Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project

I’ve ARRIVED. 🥂

Le***an bars have existed in Milwaukee since the 1950s, when Nite Beat (Walker's Point) and the Wildwood (Bronzeville) welcomed butch and femme alike to safe, affiming, women-only spaces. These could be rowdy and chaotic spaces -- Nite Beat famously boarded up its bay windows because their brawling customers kept throwing barstools through them -- and the patrons could be especially unfriendly to newcomers.

One thing was certain: every single one of these le***an bars was owned by straight men motivated by money, not supporting their customers or the community. Not ONE bar was owned by an out le***an, nor did le***ans hired as staff or management have any say in how the business was run.

EVERYTHING changed in March 1975.

Sharon Dixon and JoAnn Kilsdonk operated the Sugar Shack -- the first bar "by women, for women" -- at 135 E. National Avenue. Sharon had been working in Milwaukee bars for years: as a bouncer, as a bartender, as a manager. She'd seen and learned much about nightlife. And she'd had enough with people profiting from her community. She talked her partner JoAnn into opening a place they could call their own.

"If you wanted to make money back then, you opened a men's bar," said Sharon. "Men had more disposable income. Men had more personal freedom. Men could put their family duties aside for the night and go out to the boy bars. Women couldn't do any of that in 1975. So people thought we were crazy to open a bar for women. But we were convinced it was the right thing to do."

"We expected a slow start, but it was a madhouse from the first weekend. We'd have women showing up by the hundreds! Women would come from all over the region: Madison, Wausau, the UP, Iowa, Indiana. We had a regular bunch who came up from Chicago. They were just so happy to have a space of their own, and owners who knew what they wanted. They were giving their dollars to members of their own community for the first time."

"Nowadays it doesn't seem like a big deal. But back then, it was a really big deal, not to have to give money to people who hated us. "

The Sugar Shack was a runaway success. For the next four years, JoAnn and Sharon ran the bar while also managing a household, family, and relationship. After the couple separated, Sharon stepped away from the business. JoAnn sold the Sugar Shack in 1981.

JoAnn never owned another women's bar after the Sugar Shack. She passed away in 2019 at age 75. Sharon would own and operate bars at 200 E. Washington for nearly 30 years. She also had a hand in running Mike & Anna's, Mom's Kitchen, the Lost & Found, Shorty's Party Room (later Kathy's Nut Hut) and Etcetera. In 1979, she almost opened a women's sports bar, Breakaway, in what later became Harbor Room.

According to the Le***an Bar Project, there are about 36 surviving le***an bars across America. And these numbers are increasing again -- after a long, steep, treacherous decline since the 1980s.

Sharon and JoAnn wanted to see change in their world. So they made the change happen -- and in turn, they changed Wisconsin LGBTQ history forever. Today, on International Le***an Day, we give thanks to Sharon and JoAnn. For everything! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

Centuries of Wisconsin history.
Twelve stories of genderfluid pioneers.
One stunning guest speaker.

“Before We Were Trans” was the Port Conversation of the season — and we loved every minute of our time with you.

Thank you to our amazing audience, PW Pride and the WJ Niederkorn Library for welcoming us to town tonight! 🩷🤍🩵

Thank you to HIVE - City of Milwaukee Employee Resource Group and Alderman Peter Burgelis for welcoming us to their LGBTQ History Month celebration tonight!

HIVE has been one of our partners for several years. We are thankful to work with them on planning inclusive exhibits and events at Milwaukee City Hall.

Have fun tonight, y’all! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

Did you know?

Today, October 8, is International Le***an Day -- a day to honor the historic contributions of le***an pioneers, changemakers, and trailblazers.

Today, we celebrate the le***ans making Wisconsin LGBTQ history: then, now, and always. 🧡🤍🩷

A new Wisconsin LGBT History Project documentary and traveling exhibit will celebrate eight pioneers whose decades of work helped shape Madison’s LGBTQ community.

🔗 https://ourliveswisconsin.com/article/beacons-of-badgerland-documentary-to-honor-eight-madison-lgbtq-pioneers/

They lit the torches. They carved the path. And they led the way.

They're activists. Educators. Entertainers. Caregivers. Authors. Veterans. Legislators. And much, much more.

Join us in elevating and celebrating their lived experiences at Beacons of Badgerland, coming to Madison this fall! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

‘Beacons of Badgerland’ documentary to honor eight Madison LGBTQ pioneers A new Wisconsin LGBT History Project documentary and traveling exhibit will celebrate eight pioneers whose decades of work helped shape Madison’s LGBTQ community.

Imagine going to school every day knowing you could be beaten, humiliated and terrorized -- and knowing that none of the adults responsible for protecting you would step in.

That was Jamie Nabozny’s reality.

As a gay student in Ashland, Wisconsin, Jamie endured years of horrific anti-gay bullying. He was beaten by classmates, harassed in school, and repeatedly subjected to treatment that no student should ever have to endure. And when Jamie and his family sought help, teachers and school administrators failed -- if not outright refused -- to protect him.

Despite being traumatized, Jamie vowed never to surrender.

He chose to fight back -- not with violence, but in court. His lawsuit ultimately reached the federal courts, won its appeal, and set a landmark precedent for the rights of LGBTQ students.

Jamie’s courage helped establish a critical principle: schools cannot simply stand by while students are subjected to severe harassment because of who they are. "Boys will be boys" was no longer an acceptable excuse; knowingly allowing abuse was now grounds for negligence punishable by law.

His story did not just make Wisconsin LGBTQ history.

It didn't just inspire the formation of Wisconsin's first Gay-Straight Alliances.

It didn't just lay the foundation of the organization now known as GSAFE.

Jamie's case changed American legal history forever.

Today, as protections for LGBTQ students face renewed political challenges, Jamie Nabozny’s experience remains a powerful reminder of why accountability matters.

Every student, then now and always, deserves a school where they are safe, protected and treated with dignity. Today, we say thanks to Jamie, whose personal victory was a victory for students everywhere.

INFO: https://bit.ly/jamien24

Festival season isn't over yet!

Join us October 22-25 for BLAQtoberfest 2026, celebrating the future of Black, Brown, Latino, Indigenous, and LGBTQ communities. Hosted by BLAQMKE, BLAQtoberfest weekend is a step towards a more just, healthy, and liberated future.

We are proud to sponsor BLAQtoberfest as an expression of our commitment to social justice and community belonging. Learn more at https://blaqmke.com/

What if 40 women decided to buy 80 acres of land -- and build a world of their own?

It happened fifty years ago in Monroe County!

In 1976, women from Madison and Milwaukee came together with a radical idea: why not collectively purchase land where women could live, raise children, share skills, retreat from the outside world, and create a harmonic community.

They called it the Wisconsin Womyn’s Land Co-op. The group eventually established Daughters of the Earth (DOE), an 80-acre campground property in Norwalk, Wisconsin.

The land cost $37,500. Members financed it collectively, built and maintained the community, and created a space where women could explore alternative ways of living. While described as "primitive" and "rustic," the property had a dance barn and sauna. It was supported extensively by the le***an press, including Amazon and Leaping La Crosse.

At its height, as many as 250 women were members who shared ownership of this sacred space.

For Wisconsin’s le***an community, the land was especially meaningful. This was no mere feminist experiment. Daughters of the Earth was part of a larger movement of le***ans creating their own homes, communities and institutions at a time when finding safe, welcoming, women-first spaces was especially difficult.

Despite a thriving Facebook group, the community had dwindled to five permanent caretakers by 2011 and two by 2016. It is unknown if Daughters of the Earth is still operating as a functioning co-op. We welcome any available information about this landmark. We would love to know more about this incredible chapter of Wisconsin women's history.

Explore over 100 LGBTQ organizations throughout Wisconsin history at our website: http://tinyurl.com/organizations26