Research and Writings, 1941-2007 and undated, bulk 1975-2005
- Extent:
- 176 boxes
- Scope and content:
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This largest series in the collection houses research materials, correspondence, publicity, drafts and proofs, administrative and editorial files, and other materials documenting James T. Sears' career as researcher, author, and editor. Organized into four subseries: Major Works, Other Publications, Research Files, and Writings by Others.
The largest subseries, Major Works , features files of correspondence, drafts and proofs, research materials, and other items related to the following major book-length works by Sears (presented in chronological order) on the history of homosexuality and gay identity in the South, and the history of the gay rights movement: Growing Up Gay in the South: Race, Gender, and Journeys of the Spirit (1990); Lonely Hunters: an Oral History of Lesbian and Gay Southern Life, 1948-1968 (1997); Rebels, Rhinestones, and Rubyfruit: Queering Space in the Stonewall South (2001); Behind the Mask of the Mattachine: the Hal Call Chronicles and the Early Movement for Homosexual Emancipation (2006); and John and Edwin (2009), a volume on early gay history seen through the lens of a relationship between two men from the South. Lonely Hunters , Rebels, Rhinestones, and Rubyfruit , and Behind the Mask of the Mattachine were published as volumes in a series on gay history; another volume on homosexuality in the U.S. before 1950 was planned but is currently unpublished. Detailed descriptions follow below; titles are organized chronologically by date of publication.
The Other Publications Subseries chiefly consists of the following types of materials: files relating to essays and chapters contributed by Sears to book-length works; files deriving from his editorial work for books and journals, including the gay studies journal Empathy ; and conference papers written by Sears, some of which may be unpublished. A number of the writings in this subseries relate to Sears' pioneering work on the development of a classroom curriculum for teaching sexuality and gender identity. In addition, this series houses files of book reviews written by Sears. Reviews of his own publications can be found in the Major Works Subseries, or in the Publicity Series. Subseries is arranged in alphabetical order by title.
The Research Files Subseries contains extensive files maintained by Sears on various topics relevant to his written work, including gay culture in the Southern U.S. (especially Florida, North Carolina, and Alabama), gays in the military, and sexuality in the Philippines; some material was unpublished while other material was utilized in published works. Arranged in alphabetical order by subject.
The smallest and final subseries, Writings by Others , houses writings by other individuals which were either sent to Sears for review, or used by Sears in his research. These are arranged alphabetically by author last name.
Many of the writings and other related materials in this collection were received as electronic files. The contents of each disk have been migrated to a library server. Please consult a reference archivist for access to these and other electronic files.
Contents
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Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection.
Consent forms signed by individuals whose interviews or images were recorded for possible use in publications are sometimes filed with other records relevant to that publication; oftentimes, however, permissions may have been filed in the Research Permissions Subseries box in the Research and Writings Series, or have not been located in the collection. Researchers wishing to publish information on individuals represented in the Sears Papers must have in hand the consent forms, or obtain permission from the individuals.
Original audiovisual materials are closed to use. Use of these materials requires production of listening or viewing copies.
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