Come Out Seattle
Preserving the Places and Stories That Built Seattle’s LGBTQ+ Community
COME OUT SEATTLE ARCHIVE
ORAL
HISTORIES
Voices of Seattle's LGBTQ+ Past
Seattle’s LGBTQ+ history lives in more than photographs, newspaper clippings, and places on a map. It lives in the voices of the people who were there.
These recorded oral histories preserve first-hand memories of the people, places, celebrations, struggles, and communities that helped shape LGBTQ+ life in Seattle.
THE STORIES BEHIND THE HISTORY
Our History Lives in Our Voices
Most of these oral histories were collected by the Northwest Lesbian and Gay History Project (NWLGHP). Its collection of more than 90 interviews, along with photographs and memorabilia, is housed at the University of Washington Libraries Special Collections and is available to the public.
NWLGHP also published selected stories in Mosaic 1: Life Stories (2002). With permission from NWLGHP and the University of Washington Libraries Special Collections,
Come Out Seattle is honored to share selected oral histories here and help make
these important stories more accessible.
A heartfelt thank you to the many people who contributed to NWLGHP over the years: Chris Beahler, Michael Brown, Lisa Cohen, Dana Cox, Lisa Dady, Jody Doherty, Renia Ehrenfeucht, Pat Freeman, Al Fritz, Charlie Fuchs, Katie Gothreau, Kari Greene, Emily Hazen, Gina Hicks, Darren Hoerner, David Huddleston, Greg Hunicutt, Tom Ledke, Angie McCarrel, Susan Kirchofer, Gavin Morgan, Nikki Roberg, Coll Thrush, and Mikala Woodward.
An extra special thank you to Ruth Pettis and Larry Knopp, who continue the work of NWLGHP today, and to the University of Washington Libraries Special Collections for preserving the stories and history of the Northwest’s LGBTQ+ community for future generations.
Our history lives in our voices.
HISTORY CAFÉ: PRESERVING LGBTQ HISTORY
Oral Histories of LGBTQ+ Life in the Pacific Northwest
Recorded September 16, 2026
Presented at MOHAI, History Café: Preserving LGBTQ History highlighted the importance of oral history in documenting LGBTQ+ life in Seattle and throughout the Pacific Northwest
The program drew from oral histories collected through the work of the Northwest Lesbian and Gay History Museum Project (NWLGHMP) and preserved at the University of Washington Libraries Special Collections, where these stories continue to serve as a vital record of community life, activism, culture, and belonging.
Through community readings and archival context, the program brought these voices to life and underscored the importance of preserving LGBTQ+ stories for future generations.
TOPICS
Oral History • LGBTQ+ History • Pacific Northwest • Seattle • Community Memory • Archives
ARCHIVE / COLLECTION
University of Wahington Libraries Special Collections
Northwest Lesbian and Gay History Museum Project Collection #5929
JOHN REED
The Imperial Sovereign Court of Seattle: The Early Years
Recorded February 1996
John Reed shares his memories of the early years of the Imperial Sovereign Court of Seattle Olympic & Rainier Empire—from the spectacular Balls that drew up to 3,000 people, to the community that made it all possible, to the beginning of Gay Liberation in Seattle.
TOPICS
Archives Imperial Court • Drag • Community
Gay Liberation • Seattle Nightlife
ARCHIVE / COLLECTION
University of Wahington Libraries Special Collections
Northwest Lesbian and Gay History Museum Project Collection #5929 Box 5929-001 Box 3, Folder 6
MORE ORAL HISTORIES
Different voices. A stronger, more complete history.
JOE McGONAGLE
From Bar Owner to Community Builder
Recorded July 4, 1995
Born in Boston in the early 1940s, Joe McGonagle came to Seattle after his discharge from the Air Force in Spokane and quickly embraced the city’s gay bar scene, first as an employee and later as an owner. In this oral history, he tells — “from the horse’s mouth” — the unforgettable story of Shelly’s Leg, Seattle’s first disco bar, and the people, places, and events that shaped it.
Joe also reflects on Seattle’s gay bars of the 1960s and ’70s; owning the Golden Horseshoe and Shelly’s Leg; police payoffs and corruption; the Queen City Business Guild; meeting Shelly and the Bastille Day accident that changed her life; how Shelly’s Leg got its name; the devastating fire; early gay life in Seattle; the locations of long-gone bars; and the restrictive blue laws of the era.
TOPICS
Shelly’s Leg • Gay Bars • Seattle Nightlife • Drag Shows • LGBTQ+ Community • Police Corruption • Queen City Business Guild • 1960s–1970s Seattle
ARCHIVE / COLLECTION
University of Washington Libraries Special Collections
Northwest Lesbian and Gay History Museum Project Collection #5929 Box 5929-001, Box 3, Folder 6
Museum of History & Industry (MOHAI)
Shelly’s Leg Sign Collection
WELLS MACLVER
From the Madison Tavern to the Payoff Scandal: MacIver Wells Remembers Gay Seattle
Recorded October, 2 1997
MacIver Wells was born in Knowlton, Quebec, in 1921. Before coming to Seattle, he worked as a prison guard and owned a steam bath in British Columbia. In 1957, he and his partner moved to Seattle, where they became owners of the Madison Tavern and later the 611 and 614 taverns on Second Avenue.
Wells became an important figure in the investigation into police payoffs during the late 1960s and 1970s. He served as a key witness and a primary source for Seattle Times investigative reporters John Wilson and Marshall Wilson when they broke the story in 1967.
He retired from Seattle’s gay tavern business in 1967 and moved to Camano Island, where he died on June 18, 2000, at the age of 79. He was buried at Camano Lutheran Cemetery. His obituary appeared in The Everett Herald on June 21, 2000, under the misspelled name “McIver Wells.”
TOPICS
Gay Bars • Lesbian Bars • Seattle Nightlife • Police Corruption • Blue Laws • LGBTQ+ History
ARCHIVE / COLLECTION
University of Washington Libraries Special Collections
Northwest Lesbian and Gay History Museum Project Collection #5929
Oral History Interview
MacIver Wells, October 12, 1997
Interviewed by Ruth Pettis and Angie McCarrel
Transcribed by Josy Rush
PEOPLE ● PLACES ● STORIES
EVERY VOICE ADDS TO THE STORY.
Do you have a story to share?
Seattle’s LGBTQ+ history belongs to all of us. If you have memories, recordings, photographs, documents, or a story to tell, we'd love to hear from you.
These recorded oral histories preserve firsthand memories of the people, places, celebrations, struggles, and communities that helped shape LGBTQ+ life in Seattle.