Pride is a year-round celebration here, and the city’s massive Latine population makes it one of the most diverse and vibrant LGBTQ+ communities in the country. Whatever you’re looking for, Miami’s got it. That would make the Atlanta Eagle the first recognized and protected LGBTQ landmark in the Deep South, local historians with Historic Atlanta told WXIA-TV. And the fun isn’t just limited to the 305-Wilton Manors and Fort Lauderdale up north are longtime queer hotspots in their own right. ATLANTA (AP) Atlanta has begun the process of designating a gay bar as a historic landmark, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms says. Today, the options for a fun night out are endless. Specialties: Considered the only last surviving gay bar within the newcastle gay community Established in 2000. Throughout the years, LGBTQ+ locals have found each other through nightlife, whether that be in a club with booming speakers, a drag show with high-kicking queens, or a cocktail bar over casual conversation.
Stars like Grace Jones, Sylvester, and Divine were regulars at the iconic Copa Club in Fort Lauderdale, and the warm weather and lively local community made South Florida a coveted home for folks from all walks of life. South Florida’s history as a gay Mecca dates back decades.
And in Miami, a city that already lends itself to that mindset, nightlife remains at the center of the LGBTQ+ life. The designation should help the Eagle stay in business regardless of who buys the lot it is located on.For decades, LGBTQ+ nightlife has brought people together, creating a place where everyone can be themselves, no matter who they are or how they identify. "The city needs to do more to acknowledge the critical role that places like the Eagle continue to play in making San Francisco such a special place, and I am proud to put forward one of SOMA’s most beloved Legacy Businesses and gay bars for this important distinction,”Īccording to San Francisco Planning, "The intent of Landmark designation is to protect, preserve, enhance and encourage continued utilization, rehabilitation and, where necessary, adaptive use of significant cultural resources." "The SF Eagle is one of the few remaining Leather bars in this area and holds great significance for the LGBT community, LGBT history, and, indeed, the history of San Francisco," Haney said when he petitioned the other supervisors to support the landmark ordinance. The bar's gay owners supported the designation, which San Francisco city Supervisor Matt Haney, who represents the area, set in motion last year not long after the lot where the bar is located was put up for sale. The South of Market location is within the city's Leather and LGBTQ Cultural District, but, according to the Bay Area Reporter, it's the first LGBTQ landmark designated within the district.Ī recently developed Eagle Plaza now fronts the bar and honors the city's leather, kink, and LGBTQ communities. A lot of bars named Eagle pay homage to the start of the gay leather culture. In 1970 after the Stonewall riots, the Eagle Open Kitchen was bough by Jack Modica who turned the pub into a leather/levi bar. The unanimous vote by the San Francisco supervisors had been expected after the city leaders provided preliminary approval for the declaration two weeks prior. There is scant historical documentation, however, to determine which establishments opened as gay/lesbian establishments, transformed into them over time. The Eagle bar originally was a longshoremans pub called the Eagle Open Kitchen that opened in 1930s. Although Atlanta's Eagle received landmark status first, it was founded six years after the San Francisco location. of the same name to become a local landmark, following 2020's designation of Atlanta's leather bar as a historical landmark. This is the second leather bar in the U.S. The local queer community has been advocating for years to save LGBTQ+ sites before they are shuttered and their historical value lost.
The bar often enforced a dress code requiring either leather or. History of the DC Eagle Roots In the late 1960s, a group of guys put together dinners for local motorcyclists and leathermen. The gay bar becomes the first leather community site to be named a historical landmark in the city. The Eagle was a leather/levi bar with a dance floor, and was initially extremely popular.
San Francisco supervisors have granted city landmark status to the San Francisco Eagle, a leather bar founded in 1981.