User:Satyridium/sandbox/List of leather bars and clubs
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This is a list of notable leather bars, sex clubs and bathhouses, both active and defunct. These venues played a key role in the development of the gay leather subculture, providing a gathering space for the local community, for socializing and cruising, and a point of entry into the scene for newcomers, as well as turning leather into a consumable aesthetic and identity; historically often enforced by dress codes and access restrictions for women.[1]
Leather bars (at the time also called leather/levi or L/L, western, and macho) are considered the first distinct subgenre of gay bars, and with their characteristic visuals are often depicted as gay bars' most iconic form. Designated leather bars started appearing between the 1950s and 1960s in major cities of the U.S. and Europe, exploding in popularity and dissemination in the 1970s.[1] Usually, leather bars were found in industrial and working-class city neighborhoods, like South of Market in San Francisco, the Manhattan Meatpacking District and the Munich Glockenbachviertel. The large number of leather related businesses in these areas led to the emergence of local leather districts, with the best known being the "Miracle Mile" on Folsom Street in San Francisco.[2]
In the 1980s, the forced closing of sex clubs and bathhouses and increased regulation of leather bars sped up the ongoing gentrification in big cities, that already threatened their existence, so that the leather districts shrank rapidly after the explosive expansion of the 1970s. Within a few years, many institutions that had played a central role within the community were shut down.[2] The spread of the internet in the 1990s and 2000s led to another wave of closures, as many activities such as cruising shifted to specialized forums, services and apps in the digital world.
Name | Image | Street Adress | City | Country | Year opened | Year closed | Significance | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AA Meat Market | 2933 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60657 | Chicago | United States | c. 1980s | 1994 | Included a back bar called The Grease Pit. | [3] | |
Albuquerque Eagle | Albuquerque | United States | 2018 | – | [4] | |||
Ambush | Harrison Street | San Francisco | United States | 1973 | – | [5] | ||
Arena | San Francisco | United States | – | – | [5] | |||
Argos | Warmoesstraat | Amsterdam | Netherlands | 1957 | 2015 | [6][7] | ||
The Anvil | 500 West 14th Street, New York City | New York City | United States | 1974 | 1985 | Gay BDSM after-hours sex club | [8] | |
Atlanta Eagle | Atlanta | United States | 1985-87, 2022 | 2020 | Subjected to the Atlanta Eagle police raid in 2009, named a historic landmark by the City of Atlanta as the first recognized and protected LGBTQ landmark in the Deep South. | [9][10][11] | ||
Austin Eagle | Austin | United States | 2023 | – | [12][13] | |||
The Backstreet | East End, London | United Kingdom | 1985 | 2022 | London's longest running, and last remaining leather bar. | [14] | ||
Baltimore Eagle | Baltimore | United States | 1991 | – | [15] | |||
Barracks | San Francisco | United States | – | – | Bathhouse | [5] | ||
Big Dollar | New York City | United States | c. 1959 | c. 1964 | Early dedicated leather bar in New York City | [16] | ||
Black and Blue | San Francisco | United States | – | – | [5] | |||
Black Eagle | Montreal | Canada | – | – | [17] | |||
Black Eagle | Toronto | Canada | 1994 | – | [18] | |||
Bolt | San Francisco | United States | – | – | [5] | |||
Bootcamp | Bryant Street | San Francisco | United States | 1971 | – | [5] | ||
Boots | Los Angeles | United States | 1977 | – | Included a bootblack stand. | [19] | ||
Boots/ Boots Warehouse | 592 Sherbourne St. | Toronto | Canada | 1981 | 2000 | [20] | ||
The Boots | Antwerp | Belgium | – | – | [21] | |||
Brig | San Francisco | United States | – | – | [5] | |||
Catacombs | San Francisco | United States | 1975 | 1984 | Gay underground sex club, mostly known for its fisting community. | [22] | ||
Cave | San Francisco | United States | – | – | [5] | |||
Chains Köln | Stephanstraße 4 | Cologne | Germany | 1990 | – | [23] | ||
Chaps | San Francisco | United States | – | – | [5] | |||
Chicago Eagle | Chicago | United States | c. 1990s | 2007 | Owned by Chuck Renslow. The entrance to the bar was through a semitrailer in the alley. The lower level of the bar was called the Grease Pit and had a dress code of an article of leather or a uniform for admittance | [24][25] | ||
Cockring | Warmoesstraat | Amsterdam | Netherlands | – | – | |||
Coleherne Arms 1866 | Earl's Court, London | United Kingdom | 1866 | 2008 | Internationally known leather club in the 1970s and 1980s, nicknamed 'The Cloneherne'. | [26] | ||
Cook Munich | Augsburgerstrasse 21 | Munich | Germany | – | – | Western Levi Leather | [27] | |
Cow Palace Saloon | San Francisco | United States | – | – | [5] | |||
Cuff Complex | Seattle | United States | 1993 | |||||
Dallas Eagle | Dallas | United States | 2000 | - (closed 2021; reopened 2023) | [28][29] | |||
DC Eagle | Washington, D.C. | United States | 1971 | 2020 | [30] | |||
Denver Eagle | Denver | United States | 2022 | - | [31] | |||
Depot | Schirmerstr. 61 | Düsseldorf | Germany | Gay Cruising & Fetish Club | [32] | |||
The Detroit Eagle | Detroit | United States | 1973 | – | [33] | |||
The Eagle | 510 N.E. 13th St. | Fort Lauderdale | United States | [34] | ||||
The Eagle | Pittsburgh | United States | 1994 | 2012 | [35] | |||
The Eagle | Manchester | United Kingdom | 2008 | – | [36] | |||
Eagle Amsterdam | Amsterdam | Netherlands | 1979 | – | [37] | |||
Eagle Houston | Houston | United States | 2014 | – | [38] | |||
Eagle in Exile | 893 N. Fourth St. | Columbus | United States | [39] | ||||
Eagle LA | Los Angeles | United States | 2006 | – | [40] | |||
Eagle London | London | United Kingdom | 2004 | – | [41] | |||
EAGLE MPLS | Minneapolis | United States | 1998 | – | [42] | |||
Eagle Munich | Buttermelcherstraße 2a | Munich | Germany | [43] | ||||
Eagle NYC | New York City | United States | 1970 | – | [44] | |||
Eagle Portland | Portland, Oregon | United States | – | – | [45] | |||
Eagle Sao Paulo | São Paulo | Brazil | - | - | [46] | |||
Eagle Seoul | Seoul | South Korea | - | - | [47] | |||
Eagle's Nest (later: the Eagle) | New York City | United States | 1970 | Owned by leatherman Bob Milne, became the model for numerous "Eagle" bars. | [16] | |||
Eagle Stuttgart | Stuttgart | Germany | 1989 | – | [48] | |||
Eagle Tokyo | Tokyo | Japan | 2016 | – | [49] | |||
Eagle Vienna | Vienna | Austria | – | – | [50] | |||
Eagle Wilton Manors | Wilton Manors | United States | – | – | [51] | |||
Fe-Be's | Folsom Street, South of Market, San Francisco | United States | 1966 | 1986 | Most influencal leather bar in San Francisco in the second half of the 60s, part of the "Miracle Mile" on Folsom Street, also housed the shop A Taste of Leather. | |||
The Gauntlet | Los Angeles | United States | ||||||
The Gauntlet 2 | Los Angeles | United States | ||||||
Gold Coast | Chicago | United States | 1960 | 1988 | First designated leather bar in Chicago, owned by leatherman Chuck Renslow, murals by Dom Orejudos (Etienne). Sponsor of the "Mr. Gold Coast" pageant (1972-78), which in 1979 developed into International Mr. Leather. | [52] | ||
Headquarters | San Francisco | United States | [5] | |||||
In Between | San Francisco | United States | between Febe's and the Ramrod | [5] | ||||
Le Stud | Montreal | Canada | 1996 | |||||
Lodge | New York City | United States | c. 1954 | c. 1964 | First leather bar in New York City that imposed a dress code. | [16] | ||
Loreley | Hamburg | Germany | 1969 | Probably the first leather bar in Germany. | [53] | |||
Man's Country | Chicago | United States | ||||||
Milwaukee Eagle | Milwaukee | United States | 1997 | 2001 | [54] | |||
Mineshaft | Manhattan, New York City | United States | 1976 | 1985 | Members-only BDSM leather bar and sex club for gay men. Predecessor leather bars in the same building since 1968. | [55][56] | ||
New Action | Kleiststr. 35 | Berlin | Germany | 1991 | [57] | |||
No Name | San Francisco | United States | [5] | |||||
Ochsengarten | Munich | Germany | 1969 | First leather bar in Bavaria and one of the first leather bars in Germany. | [58][53] | |||
Phoenix | San Francisco | US | [5] | |||||
The Phoenix/Eagle | New Orleans | United States | 1983 | – | [59] | |||
Powerhouse | San Francisco | US | [5] | |||||
Providence Eagle | Providence | United States | - | - | [60][61] | |||
Ramrod | Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City | United States | 1973 | 1980 | The bar was shuttered and never reopened after an act of anti-gay gun violence in 1980. | [62] | ||
Ramrod | Folsom Street, South of Market, San Francisco | United States | 1968 | ? | Part of the "Miracle Mile" on Folsom Street | [16] | ||
Red Star Saloon | San Francisco | United States | [5] | |||||
San Diego Eagle | San Diego | United States | [63] | |||||
San Francisco Eagle | San Francisco | United States | 1981 | – | [64] | |||
San Francisco Eagle (also SF Eagle; formerly Eagle Tavern) | South of Market, San Francisco | United States | 1981 | San Francisco Designated Landmark designated in 2021. | [65] | |||
Seattle Eagle (formerly J&L Saloon) | Seattle | United States | c. 1982 | First leather bar in Seattle. | [66] | |||
Seattle Eagle | Seattle | United States | 1980 | – | [67] | |||
Shaw's | New York City | United States | c. 1953 | c. 1964 | First "leather friendly bar" in New York City | [16] | ||
Spike | Holzstraße 14 | Munich | Germany | Gay Bar And Smokers Club | [68] | |||
Stables | San Francisco | United States | [5] | |||||
Stiefelknecht | Wimmergasse 20 | Vienna | Austria | [69] | ||||
The Stud | San Francisco | United States | 1966 | Originally part of the "Miracle Mile" on Folsom Street, owned by George Matson and Alexis Muir (Muir was a transgender woman then known as Richard Conroy). | [70] | |||
Stud | Los Angeles | United States | – | – | drummer 3 p 44 | |||
The Stud | Thalkirchener Straße 2 | Munich | Germany | – | – | Leather Levis Uniform Club | [71] | |
Tom's Bar | Berlin | Germany | 1982 | 2024 | ||||
Tom's Leather Bar | Mexico City | Mexico | 1995 | – | [72] | |||
Toms Saloon | Hamburg | Germany | 1974 | – | Murals by Tom of Finland | [73] | ||
Tool Box | South of Market, San Francisco | United States | 1962 | 1971 | First leather bar in South of Market, murals by Chuck Arnett. Featured in "Homosexuality in America", an article published by Life magazine 1964. | [74] | ||
Trench | San Francisco | United States | – | – | [5] | |||
Touché | 2825 North Lincoln | Chicago | United States | – | – | [75] | ||
Why Not | San Francisco | United States | 1961 | 1961 | First leather bar in San Francisco, managed by leatherman Tony Tavarossi, closed after a vice squad arrest. | [16] | ||
Wildsau | Zähringerstraße 11 | Zürich | Switzerland | – | – | [76] |
References
[edit]- ^ a b Hilderbrand, Lucas (2023). The bars are ours: histories and cultures of gay bars in America, 1960 and after. Durham: Duke University Press. pp. 37–39. ISBN 978-1-4780-2728-7.
- ^ a b Rubin, Gayle (2005). "Sites, settlements, and urban sex: archaeology and the study of gay leathermen in San Francisco, 1955-1995". In Schmidt, Robert A.; Voss, Barbara L. (eds.). Archaeologies of Sexuality. Routledge. pp. 62–88.
- ^ "AA Meat Market". Leather Archives & Museum.
- ^ Skroch, Michael (August 7, 2018). "ABQ Eagle at Sidewinders Bar and Grill". Archived from the original on August 7, 2018. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Gayle Rubin, excerpted from "Requiem for the Valley of the Leather Kings," originally published in Southern Oracle, 1989
- ^ https://myprivacy.dpgmedia.nl/consent?siteKey=5id0G7K93Kr6sOje&callbackUrl=https%3a%2f%2fwww.parool.nl%2fprivacy-wall%2faccept%3fredirectUri%3d%252fnieuws%252fdarkroom-wordt-herinnering-aan-vorige-eeuw-door-grindr%257ebc8825328%252f%253freferrer%253dhttps%253a%252f%252fen.wikipedia.org%252f%2526utm_source%253dlink%2526utm_medium%253dsocial%2526utm_campaign%253dshared_earned. Retrieved 2024-07-07.
{{cite web}}
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- ^ a b c d e f Bienvenu, Robert (1998). "Development of the Gay Leather style". The Development of Sadomasochism as a Cultural Style in the Twentieth-Century United States. Dissertation. pp. 220–273.
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{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Randy Henson's Brief History of The Seattle Eagle: Daring To Be Different For 35 Years – Seattle Gay Scene". Retrieved 2024-06-27.
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{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "The Stud – Leather Levis Uniform Club". archiv.forummuenchen.org. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
- ^ "TOM'S Leather Bar". toms-mexico.com. Retrieved 2024-07-07.
- ^ "Tom of Finland". Toms Saloon Hamburg. Retrieved 2024-06-27.
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- ^ "Wildsau Zürich – Die spannendste Fetisch-Bar Zürichs". archiv.forummuenchen.org. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
External links
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