Suzanne C. Gary was a poet, a feminist lesbian, and an activist in the second wave of the women's movement in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Gary Papers include her journals from 1963-2013, her poetry and prose, and her work and notes from the writing groups, classes and workshops she attended. In addition, there is biographical information, correspondence to and from family, friends, and her partner Laura Bock, photographs, and ephemera.

Suzanne Cumberworth was born in Indianapolis, Indiana on July 5, 1940. At the age of seven her family moved to Grosse Pointe, Michigan, a very well-to-do suburb of Detroit where Jews and people of color were not admitted. This community had a class hierarchy within itself, for example while her family was welcomed at one country club, they were excluded from the country club for the wealthiest. Even as a child Suzanne hated the exclusiveness and racism of her neighbors. Suzanne was a tomboy and played sports with boys on the block which was at odds with her family's expectation that she would be a girly-girl, like her older sister Carole. Her mother was physically and emotionally abusive and her father did not intervene.

5.5 Cubic Feet (5 cartons, 1 document case, 1 oversized folder)

Copyright is retained by the estate of Suzanne C. Gary. The collection is open for research with the following exceptions: researchers may not publish or publicly disclose names of, or identifying information about, individuals discussed in her Journals, boxes 1, 2 and 3, until January 1, 2045.

The collection is available during San Francisco History Center Hours. Collections that are stored off site should be requested 48 hours in advance.