Digital Transgender Archive

Fantasia Fair Materials from the Schlesinger Library

One of our teams is currently finishing up a collection of Fantasia Fair materials hosted at the Schlesinger Library at Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University. Fantasia Fair started in 1974 as an annual week-long conference held in Provincetown, Massachusetts and allowed (predominantly male) crossdressers to explore the many changing facets of the crossgender lifestyle. Of these, the FanFair Gazette collection is especially interesting. Billie Jean, the main contributor of these newsletters, writes humorously about fair gossip, future events, and prominent figures of the Fair such as Alison Laing and Janis Walworth. Fantasia Fair continues on today, still in October, and still in Provincetown, for many to enjoy.