The exhibit covers a wide spectrum of gay and lesbian history. The first sodomy trial in the Hunter was in Singleton in 1841. James Cameron, a free immigrant, was acquitted of sodomy but found guilty of assault and sentenced to three years in jail. In 1867, at Raymond Terrace, two gay bullock drivers were spied on by the local constabulary, charged and given the death penalty, later commuted to five years hard labour. In postwar Newcastle, a distinct homosexual subculture developed.
Lesbian history is even more difficult to recover.
Women's friendships were often seen as romantic rather than sexual and female homosexuality was not a crime. This fascinating exhibition also includes a chronology of gay and lesbian venues, the various social and support groups that existed over the years, the publications they produced and activities they organised. This article was posted on the G reen L eft W eekly H ome P age.