Nominations recommended by the SACHP will be submitted to the National Park Service, which maintains the Register under the authority of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966.

The meeting agenda and virtual registration details can be found on the SACHP webpage here.

The next SACHP meeting is scheduled for October. Check back for details!

 

While still years behind where it should be, Oregon’s preservation community is working toward building a more culturally and racially inclusive historic record, and the nomination of Darcelle XV marks a step in the right direction. 

According to the National Park Service, prior to the Obama Administration there were only ten LGBTQ sites designated as a National Historic Landmarks or listed in the National Register of Historic Places, but no national monuments dedicated to the contributions of LGBTQ Americans existed. During Pride Month in 2016, President Obama designated the Stonewall National Monument as the country’s first LGBTQ national monument -- a recognition long-deserved. 

As author of the National Register of Historic Places nomination for Darcelle XV and the chair of the Portland Historic Landmarks Commission, Kristen Minor wrote:

“Darcelle XV Showplace stands out from other drag clubs of the pre-Stonewall era for its public alignment with gay culture, illustrated by its gay owner performing onstage and the multiple drag events supported and sponsored there. No other drag club of the time managed to operate so openly in support of the LGBTQ community.”

While the end of the period of significance is less than 50 years in the past*, the number of LGBTQ-affiliated bars, restaurants, drag clubs or other commercial spaces that opened in the pre-Stonewall era across the United States and that still operate under the same owner, much less in the same location, is vanishingly small. As a nightclub and drag venue, the aesthetic of Darcelle XV Showplace reflects the improvised, low-budget and self-reliant illusion of glamour that resulted from its development during the late 1960s and early 1970s when drag was celebrated mostly behind closed doors due to gay discrimination and the threat of harassment.”

Congratulations, Walter Cole and Darcelle XV! Read the full nomination here. 

* The above-referenced period of significance ended in 1973. While Darcelle XV Showplace itself is over 50 years old, the end of the period of significance will not hit the 50 year mark until 2023.