Women Cross-Dressing Photo Archive, 1920s

[LGBTQ][Drag and Cross-Dressing] Nine original photographs of women cross-dressing in the 1920s. Original silver gelatin prints mounted on loose black album pages. Three pages, two leaves. Dates annotated in ink on multiple photos “1928.” A vernacular photo archive documenting cross-dressing, and coded queer expression among teenage girls in the 1920s. Five of the images depict a teenage girl dressed in a masculine suit, hat, and tie, paired with a friend or partner in a white dress and bouquet, imitating traditional heterosexual gender roles. Several photographs appear to reenact a mock wedding ceremony, with the “groom” holding the “bride” in their lap while others show them pose arm-in-arm, bouquets in hand. One print shows a solo woman dressed in trousers, jacket, and hat, posed with a hand to her face in exaggerated masculine gesture. The deliberate costuming and performative poses, combined with the physical intimacy on display, suggest both theatrical self-expression and a deeper exploration of gender nonconformity at a time when women’s public behavior was heavily policed. Three additional images show the same girls in pairs with their arms around each other's shoulders and waists, hinting at possibly sapphic relationships between them.

Provenance from the estate of Olida “Olive” Simone Blouin (1911–1981) of Woonsocket, Rhode Island, Most likely one of the girls pictured here. This regional specificity contributes to the broader project of documenting rural LGBTQ+ history, beyond urban centers and artistic circles. Album pages chipped at edges but structurally intact. Overall very good condition. An intimate archive of women cross-dressing and expressing affection in the 1920s, a rejection of strict gender and sexuality norms of the early 20th century.