Allan Troxler Papers, 1800s-2024, bulk 1960s-2010s

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Summary

Creator:
Troxler, Allan, 1947- and Wittman, Carl
Abstract:
Allan Troxler (1947- ) is an artist, author, and dance instructor from Durham, N.C. Troxler's collection consists of his artwork, family history, and writings, as well as the archives of his lifelong partner, Carl Wittman. Carl Wittman's archives include his diaries, letters, and writings on civil rights and gay liberation. The collection also contains materials documenting the Durham (N.C.) arts scene, English country dance, AIDS in the gay community, and Troxler's collection of materials from Catherine Nicholson.
Extent:
11 Linear Feet
Language:
Materials in English.
Collection ID:
RL.13145

Background

Scope and content:

This collection consists of the personal and professional materials of Allan Troxler, including his writings, artwork, letters, and family history. Troxler's collection also includes the archives of Carl Wittman, Troxler's longtime partner, as well some materials from and by Catherine Nicholson.

Troxler's materials largely consist of his original artwork, published and unpublished writings, correspondence, photographs, and political and community engagement and interests. His Artwork series consists of drawings, papercuts, artist books and other creative missives, and commissioned pieces he sometimes used as illustrations for his or others' essays and writings. Troxler's Writings series largely reflect on his experiences living publicly as a gay man in the South. His professional materials span his career as a writer and editor of RFD Magazine; his work for the UNC Institute of Southern Studies; and his political and community activism in Oregon and Durham, advocating for causes such as environmental protection policies, union-building, gay rights, and peace. Troxler's Name Files include his collected correspondence and clippings about people close to him, whether friends, partners, or family members. The collection also contains Troxler family history, documented in extensive letters to and from Allan's parents and other relatives, as well as genealogical research and clippings.

Troxler's partner, Carl Wittman, left his archives to Troxler and thus it too is included in this collection. Wittman's materials include his schoolwork as well as his personal and family correspondence. He joined the civil rights movement while at Swarthmore in the early 1960s, and the collection contains his writings and collected notes and documents from his and his classmates' participation in Students for Democratic Society (SDS), Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), and Congress for Racial Equality (CORE). Wittman's archives also document his participation in the Vietnam War draft resistance movement and his early writings on gay rights and gay liberation, including copies of "A Gay Manifesto" and "Waves of Resistance," both issued in Liberation magazine. Wittman's writings in this archive include his drafts, his diaries and notes, and published copies of some of his works. It does not appear that this archives reflects a comprehensive bibliography of everything Wittman published; these records were carefully assembled and prepared by Troxler, but in some cases there are gaps.

A significant portion of the collection documents Troxler's and Wittman's relationship and their joint activism and activities in Wolf Creek, Oregon and Durham, NC. Also present are materials about Carl Wittman's AIDS diagnosis and his death in 1986. Troxler's personal grieving and reflections on the loss of his partner are in the Allan Troxler Writings and the Allan Troxler Personal and Family Materials series. The impact of AIDS on the gay community is also documented in the Allan Troxler Political and Community Materials series. Troxler's relationships and friendships with individuals such as Mab Segrest, Fenwick Smith, Barry Yeoman, Allan Bérubé, and Allan Gurganus are documented through correspondence, name files, and other writings.

Other components of the collection include the Catherine Nicholson Materials, which were collected and preserved by Troxler following her moving away from Durham at the end of her life. These complement the Catherine Nicholson Papers held at Rubenstein Library, and contain examples of a scrapbook, family photographs, and some notes and correspondence by Nicholson.

Also included in this collection is the Dance Materials series, documenting both Troxler and Wittman's research and scholarship on English Country Dance, as well as Troxler's leadership of dance circles in the 1990s and 2000s in Durham. This series also contains photographs of Durham's Sun Assembly Country Dancing programs. There is substantial overlap between Dance Materials, Allan Troxler's Political and Community Materials, and Allan Troxler's Artwork; many pieces of his art were used to advertise various dance events, protests, and group gatherings.

Biographical / historical:

Allan Troxler (1947- ) is a white American activist, artist, writer, and dancer who grew up in Greensboro, N.C. His parents were Eulyss Troxler and Catherine Kirkpatrick Troxler, and he has four siblings. He attended Page High School in Greensboro and then went to Swarthmore College, enrolling in 1965. He became a conscientious objector to the Vietnam War and participated in civil rights organizing and campaigns.

Troxler met Carl Wittman while at Swarthmore. Carl Wittman was born in New Jersey in 1943 and also attended Swarthmore College, where he joined the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and led a chapter of Students for Democratic Society (SDS). Wittman was a vocal civil rights and anti-war activist, and co-authored "An Interracial Movement of the Poor?" (1963). He married Mimi Feingold, another Swarthmore student, in 1966, and moved to San Francisco, where they organized resistance to the Vietnam War draft. He and Mimi separated in the late 1960s. Beginning in 1968, Wittman lived publicly out as a gay man. He wrote numerous articles about his desires, his lifestyle, and the homophobia and prejudice he experienced. One of his essays, "A Gay Manifesto" (1970), became one of the most influential writings on gay liberation of the period. In 1971, Wittman moved to Wolf Creek, Oregon, with his partner Stevens McClave, where they owned and farmed a tract of land. McClave died in 1973.

Wittman and Troxler reconnected, and Troxler joined Wittman in Wolf Creek, Oregon. Their property was a communal farm, retreat, and rustic art space. Wittman and Troxler also co-edited RFD, a literary magazine for rural gay readers, between 1973 and 1979; Troxler's illustrations appeared regularly in the publication. They gathered dancers and ran workshops on English country dance, and they adapted the traditional steps to be gender-neutral and inclusive.

Troxler moved to Durham, North Carolina, in 1979, and began working for the Institute of Southern Studies. Wittman joined him in 1980, and the couple lived in a communal house in Durham on Vale Street. Troxler and Wittman were actively involved in arts, dance, and cultural programs throughout the region. They founded Durham's Sun Assembly English Country Dancers (1980). They also were early members of the North Carolina Gay and Lesbian Health Project (1982), which sought to improve access to medical care and information for the gay community, particularly as it endured the spread of HIV/AIDs in the early 1980s. They were vocal activists against homophobia and the criminalization of homosexuality. Troxler and Wittman were founding organizers of "Our Day Out," a protest and gay rights march following the Little River attack and murder of Ronald Antonovich on 1981 April 17. "Our Day Out" was a precursor to Durham's Pride Festival, which continues to be celebrated annually. Carl Wittman was diagnosed with AIDS in 1985, and died at home on 1986 January 22. Troxler arranged and preserved many of Carl Wittman's papers and archives, which are contained within Troxler's own papers.

Troxler's writings, dance, artwork, and activism continued through the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s; his work has appeared in Southern Exposure, RFD, and local features and press. Troxler created Camas Swale, a series of "occasional pamphlets," along with other zines and artwork by pseudonym E. Bunny. Troxler's work frequently expressed political views, opposing anti-gay legislation (like the 2011 North Carolina bathroom bill) and promoting peace and inclusivity. Much of this artwork was distributed to local friends in his community network.

The collection also contains Troxler's archives of Catherine Nicholson. Nicholson (1922-2013), a founder of the lesbian arts journal Sinister Wisdom, met Allan Troxler when she moved to Durham, N.C. in the late 1980s.

Acquisition information:
The Allan Troxler Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a gift from Allan Troxler in 2024.
Processing information:

Processed by Meghan Lyon, June 2025

Accessions described in this collection guide: 2024-0083; 2024-0117

The bulk of the Artwork was prepared and arranged ahead of acquisition by Troxler's friends, including Pamela George and Richard Ward. Troxler's own work to arrange and sort Wittman's archives has been preserved when possible. George and Ward have authored an accompanying resource for Troxler's artwork, "Allan Troxler Archive of Arts and Letters," which has been retained for reference in the Allan Troxler Personal and Family Materials series.

Arrangement:

Collection is divided into series reflecting its sorting ahead of arrival at Rubenstein Library. Series include: Allan Troxler Writings; Allan Troxler Political and Community Materials; Allan Troxler Personal and Family Materials; Catherine Nicholson Materials; Dance Materials; Carl Wittman Materials; Carl Wittman and Allan Troxler Correspondence.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

Using These Materials

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Using These Materials

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. All visual artwork in which Allan Troxler holds copyright is restricted from commercial use unless permission is obtained from the donor or his agents.

For more information, consult the Rubenstein Library's Citations, Permissions, and Copyright guide or contact Research Services.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Allan Troxler Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

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https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/m1w460