/promotional mock-ups and ephemera; event flyers, posters, calendars and press releases; audio cassette demo tapes and information about entertainers (primarily musicians and comedians) who performed at Bay Brick; performer headshots and publicity photos; and polaroids of bar staff and patrons. GSSO Linked Terms: http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/GSSO_000381; http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/GSSO_008517

Biographical / historical:

The Baybrick Inn (also known as the Bay Brick Inn, Clementina’s, or Clementina’s Baybrick Inn) was opened in the summer of 1982 at 1190 Folsom St. in San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood. The business was co-owned by Lauren Hewitt, Rick Carver and Mark Cornils, with Hewitt also acting as General Manager. The space operated variously as a bar, nightclub, hotel, and/or restaurant at different points in its five years of business. The Baybrick Inn marketed itself as an “upscale“ alternative for the “distinctive woman,” with evidence from the collection suggesting the establishment succeeded in attracting a largely middle-class, professional clientele. While services and entertainment predominately centered women and lesbians, the establishment did not have separatist policies/politics and periodically offered “Boys at the Brick” nights and mixed-gender events. Regular entertainment offerings included comedy and musical cabarets, DJ dance parties, stand-up comedy, live rock and jazz, burlesque and strip shows put on by Blush Productions, and artist gallery shows. Lea Delaria, Marga Gomez, Linda Tillery, Gwen Avery, Femprov, Lady Bianca, Debbie Saunders, Mimi Fox, Pat Wilder, Page Hodel, and Karen Ripley were among the many women and/or lesbian performers who were booked regularly at the Baybrick Inn. The Baybrick Inn also cemented itself as a supporter of the broader community, acting as a hub for the local music scene, regularly hosting benefit events, and providing support for the first Folsom Street Fair. While bar and nightclub services were consistently sustained, hotel operations ended in the fall of 1984 and the Baybrick Inn Tavern, the on-site restaurant, closed circa 1985 (the exact date is unknown to the archivist as of August 2025). The Baybrick Inn fully ceased operations in October 1987. In a San Francisco Sentinel article reporting on the bar’s closing, Hewitt attributed the cessation of operations to a changing landscape for lesbian bars in the city.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Lauren Hewitt in 1995.

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Finding aid created by GLBT Historical Society staff.
Date Prepared:
1982-1987
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using Record Express for OAC5 on July 14, 2025, 2:54 p.m.

Access and use

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research. Funding for processing this collection was provided by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).

Terms of access:

Copyright to materials created by Lauren Hewitt has been transferred to the GLBT Historical Society. All requests for reproductions and/or permission to publish or quote from material must be submitted in writing to the GLBT Historical Society Archivist. Copyright to other materials in the collection may be held by their creators, or the creators' heirs or assigns. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Preferred citation:

Baybrick Inn records. GLBT Historical Society

Location of this collection:
989 Market Street, Lower Level
San Francisco, CA 94103, US
Contact:
(415) 777-5455
reference@glbthistory.org
Website