19th-Century Photographer Alice Austen’s Cache of 7,500 LGBTQ+ Images Resurfaces

Over 7,500 original prints and negatives by Alice Austen, a key street photographer from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, are being relocated to her Staten Island residence, now known as the Alice Austen House. This transition will finalize the structure’s collection of her work. Austen had given her archive to the Staten Island Historical Society after her eviction in 1945. After 80 years, it has found its way back to its initial location.

Alice Austen is celebrated for her street photography, providing insight into the experiences of women during the Victorian period. She was among the first female photographers to venture outside of a studio, documenting immigrant communities and the working class in Manhattan. Her personal work illustrates the life she led with Gertrude Tate, with whom she shared a home for over 30 years. In 2017, the Alice Austen House was recognized as a National LGBT Historic Site.

The museum intends to digitize the archive beginning in late 2025 to ensure widespread access. Victoria Munro, executive director of the Alice Austen House, stresses the significance of safeguarding these essential legacies, particularly during times when LGBTQ+ communities encounter renewed threats of erasure.