Orange County History Center highlights Orlando’s LGBTQ+ history and community

(Photo by Ana Ferreira Lizama)

ORLANDO | The Orange County Regional History Center hosted a Pride-themed Lunch & Learn on Oct. 2, to explore the history and journey of Orlando’s LGBTQ+ community.

The presentation, led by Cheyenne Stastyshyn, the museum’s public program coordinator, took attendees back to a time before Florida was formally established as a state, beginning with the period before European colonization.

“When we look at the indigenous societies that existed here before colonization, we find evidence that gender and sexuality were understood in ways that did not always fit European categories,” Stastyshyn says.

She explained that after European settlers arrived on Indigenous lands, they used terms such as “hermaphrodites” to describe individuals who did not conform to European gender expectations.

“It was seen that in this era, hermaphrodites were seen as communicators with the spirit world, adversaries to the chiefs and even healers,” Stastyshyn explains. “Their roles were described as having a very spiritual significance.”

From there, the presentation moved to Orlando in 1914, when Dr. Calvin D. Christ was summoned to the Orange County Home for Indigents, where a 64-year-old Orlando resident, Hiram E. Calder, reportedly confessed that he was born a woman.

“The news shocked Orlando,” Stastyshyn says. “Ever since Hiram and his wife Sarah had moved to Orlando years before, no one had ever thought to question his gender.”

According to the Orange County Regional History Center’s website, Calder was born in Maryland in 1850 as Hanna Calder. In his 20s, Calder opened a small business offering shaves for men and haircuts for them and their children.

At age 29, Calder spoke with the Rev. J. Alphonse Frederick about marriage, according to an article published in 1884.

“The news article described how four years earlier a woman began to notice a romantic attachment towards another woman. She visited a doctor who discovered that, perhaps due to latent development, she was in fact a man,” Stastyshyn explained.

(Photo by Ana Ferreira Lizama)

From Calder’s story, the presentation moved to 1956, when members of the LGBTQ+ community continued to face discrimination, this time with the support of laws and government institutions.

That year, the Johns Committee, formally known as the Florida Legislative Investigation Committee, was created. According to UF Libraries, the committee investigated alleged communist connections among integrationist organizations and sought to purge academic liberals and people labeled as “subversives” from educational institutions.

“Investigators used aggressive, unconstitutional tactics, often pulling students and faculty into rooms to interrogate them, coerce confessions, and force them to name other gay individuals. As a result, more than 100 professors lost their jobs, and 400 students were expelled or forced to drop out of school,” Stastyshyn added.

According to Stastyshyn, members of the LGBTQ+ community lived in fear for nearly a decade. However, the Stonewall uprising in New York City helped foster a greater sense of solidarity among LGBTQ+ individuals, including those in Central Florida.

That sense of community contributed to the creation of the “Gay and Lesbian Gang,” a group of business leaders who opened establishments for gay people by gay people.

Those efforts helped shape what is now known as Orlando’s Pride community. As members of the LGBTQ+ community sought spaces where they could gather without having to hide or present themselves differently, they began organizing events such as gay picnics.

“These picnics saw large gatherings of gays, lesbians, bisexuals and more coming together for music, drinks, grilling, gangs, and community advocacy,” Stastyshyn said. “It was common to see medical providers popping up at the picnics, along with local businesses who catered or served the gay community here in Central Florida.”

According to Stastyshyn, one of the main locations for these gatherings was Bill Frederick Park at Turkey Lake.

Michael Hodges, who attended the Lunch & Learn, said that although he is a native Orlando resident, the presentation introduced him to new information about the history of the local LGBTQ+ community.

Hodges said the presentation also raised questions about the continued importance of Pride and the role these gatherings play in bringing the community together.

“I think it was brought up in this meeting too, the question about, ‘do we still need Pride?’ and I completely endorse the response given, being that we all need the power of being amongst our own,” Hodges says.

For him, that sense of community is also connected to the long history of LGBTQ+ people in Orlando and their continued presence in the community.

“We’ve always been here,” Hodges shares. “We just have never been as fortunate now, and present and authentic.”

For more information, visit TheHistoryCenter.org.