The Lesbian Herstory Archives houses the world's largest collection of materials by and about lesbians and their communities. The oldest lesbian archive in the world, it was begun in 1973 to insure preservation of lesbian culture and history. The archive was opened in 1976 and moved to its present quarters, a three-story building in Brooklyn, in 1991. It is a living archive in which materials are continually being added. Its enormous breadth and depth sets it apart from more narrowly focused archives. This is in keeping with the Archive's mission to collect widely and in a way that acknowledges geographical and ethnic diversity. Among its many collections the Archive contains over 1,000 subject files which offer a wealth of information on all aspects of lesbian life, communities, and activism from the 1950s through the present. The subject files contain information on every conceivable aspect of lesbian life and concerns, from abortion to African-American lesbians, lesbian mothers, gay civil rights, women's liberation movement, domestic partnership, older lesbians, and Native American lesbians, to name just a few of the important subjects. The materials consist of clippings, flyers, brochures, conference materials, reports, correspondence, and other printed ephemera not generally published so not available in other libraries. A strength of the collection is its vast scope and national coverage.

Part 1, Abortion-Bookstores
27 reels

Part 2, Breasts-Fem
24 reels

Part 3, Feminism-International Lesbian Movement
25 reels

Part 4, International Women's Day-Peace Camps
26 reels

Part 5, Peace Corps-Speakers Bureau
28 reels

Part 6, Spinsters-Youth
20 reels

Complete collection: 150 reels in six parts